By Jeremiah Sosa
Photos Courtesy of Phat Turtle BBQ

After serving up their highly regarded Kansas City style barbecue to Cave Creek for over a year, phat turtle bbq recently expanded and opened their newest location in anthem.

Owned by Mike and Kelly Sloan, Phat Turtle BBQ serves smoked meats, which include their black angus prime brisket, baby back ribs, brisket burgers, hand-cased sausage, as well as their beloved burnt ends. “To be able to bring authentic Kansas City barbecue to Arizona is something that nobody has done in the state yet, and people really responded to that more so than we even thought they would,” Mike Sloan says.

Phat Turtle BBQ not only serves meats, which they smoke in-house, but many sides and desserts that are all made from scratch. Cream corn, brisket baked beans, chocolate chip banana bread, peach cobbler, and cookie dough are all popular menu items.

“We’re a scratch kitchen, and a lot of barbecue restaurants aren’t that; they buy a lot of the stuff pre-made,” Sloan says. “That separates us from everybody else.”

“As soon as we got the Phat Turtle Cave Creek up and running, and we got all of the flavors pinned down, then we started looking for another location,” he continues. “The space in Anthem became available and it fit our business profile perfectly.”
An integral part of both Phat Turtle BBQ restaurants not only revolves around the flavors of their Kansas City style barbecue but also the atmosphere of the restaurants. That is why they have ongoing events at their two locations like live musical guests on weekends, Tuesday trivia nights, as well as Texas Hold’em tournaments.

“We don’t want this to just be a barbecue restaurant, we want people to have something to do while they are waiting for their food,” Mike Sloan says.

Phat Turtle BBQ’s Anthem restaurant is located at the Anthem Crossroads, 39508 W. Daisy Mountain Drive, Ste. 158. To learn more about Phat Turtle BBQ, visit phatturtlebbq.com. To keep up with the latest news and information, you can follow them on Instagram and Facebook at @phatturtlebbq.