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Photos by Sarah Finnegan.
Michael Brandon poses inside the new Saw’s BBQ location at the former home of Fat Sam’s Sub Station in Southside. The local barbecue joint will also feature some seafood selections on its menu.
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Photos by Sarah Finnegan.
Brandon said there will be three kitchens at Saw’s Southside: the smoker, a back kitchen to help service the food truck and an open-air front kitchen where patrons can watch their food be made.
Since 2014, Saw’s Street Kitchen — the food truck of Saw’s BBQ — has been traversing the Birmingham metro area, serving as an ambassador for the group of restaurants.
“[We’re] introducing people to what Saw’s is, what we are,” said Michael Brandon, owner of the mobile portion of Saw’s.
There are currently three brick and mortar restaurants for Saw’s. By mid-April, after searching for about two years, Brandon is hoping to open a fourth location at 1154 11th Avenue South.
Named Saw’s Southside, the new restaurant will serve as a home for the food truck and Saw’s Side Cart, as well as a place for customers to catch some local barbecue.
“Basically, the goal of any … food truck operator was to get into a business that you would hope to be able to grow into a restaurant,” Brandon said. “And when the time came, we decided to [move into a restaurant setting].”
Saw’s Southside will be in a 1,500-square-foot space that can seat about 50 individuals inside and about 25 on an outdoor area. It’s in the former Fat Sam’s Sub Station, which was owned and operated for 23 years before the previous owner died.
“It makes you feel good that they kept their restaurant open for 23 years … He had great success from what I hear, and I think it’ll be great to build on that,” Brandon said. “A lot of people who go to UAB have heard of or eaten in this space.”
Saw’s Street Kitchen has been working in the UAB and Highlands area for quite some time, either through catering or through the food truck, which Brandon said made their new location “natural.” Brandon said he’s hoping to have a strong base of customers upon opening, too.
“The neighborhoods that are on the western side of I-65 will definitely benefit from it,” he said. Now, those living downtown or near the interstate won’t have to drive across town to Avondale or over the mountain to Edgewood to get some Saw’s.
“We’re pretty excited that we’re just going to be able to slide that [the restaurant] into what we’re doing,” in addition to the food truck and catering, he said.
Brandon is a chef by nature, but over the years, he said he’s turned into more of a general contractor and restaurateur. But for Saw’s Southside, he’s going to be the owner, operator and the head chef, which means he gets to call the shots for the menu.
The barbecue that customers know and love from Saw’s will set the foundation for food, but Brandon said he wants to pay homage to his hometown of Pensacola by incorporating some gulf seafood that fits into the realm of Southern barbecue.
There’s also going to be a large, L-shaped bar and he’s planning on adding some smaller entrées and appetizers to the menu to encourage patrons to stay and mingle.
To keep everything up and running, Brandon said there are three kitchens at Saw’s Southside: the big smoker, which smokes the meats over hickory and will be housed out behind the restaurant; the back kitchen, to help service the food truck and do the dishes and some preparation; and the front kitchen, for the majority of production.
The front kitchen is going to be mostly open-air, so customers sitting at the bar or walking in are able to see where their food is being made and what goes into the process.
“We’ve got a restaurant going out the back and a restaurant going out the front … It’s very close and comfortable,” Brandon said, acknowledging that sometimes, close can mean uncomfortable. “We tried to make it so they can see everything, but don’t feel jam-packed.”
With all of those kitchens, Brandon is looking forward to putting his chef’s hat back on, too.
“It’s nice to be able to make leaps forward in your career, but it’ll be nice to slide back into just focusing on cooking great food,” he said.
And the food truck? The mobile version of Saw’s will remain in operation, full-time.
Saw’s Southside will be open Mondays-Tuesdays 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Wednesdays-Saturdays 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. For more information about the restaurant group or to view a selection of menus, visit sawsbbq.com.
