Eatery to add Southern taste

Barbecue fans in Chapel Hill will have reason to celebrate Tuesday.

The new, locally owned Jim’s Famous BBQ will celebrate its grand opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11 a.m.

Jim Groot, former owner of Red Hot & Blue of Chapel Hill, is replacing the barbecue chain’s long-vacant location at 115 S. Elliott Road with his independently owned franchise.

“I just wanted to focus more on barbecue,” Groot said.

The restaurant, which will serve both eastern and western North Carolina barbecue, joins just a handful of other barbecue restaurants in the area.

“Barbecue is a lot of work,” said Jonathan Childres, co-owner of The Barbecue Joint, at 630 Weaver Dairy Road. “There are a lot of easier ways to make money in the restaurant business.”

Groot agreed that preparing quality barbecue takes dedication.

“We’re really good at barbecue,” he said. “We do it the old-fashioned way, and we take it very seriously.”

Groot said the extra effort can be rewarding.

“It’s fun,” he said. “People enjoy it. I like cooking it. Of course, if you’re from North Carolina, there’s a lot of diversity to it.”

Groot said he draws on his 12 years of experience with Red Hot & Blue, as well as his experience competing in barbecue tours, to help him perfect his recipe.

He said he has won local and national awards for both his barbecue and his chili.

“You get exposed to so much and see a lot of different methods and sauces,” Groot said of what he gained from the competitions.

But he said his barbecue is not the only reason he hopes the restaurant draws crowds.

Tuesday’s grand opening will also launch Bones for Kids, in which a dime will be donated to the UNC Children’s Hospital for every bone of ribs sold in April.

Virginia Knapp, associate director of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce, said Groot is known for the contributions he has made to the community through the years.

Groot said he has closed his restaurant on Thanksgiving for the past 11 years to take food to the children, families and staff of the pediatrics unit at UNC Hospitals.

“The grand celebrations will highlight all that this restaurant does for the area,” Knapp said.

“This has also been one of the very good gathering spots in Chapel Hill.”

Groot said part of what makes barbecue so popular is its community appeal.

“It’s cultural, I think,” he said. “It goes back to our roots and so many parts of community life.”

Knapp said she is optimistic about what Groot’s restaurant will bring to the community.

The more barbecue restaurants in the area, she said, the better.

“Being a Southern town, I just think you can’t have enough barbecue restaurants. All of them seem to have their own flavor.”

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.