Pork on a Fork BBQ Deer Valley

Hey! I am Justin Erickson, owner of Pork on a Fork BBQ and Catering. It all started half a century ago, when my father, Smokin Dan - as his friends liked to call him - entered his first BBQ competition back in Nebraska on a dare. Yeah, he was a crazy man! He did so well that he wanted to travel all over the Midwest and participate in different comps. I helped him on many occasions and in time he taught me the tricks and the trades of making some awesome BBQ. And pretty much that's how the BBQ bug bit me and in 2009, the idea of Pork on a Fork was formed. As far as the recipes are concerned, it was kept as a guarded secret. It was only after I became 18 years old, he initiated me to the secret process.

Up until now I and my beloved team are committed to continue serving not only delicious, but also high quality food. And this is why Pork on a Fork is successful through all these years. What about the recipe you ask? Well, it's still a secret. It is something like a heritage I will pass on to my son as my father did, hoping he will love it as much as I and his grandfather did.
Then in 2008, the recession really hit and Erickson was laid off in the mortgage industry that was his career for over 5 years. After that, he looked for work that wasn’t in a cubicle city or selling iPhone cases at the local mall. It was then that Justin really noticed that the bacon and eggs from the diner back home in Nebraska tasted way better than what you could pick up at a local grocery store. He then brain stormed on how he could get their superior meats to the valley and where they may offer it. They attended many farmers markets throughout Phoenix and noticed that there was nothing like theirs. That’s when the spark clicked that they could sell their meats at farmers markets. So they transported 400 pounds of assorted cuts of pork by the way of a rental car that Justin’s dad drove 22 hours (with dry ice of course) to see if this venture could be the real deal.

As the adventure began and Pork on a Fork (POAF) started selling their all-natural pork from Justin’s hog farm 1300 miles away, in a Farmers Market at Road Runner Park of off Cactus Rd; and did it take off!! We couldn’t keep many cuts in stock and had to move up to getting a refrigerating trucking company to deliver thousands of pounds on pallets and started doing 14 markets a week. POAF then added more to their plate (no pun intended) and started selling hot foods to the patrons. They rented a commercial kitchen with 12 other individuals and started making delicious homemade Biscuits and Gravy with the all-natural sausage and then soon added smoked pulled pork sandwiches to their repertoire….and it went over like gang busters. They couldn’t smoke enough pork shoulders to keep up with the demand and hated the fact that they were turning customers away. After 2 years on the farmer’s market scene and all the traveling to markets in Tucson, Pinetop, Mesa, Chandler, Ahwatukee, and many more, the boys got the idea of starting a small eatery. After months of searching for the perfect spot, they found a restaurant that was just their style and budget. Pork on a Fork BBQ Grill is tucked into a small business park near Deer Valley Airport. You can almost miss it, but all you need to do is look for the BBQ flags blowing in the smoked filled wind or just follow your nose.

It only had 5 tables, but already had a brick rotisserie that came in handy. Justin converted it to the smoker that they still use to this day. POAF does BBQ the right way….the only way they know, COMPETITION STYLE. This means no gas/propane and that they use only lump charcoal and pecan wood in their pit. This guarantees that the flavor will be dead on every time. It didn’t take long for the word to get out and they would have a line out the door for lunch and due to having only the 5 tables, they noticed their customers eating in the running cars or on the hood of their pickups. It took less than a year to notice they were on to something and have out grown. They needed to do something fast. People didn’t want to wait outside in line in the Arizona heat, let alone eat in the parking lot. Wes and Justin had to make a decision…..move to a new location or kick out their landlords in the back warehouse. Well, it turn out that the landlords loved their tenacity and work ethic that they were willing to pick up and move their business to another location and let POAF spread their wings. POAF then took over the warehouse area in the back of the suite and turned it into a large dining room. It doubled the square footage and almost quadrupled the seating capacity. Some say that they should open a Pork on a Fork BBQ Grill in their neck of the woods, so Wes and Justin are looking for the perfect 2nd location to serve the valley’s best BBQ.

So come and take a look around our website and then get in your car and come put some Pork on your Fork!!