Barbecue restaurant to partner with Springfield business

A slab of ribs waits for a customer at Al’s Smokehouse as an employee makes a batter for some chicken wings Thursday. Bill Lackey/Staff

A slab of ribs waits for a customer at Al’s Smokehouse as an employee makes a batter for some chicken wings Thursday. Bill Lackey/Staff

Al’s Smokehouse, a Springfield barbecue restaurant, is teaming up with a downtown business to offer another food option and draw more foot traffic downtown.

The restaurant, with locations in Dayton and on Yellow Springs Street in Springfield, will begin serving food at the Champion City Sports Bar, 42 N. Fountain Ave. in Springfield. It will also continue to operate its existing locations, said Al Shamburger, owner of the barbecue restaurant.

“The kitchen wasn’t being used here in the downtown location,” Shamburger said of the sports bar.

Shamburger said he got his start in the restaurant business after winning a barbecue competition. The business has about 35 workers in Springfield and Dayton now, and will add roughly a dozen to get the downtown location operational, he said. The hours may fluctuate initially while the restaurant’s staff figures out the best times to operate. But it will likely open around 11 a.m. to around 10 p.m. The kitchen may stay open slightly later during the weekends depending on the bar business.

The restaurant opened a location at 140 E. Third Street in Dayton around 2011, and the Springfield location opened around 2014, Shamburger said. The business is also considering a possible location in Columbus, he said. The restaurant regularly offers daily specials, and its menu features everything from a variety of chicken dishes to pork tenderloin and collard greens.

Shamburger said the 648 Yellow Springs Street location already pulls business from downtown Springfield, but many workers only have 30 minutes for lunch. Opening a kitchen downtown would offer another option, he said.

“It was a pretty reasonable opportunity so I said we’ll come in and operate the kitchen,” Shamburger said.

Renea Turner, who owns the Champion City Sports Bar, will continue to operate the bar side of the business.

“You’re getting the best food for your money and it’s good food,” Turner said.

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