San Jose: Blue Rock BBQ, home of smoked meats and pecan pie, will close permanently

Not long after 6 p.m. Tuesday, the staff at the Blue Rock BBQ in San Jose — which will close for good Thursday — set up two chairs at the end of the long line at the cash register to signify that they were nearly out of food and wouldn’t take any more orders.

A little roadblock like that isn’t enough to stop true barbecue fans.

David Nuckles eased around the chairs and quietly got in line, hoping no one besides the real end-of-the-line customer and a reporter would notice. “We’re sad to see it close,” he said. “Now we’re going to have to find a new favorite place.”

For his subterfuge, he was rewarded with the opportunity to order a last meal here. As it turns out, the restaurant had sold out of brisket, ribs and more, but there was still enough pulled pork and pulled chicken to put together a few platters for takeout.

Expect Blue Rock to be packed like that for the next two days, as owners Owen and Marie Jobson have announced they are shutting down permanently after more than 14 years in business on Meridian Avenue in the city’s Cambrian district.

“Unfortunately, the economics have changed and we’ve got two more children to put through college,” Owen said. “Third-party delivery, the pandemic and the current state of the economy are the biggest challenges we faced.”

Raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, the Jobsons moved to Silicon Valley for jobs but soon missed the barbecue from back home. So they set up shop, smoking Tennessee-style pulled pork, Texas-style brisket and other meats over hickory, moving up to a Southern Pride SRG-400 smoker that “burns whole hickory logs and helps us prepare juicy barbecue with a delicious flavor and a nice smoke ring,” Owen posted at the time.

They espoused a “barbecue without borders” concept that also brought to the menu Thai chicken skewers, Indonesian beef skewers and a Cuban sandwich made with smoked pork.

And then there’s the barbecue joint specialty that the Densmore family drives from Mountain View to get at Blue Rock.

“The No. 1 thing is the pecan pie,” longtime customer Mike Densmore said. “We love it so much that we get the whole pie for the holidays.” His father, Patrick Densmore, confirmed: “It’s that good.” Mike quickly added: “Everything else is good too.” But the pie is paramount. “We even tried asking for the recipe,” mother Janice said.

That cherished pecan pie recipe was Owen’s grandmother’s. The Jobsons are still thinking through plans for their recipes and equipment.