Dickey’s barbecue reopens in Tri-Cities to eager crowd. More restaurants planned
Tri-City residents can once again get some Dickey’s barbecue without a drive to Yakima or Spokane.
Dickey’s Barbecue Pit reopened to feed plenty of hungry people this week in one of its former Tri-Cities locations, 2530 Queensgate Drive, in Richland.
Corporate officials said that it was the best grand re-opening of a Dickey’s that they could remember, said new owner Kenny Teasdale, a commercial real estate agent with NAI Tri-Cities.
The Tri-Cities had three of the restaurants last year, but all three closed in June when the former owner had apparent financial troubles.
The Washington Department of Revenue received a $50,000 judgment against Lonestar Innovations in March. In July the state Department of Labor and Industries filed a tax warrant claim against the company in Franklin County Superior Court.
More Tri-Cities plans
The Texas-based chain serves up Texas-inspired food, including slow-smoked barbecue. Since 1941, it has grown from one Dallas restaurant to more than 500 worldwide.
Teasdale is finishing up negotiations to own the restaurant chain’s territory in the Tri-Cities.
He does not plan to take over the former Kennewick and Pasco locations for Dickey’s. Instead, he wants to expand in the Tri-Cities, using Dickey’s as an anchor tenant for multi-tenant buildings.
It will be at least a year until he opens a second restaurant, Teasdale said.
In the meantime, familiar faces are back at the Richland outlet.
He hired former manager Craig Crook and many of the Dickey’s staff came back, wanting to work for Crook, Teasdale said.
“He knows the Dickey’s brand like on one else in the Tri-Cities,” Teasdale said.
Teasdale has been so busy getting the restaurant up and running, that he has not started any social media sites for it, and it does not show up on the corporate website yet.
Customers will have to stop by to see the specials. Hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week.
This story was originally published February 15, 2020 at 5:00 AM.