Market Basket
Four minutes before 4 p.m. on the second day since opening, a queue started to form at Smokin’ Fattys BBQ Joint in Elkhart. Customers were ready the minute the restaurant opened for the day.
“There’s been a lot of buildup in the people in the community about when are we going to open,” said owner Cam Snyder. “I’m grateful. I’ve got some big shoes to fill with all the interest, and there’s a lot of passion out there for barbecue.”
Smokin’ Fattys BBQ Joint at 3241 Interchange Drive, a barbecue restaurant with a Mexican flair, opened for business last Tuesday. Initially slated to open last September, the former Applebee’s building has kept its familiar layout, but with added touches of classic rock and roll and its mantra of “Peace. Love. BBQ” resonating throughout the space.
Last May, Snyder, who also owns Chubby Trout and Flippin’ Cow, initially posted a picture of the vacated building on the northside of Elkhart and asked a simple question: What do you want?
“And it was unanimous,” Snyder said. “Number one was barbecue and number two was Mexican.”
Because tastes in barbecue are often so personal and seen as a reflection of a geographical area, Snyder wanted to add his own take to the smoked meats lineup. In what he describes as “Indiana, Midwestern, Cam-style,” he said he doesn’t want to limit the menu to long-established styles like Kansas City, Texas or Carolina.
“We’ve got our own rubs and spices but we’re not trying to replicate a certain region or certain style,” he said. “I don’t want to be judged with people saying this isn’t true Texas or this isn’t true something else because it is so personal.”
Over post oak wood, brisket, pork, chicken wings and ribs are smoked for two to 18 hours. Snyder leans on barbecue veterans Jordan Helton, Matthew Matherly and Danny Gard to oversee the smoker operations and make sure every piece comes out tender and falling off the bone.
He initially planned to partner with local chef Sean Kelley, formerly of Temper Grille in Granger, in heading the restaurant but said “unfortunately things didn’t work out with Sean being part of our team.” Kelley did not immediately return a call for comment regarding his departure.
While the barbecue can stand on its own, with the brisket and pork bites being the most popular, the menu also has a Mexican influence. For example, for the birria taco, Snyder takes a traditional Jalisco dish of marinated goat meat and swapped it for brisket, and serves it in a taco and with a consomme dipping sauce.
Gringo tacos come with lettuce, tomato, cheese and choice of smoked meat. Also available are mac and cheese dishes with barbecue mix-ins.
So far, the restaurant is offering only dine-in service with no carryout option for the next week. Snyder said he wanted to work out the new restaurant’s flow in operations and be able to guarantee enough food for diners.
Smoked barbecue is not something that can be easily whipped up when supplies run out, so once it’s gone, it’s gone.
“Some people ask how can you turn down carryout business, but it’s not all about the business,” he said. “I didn’t want to put my staff in that position and I didn’t want to put my guests in that position.”
However, Snyder does plan on carryout being a major part of the future of Smokin’ Fattys, with its barbecue also available for catering. Snyder plans to begin offering carryout in the coming weeks and also plans to extend the restaurant’s hours to seven days a week for both lunch and dinner.
But for now, it’s all about taking things one step at a time.
“You got to get good before you get great,” Snyder said. “How we get there is recognizing opportunities for us to improve.”
Smokin’ Fattys BBQ Joint is currently open Tuesday through Thursday from 4 to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 4 to 11 p.m.
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