When he opened Kiser’s BBQ Shack more than three years ago, co-owner Sean Kiser saw the restaurant’s East State Street site as a startup location and knew he would expand the business when the time came.
In less than a year, Kiser will open a restaurant in The Plains that will triple the current location’s capacity. Once open, Kiser’s BBQ at Eclipse will be the full-service equivalent of its predecessor.
The new restaurant will be open in March or April of next year, Kiser said, adding that the current location, 1002 E. State St., will be then be dubbed Kiser’s BBQ Express to reflect its quick lunch-oriented service.
“It’s really two different markets,” Kiser said. “Right now, we are a lunch destination. So here (at the new location), we’ll be able to really jump on that dinner side of things.”
Switching over to the “dinner side of things” includes trading the walk-up-and-order format of Kiser’s BBQ Express for a full wait staff, adding to the menu and expanding the catering business.
Built in 1901, Kiser’s new building, 11309 Jackson Drive, originated as the company store for workers of the Hocking Valley Coal Company. After completing renovations, including adding a kitchen in 2009, the owners of Eclipse Ltd. approached Kiser about four months ago with an offer for him to rent the space.
“We jumped on it, and here we are,” Kiser said.
Keith Beatty, Kiser’s kitchen manager, said the new, more spacious location offers more versatility. The first floor of the restaurant will hold 101 seats, whereas the Express seats 56. Kiser also plans to use the second floor, which will seat about 50 more, as a rental space for private parties.
The more expansive space will allow Kiser’s to amp up its catering services and add more side dishes to the menu, including foods that meet Complete Health Improvement Program guidelines.
Other changes to the original building in The Plains include a walk-in cooler and meat smoker behind the main building.
Longtime customer Chris Cozart ordered the chopped pork, french fries and coleslaw, but said she would like to see cornbread and more vegetables, like succotash, added to the menu.
For her, however, it’s the meat that keeps her coming back.
“I spent a lot of time on the East Coast, and they say that (their) barbecue is supposed to be the best, but I don’t think it can compare to what we can get right here,” she said.
Kiser’s emphasizes using local ingredients and most of its produce comes from Southeast Ohio.
“Using local products shows people that eating local is just as good, if not better, than getting store-bought stuff from companies far away,” Beatty said.
Kiser said that during the move, he must balance the current restaurant and the new one.
“What’s hard about trying to get a second place up and running is you can’t let the spot you have open go,” he said. “You have to constantly baby that.”
af116210@ohiou.edu
