Smokin' in Marin: Frank's Bar-B-Que

As any regular reader knows, we're always on the prowl for reasonably priced and, above all, good family-friendly restaurants in Marin. One thing that's nearly impossible to find in the North Bay is real barbeque. By "real" I mean genuine Southern-style slow cooked smoke barbeque (AKA "Q"), not (and no offense meant) grilled food, of which there's plenty to be found in the Bay Area. That's grilling, not barbeque. We used to be big fans of the now-defunct Rob's Rib Shack in Sonoma, so when we heard that Frank's Bar-B-Que was going to open in Novato, we got pretty excited.

Frank is something of a local legend for his barbeque offerings at various Marin County farmers' markets, as well as for the local catering business he's run for years. Now he's opened a neat little restaurant in a shopping center in Ignacio. It's brand spanking new, with a modern ambience and blues playing in the background. We checked Frank's out for lunch the other day, and we were all pleasantly surprised by how good it was. First off, when you step out of your car, you can smell the aromatic smoke from Frank's smoker as it wafts through the parking lot. That pretty much cemented our plans to eat there for lunch! The menu is heavy on Southern-style down-home meats like ribs, chicken, tri-tip, and even a barbequed turkey leg. Your main dish comes with one or two "fixins" or side dishes, including potato salad, cole slaw, baked beans, a corn muffin, and a green salad. We decided that the baked beans were the best of the lot, followed by the potato salad, which tasted like something your mom might make, if she was a really good cook. The kids liked their corn muffins, so I guess they were tasty.

We had tri-tip sandwiches and the barbequed chicken. The tri-tip was falling apart tender with a pronounced smokiness. The chicken was good, too, so much so that my 2-year-old decided that she wasn't in the sharing mood. The pieces we managed to sneak were good and smokey, too. Everything appeared to be seasoned with a dry rub that had a pronounced herb character, and of course it was all napped in Frank's signature sauce. What was most interesting is that the kids were more involved with their meals than we'd ever really noticed before, so it must have been a hit with them. I'd love it if at some point they'd offered traditional pulled pork. Perhaps some day...

Service was friendly. The place is brand new, so there were some minor kinks (no kid's cups... big deal). Prices are moderate; I think the most expensive thing was $15. Certainly, there's no reason to complain about small portions. Frank's has nightly specials for a bargain $10 or less. We're going to try to go back on a Tuesday or Thursday when they offer braised greens with pot likker and fried chicken. They also have Novato's own Moylan's beer on tap for a ridiculously cheap $3 a pint. They do takeout, too, with family-sized portions of their smoked meats.

Frank's Bar-B-Que is located at 459 Entrada Drive, and is open 11am to 9pm seven days a week. You can call them at (415) 382-0104 or visit their website (where you can download a copy of their menu) at www.franksbarbque.com.