A familiar icon returned to the Southern end of Hilton Head Island not that long ago. The Smokehouse BBQ re-opened exactly 800 days after a fire destroyed the building. Jerry Leonard is the owner. To say he’s excited to be back, well, is an understatement. Here’s a portion of our conversation. You can hear the entire conversation on our podcast. Click here for that.
JB: It’s been a hell of a year and a half for everyone but moreso for you. For those that aren’t familiar, your restaurant burned. It had to be rebuilt, right? Tell us what happened?
Jerry Leonard: That is correct. We’ve been on Hilton Head since 1999. Until June 9, 2019 when an electrical problem caused a fire that spread into the attic and created a total loss of the building we had here.
JB: June of 2019. At that point, inspections and insurance and all of that important stuff needs to sort itself out. How long did all of that take?
JL: Ironically, I did all of the counting up and we were closed for exactly 800 days. So it was over 2 years. The process was certainly a long one. Whether it was the insurance claims, then after that determining that we did want to rebuild the restaurant. We have such a great customer base, we felt like we owed it to the community and our customers.
JB: How did the 2020 shutdown affect you? Had you begun your re-build already?
JL: Yeah, a little. I think we started going vertical that May. It certainly had an affect on the cost of the project and the time the project took. Raw materials had gone through the roof. Turned out to be the worst time to rebuild a restaurant.
JB: 800 days. Did you choose that day or did it just kind of happen?
JL: No, we didn’t know we were going to open until it happened. We were waiting on inspections from the town and everything else. There was site work and parking lots. We were staffed up, just waiting for the go-ahead. They were co-operative in the end.
JB: How would you say the space is different to those who haven’t seen it yet?
JL: We built on the exisiting slab. We’ve flip flopped the bar and the dining room. With 2 beautiful garage doors up front. We also have a 24 foot wide wall that can open. It kind of has become a large open air restaurant. Plans are coming for a rooftop bar. That’s phase 2. Work through Winter.
JB: Sounds like you’ve opened things up a little. How has capacity been affected?
JL: It will increase when we move to the 2nd floor. Right now its the same as it was. About 250 seats.
JB: Did you rebuild the menu? Are you doing anything different? Has any of that been discussed?
JL: We have pretty much the exact same menu. We’ve got a pretty extensive menu. Chicken wings are kind of legendary, they are a big hit. Burgers and things.
JB: How tough has it been to re-open with the price of food jumping up like it has? Chicken wings way out in front of that?
JL: Well, we are lucky to be getting wings. So that’s a positive. But there is no doubt that the price has about doubled since the fire. Same for ribs, butts and briskets. Amazing how much it has gone up.
JB: How do you navigate that?
JL: I will let you know when I see my first P&L.
JB: Was there a point on that first football Sunday where you felt good beign open again?
JL: That part of it, of course. We don’t work for the money. A lot of good positive feedback. People love the building. They are enjoying our food again and happy that we came back.
# # #
