Soul & Smoke barbecue opening flagship restaurant in Evanston
CHICAGO (CBS) — For Foodie Friday, a barbeque spot with outposts from Evanston to Soldier Field will add a new sit-down restaurant to its roster. Our Jamaica ponder takes us to what will soon be
Soul & Smoke's flagship shop is currently undergoing renovations inside of an old barn in Evanston - a canvas that's becoming increasingly less blank.
"We had rubble for a lot of months, and we didn't have floors, and we now have walls, and the smokers are here, and there's ductwork, and it's progress," said Heather Bublick, owner.
The restaurant belongs to Bublick and her husband, D'Andre Carter — both restaurant industry veterans turned founders of Soul & Smoke barbecue.
"We kind of started doing takeout out of the drawer right here, and it really just took off. People were loving it, and we were busier than we ever expected to be," Bublick said.
What started as a catering company has taken several forms since it began in 2012.
"There's been farmer's markets and food trucks, and ghost kitchens, and the ghost kitchens morphed into food halls, but it's very much, you know, a kiosk and counter service," Bublick said.
Despite having Soul & Smoke set-ups at Solider Field and in Time Out Market, they've yet to open a full-service restaurant. This will be their first.
"We were like, we have to, we have to expand. Like, people want to come and sit down and eat. Takeout is unsustainable forever," Bublick said.
They're expanding not only the space but also the menu, with more sides, appetizers, and plates of their famously smoked slabs of meat.
"We have a whole, you know, soul food type, and, you know, it's that it's more than barbecue," Bublick said. "I mean, we really want to make it feel like you're coming to our backyard barbecue like you're coming to our house."
Her house and her daughters aren't ever too far. Recently, they've started going to school, but they used to be in the restaurant just as much as their mom.
"You know, having a restaurant in my own community has really helped where my kid's school is six minutes away. My house is nine minutes away," Bublick said.
Allowing Bublick and her husband to juggle two kids under the age of seven and the new restaurants without dropping the ball or any blueberries.
"It's our life, and, you know, we really want to tell our story of Chicago food. Food we grew up eating, food that is comforting to people," she said.
Once the new location opens, Soul and Smoke will turn to building out their newest location in Avondale and giving their fans somewhere else to sit and eat in the city.
