Broad Street BBQ is set to move into 96 Broad St in South Downtown next spring.
“Construction for the base build is underway,” Jason Furst, co-owner, confirmed with Whatnow Atlanta by phone. “We have a plan in place that’ll get us open by April 2026.”
The restaurant, which will cover three storefronts and 3400 square feet, is the culmination of the lifelong friendship and shared dream of Furst and Chef Sam Pinner.
“Sam and I were best friends from high school,” Jason said. “We worked together on and off over the last twelve years now or so.” Furst gives Sam credit for helping him get his first major restaurant job after moving back to Atlanta from LA at KR SteakBar. “He stuck his neck out and got me a food runner job.” They both worked at several of Kevin Rathbun’s restaurants, Furst later as Beverage Manager and General Manager, learning the all the different angles of the business.
But things changed for Furst, like for so many, during the COVID-19 pandemic. “It was a dark time, scary in the restaurant industry. I wasn’t sure if I was going to work again or what that would be like.” Sam was out in Washington State on Bainbridge island, doing a BBQ pop-up. “He said, ‘Come on out,’ and I ended up running all the pop-ups out of that restaurant for four months or so, doing some of the beverages for that restaurant as well.”
“It was the most fun we ever had,” Jason goes on. “It was magical. The food was so good, the people were excited, it was all outdoors.” The experience of working with his best friend breathed new life into their dream of opening their own restaurant.
When they returned to Atlanta later that year, Furst and Pinner started making plans. Their first co-venture, Sammy’s — which is celebrating its two-month anniversary at the time of this publication — has proved an enormous success, boasting a rare perfect 5-star rating on Google. “It’s going very well,” Furst said, but he’s excited for Broad Street to join South Downtown Atlanta.
“I love the team,” Furst said of the real estate development group. He acknowledged that, “I think everybody is pretty skeptical about downtown Atlanta — understandably so, if I’m being honest.” He cited other revitalization or restoration projects that have failed or fallen flat, but, “This feels different to me. This time it feels real and I believe in it. People in South Downtown are very serious people and they have a vision I believe in.”
South Downtown’s website states that “local food concepts” with “a community focus will thrive best in the neighborhood,” making Broad Street BBQ seem like the perfect fit. A recent addition in March includes the Edgewood taqueria El Tesoro‘s third location, which joined Tyde Tate Kitchen, Delilah’s Everyday Soul, and Spiller Park Coffee. “They’re eager to get good people in there,” Furst confirms. “They’re dedicated to having diversity among spaces, too, so I think that’s important.”
Good people, a walkable downtown — with assistance from MARTA and public transportation — and creating a “townsquare” space is key to the vision. “They have all these ideas on how to activate that area,” Furst said. “Viewing parties for world cup matches, Atlanta United, football, all kind of things.” The neighborhood “feels like it’s going to be a major artery 5-10 years from now.”
Located under the famous American Flag mural by the artist TILT, Broad Street BBQ will have spaces for the bar, dining, and to-go counter, as well as “large doors that will open up for housing for our smokers.”
Smokers, as in plural? “Probably two, possibly three,” Furst acknowledged, an “84 and a 108”. “We”ll probably have one of each over there, that’s the plan.”
They have familiarity with the process and the equipment from their work at Sammy’s. “The 84 deluxe is what we have at Sammy’s where we test out a lot of stuff we’re going thinking about Broadstreet. Right now we’re smoking brisket for the pastrami, pork butt for the cuban and sliders, turkey for Mexican turkey sandwich.”
Admiration for his best friend is evident in his voice when he adds, “Sam is an incredible pit master. There are things we haven’t even touched yet. We’re leaving some really good stuff that we’re going to debut over there.”
Any secrets about those forthcoming debuts he can share? “We’re going to have some pretty badass wings on there, with a secret wing sauce Sam is working on,” Furst said. He lists off a few other ideas: “We talked about a collard lasagna. That seemed pretty exciting. Brisket, half-chicken, some sausage links, ribs, slaw, hamburger — course we gotta have the hamburger, or Sam-burger.”
But, he warned, nothing is finalized. “When we started to test the menu for Sammy’s, I’d say 50 percent got nixed and/or other ideas spawned from that. We try to leave ourselves grace for creativity.”
The bar is another place where Broad Street can flex its creativity. Drawing on his experience as a manager as BoccaLupo and their successful cocktail program (and recipient of a “Michelin Exceptional Cocktails award,” no less), Furst is excited to create, “a diversified mix of spirits and flavors.”
“One of the things we try to consistently do as far as beverage goes is pull people outside of their comfort zones,” Furst said, particularly when it comes to trying new base spirits. He laments that customers will frequently order a drink because they are comfortable with the base spirits, say vodka or tequila, without anticipating
the flavor profile. At BoccaLupo, the menu was kept cryptic intentionally to encourage exploration. “We’d tell (customers) verbally if they wanted to know, but instead we would explain what the vibe of the drink is, the flavor profile.”
He’s also bringing Connor Hammond to help round out the team and run the bar program. “He’s extremely creative and we’re excited to unleash stuff he’s been working on as well.”
For Furst, it’s more about “what are we passionate about right now and what are the tools we’re using.” Tools and practices like clarifying, freezing techniques like “sous pression,” and more are just some of the exciting culinary experiences customers can look forward to at Broad Street.
As for his own role, Furst humbly said, “I’m more of a facilitator — whatever the people around me are interested, I want to make it happen.”
“For us it’s always about people and product,” Furst concluded. “We believe in the project and we got the team for it.”
