I've landed on another planet!

[Alabama Sally]

Someone once told me that when you move to a new place (town, city, country) and miss something from home that you can't get in your new location, you have a business opportunity.
As a girl from Alabama, living in Yorkshire, I miss Bar-B-Que. Well, I don't actually miss it, because I keep my little Webber Grill on-the-go year 'round much to the amusement and enjoyment of my friends and family, but I do miss the food and atmosphere of going to a local joint.
Every person I feed my BBQ to (and I'm definitely a feeder) loves it, so I'm assuming that if BBQ was available commercially in Yorkshire it might go down really well.
Anyway, I am thinking about opening a BBQ joint. If I was in one of the southern states I would have a clue as to how well the restaurant might do, but in England things are a little more iffy. Although people love my Q, will I be able to convince "Joe British Public" to give it a try?
I see from google searches that there are a number of BBQ restaurants scattered throughout England, and I would love to pick-the-brain of anyone who has started up a BBQ business in England.
Ta very much.
Alabama Sally

[esselle]

Hi Sally and welcome. Joker smoker would be your man to quiz. He has a succesful BBQ set up in Brighton. Google bbqshack.

[All Weather Griller]

Welcome to the forum Sally, I'm on the outskirts of Yorkshire. The Notts/Yorks border.

There are a few places that do good meats, but like Al says pricing may put many folk off. One of the biggest issues for us in Notts are the council rates. For a restaurant with A2 status on the outskirts of our town you would be looking to pay our council £7,500 per year for the privilege. That's no bins emptied, nothing in return.

I'd love a BBQ joint, but to be honest it's a hell of a lot of hardwork for what I consider to be a very small return, and then there is the need for the dreaded "s" word... STAFF, who wants them? lol

I will be doing a Q at my mates local pub in York for Help the Heroes, I will PM you when I have more details.

Welcome, welcome, welcome.

Adie

[Alabama Sally]

Thank you all very much for your comments! I am seriously appreciative! I'm too damn old to fail in a business, so a lot of things to consider.
I have had a lot of concerns about getting people to try a new "ethnic food", so this is definitely something I have been thinking about. As far as location, I know that is vital and a real issue weighing up city center rents and rates vs lower rate areas with a smaller customer base.
I think what we are going to do is take out a temporary stall in our local town "Saturday Market" at a price of 35 pounds for a day and see how that goes. It's low risk, so we'll see. But working a market stall is not an ambition, so hopefully I will quickly gain a better idea of the level of acceptance for the products, and if there is a willingness to pay more money for better quality. Worst comes to worse I'll end up with one mighty fine smoker and my friends and family will love me forever.
Actually the British Pork Producers should join and support this site and BBQ in general. Good for business!
Thanks again for your help!!

[MadCow]

Hi Sally

I used to do many Farmers Markets (selling home produced sausages, bacon, cold meats etc) and always took the BBQ with me ... however I found that the most popular hot sales were from sausages and bacon (as in butties) where people could eat whilst walking around.

We did cook whole and half chickens and racks of ribs in the smoker to take away, but this tended to be less popular as they got cold before people got home (even in heat bags). One thing I would suggest is pre-cooked ribs / chicken / other meats that are chilled and vacuum packed with reheating and serving instructions ... that way people can reheat them when they are ready to eat them.

Just a suggestion, but it was the way we started to go before we decided to pack it all in.

[JonInAshby]

I just came across this thread, I know it's a few months old but wanted to add my thoughts. I've been thinking for a few years now that there's a huge opportunity to introduce US-style BBQ restaurants to the UK, but I DON’T see them as fast-food outlets trying to compete with the established burger/chicken/kebabs places – too much competition and too little profits to be bothered with.

I envision an out-of-town destination restaurant aimed at families and groups, fun informal dining in low-cost premises (idea is ‘BBQ shack’ so could be converted agricultural building), food served on greaseproof paper, large communal tables etc. Short menu reduces complexities of ordering, cooking and serving. Plenty of opportunity for theme nights, events, catering and up-selling of products to take home. One thing that makes me think this format will work is the success and popularity of Nandos - the chicken is distinctly underwhelming, but people seem to like the whole experience.

I would LOVE to go to a BBQ place like this and yet there is nothing like it in the UK as far as I know. If I had restaurant experience (and a less battered investment portfolio) I would be looking seriously into this.

[Chris__M]

For some reason, I am reminded of a place I visited in California earlier this year - Famous Dave's. They served individual dishes, but a resounding favourite was a family sized selection of BBQ, served in a trashcan lid. One of the biggest platters of food I have seen, and great fun.

I think you definitely have to pitch it as an experience just as much as food.

[esselle]

Exactly what Ashby needs