The intersection of 1-25 and Wolfensberger is the usual area of Town where locals go to get fast food, fill up on gas or pick up a six-pack of beer. However, this should also be the place you think of when you want to make a stop for some down ‘home cooking.’
Inching close to dinnertime, we were getting hungry and ‘Old West Bar B Que’ presented itself as our dinner stop for the evening. Located at 107 Wolfensberger Road, we discovered a menu that could probably contend with any flavorful barbecue fixins’ your palette has previously enjoyed.
Housed in a building that was a former Taco Bell location, owner Randy Sorenson has since converted it to resemble a clean, orderly and artistic, cowboy joint that gives you the feeling of comfort. Inside, diners eat at series of giant picnic tables, while admiring old wooden cowboys, along with local art that depicts what the view looked like out the windows before buildings dominated the surrounding landscape.
Our family was welcomed in by Kiki (who we later found out was Randy’s daughter!) – who then asked to take our order from behind the counter. As we fumbled through the menu, she could easily tell that it was our first time, so she proceeded to walk us through the list.
We quickly came to the assumption that this was the place to definitely go into hungry, so you and/or the family can pack in as much of the menu’s deliciousness in you belly. Their mouth-watering menu features a mix of sandwiches, homemade sides, kids meals and other meaty concoctions. Note: if you are vegetarian, this probably shouldn’t be your first choice for dining in Castle Rock!
Through our friendly conversation, we let her know that we were likewise trying to avoid bread and toning down the gluten in general. It turned out that she happens to have a sensitivity to gluten as well, so she winked and offered us a side of her secret, gluten-free barbeque sauce to flavor our dinner.
It was a challenging, but we finally narrowed things down to a combo plate: choice of two meats, (brisket and pull-pork) with two sides (corn and beans), two slices of bread (which were held) and another side of pickles and onions. Our second order was a simple 1/2 rack of ribs, with 6 bones.
Our food came out of the kitchen picnic style on foam plates, with the ribs coming in a foam to-go container, for easy carry out. The ribs were slightly crispy from the grill on the outside – just as I like them – and were moist and tender, almost falling off the bone. They tasted like they has been rubbed with the right spices, salty and sweet and the house barbecue sauce definitely tasted like it was put together by the house; tangy, with a little flare.
Both the pork and the brisket from the second entrée were equally gooooooood! The tender, marinated meat slid down our throats, bite after bite. You could tell that the meat was of good quality and was pretty lean, with little fat. The corn was slightly buttery while the beans were sweet, finishing with brown sugar on the tongue.
Because we loved the food and they won us over with smiley service, Old West Bar B Que will see us again. It’s a great place to take the family or stop in for a quick bite that will satisfy. That night, our bill, food and a large ice tea totaled just under $35, so you can expect around that amount for a family of four – give or take a few dollars.
And rumor has it that we need to go back and try the homemade peach cobbler – and other desserts – as well as the breakfast burritos. They start serving at 7:30ish Monday – Friday or around 8:30ish on the weekends. Randy says he likes to keep the morning hours pretty relaxed, so don’t expect any food to be ready to eat right when they open. But let us tell you, it’s well worth the few minutes you will wait!
Old West Bar B Que
107 Wolfsenberger Road
Castle Rock, CO 80109
(303) 660-6340
http://www.theoldwestbarbque.com/
