A barbecue restaurant praised by celebrity chef Guy Fieri has been forced to move its smoking operation outside Sebastopol after a zoning dispute in deep-blue California left the owners scrambling to keep their business running.
A&M BBQ now smokes its meat beyond the city limits before transporting the finished food back to its Sebastopol restaurant. Owner Kristopher Austin says the expensive workaround is not sustainable over the long term.
The unusual arrangement began after the restaurant received a May 28 notice ordering it to stop using outdoor commercial smokers within 10 days. According to SFGATE, the equipment violated local zoning regulations.
Instead of closing, Austin and co-owner Finn Liss moved the smokers outside Sebastopol and began hauling the barbecue back to the restaurant for customers.
That workaround, however, has added significant logistical and financial pressure to the operation.
The conflict comes as A&M BBQ continues to receive prominent recognition for its food. At last year’s Healdsburg Wine & Food Experience, Fieri praised the restaurant’s confit smoked oxtail, describing its texture as creamy and silky.
Austin and Liss opened A&M BBQ in June 2024. They are now searching for a permanent location that can support the restaurant’s growth while complying with city regulations.
In a statement posted to Instagram in mid-May, the owners said they had spent nearly a year looking for a site better suited to the restaurant’s expansion plans.
Moving a commercial smoking operation is a complicated undertaking. Securing permits, upgrading infrastructure and obtaining financing could make an immediate relocation too costly to pursue.
“Relocating a restaurant operation involving commercial smokers, permitting, infrastructure, and financing is a complex process that takes time, but we are committed to finding a responsible path forward,” the owners said.
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City officials, meanwhile, say the smokers are not allowed at A&M BBQ’s Main Street location.
City Manager Mary Gourley confirmed the zoning issue to SFGATE. The outlet reported that officials first asked Austin to remove one of the smokers around March.
Austin placed that smoker in storage, but the city issued another notice in April before setting the subsequent 10-day deadline.
The enforcement action followed complaints from nearby residents after A&M BBQ purchased larger commercial smokers last fall.
The Press Democrat reported that residents submitted dozens of complaints, citing smoke, air quality and traffic concerns during a May 5 City Council meeting. SFGATE also reported objections to the smokers’ tall stacks.
Former Sebastopol Mayor Larry Robinson proposed using advanced filtration systems, but Austin has raised concerns about the cost of installing them.
As the zoning dispute continues, the restaurant has also attracted a growing group of supporters.
Dozens of people attended a recent City Council meeting, including the president of the NAACP’s Santa Rosa-Sonoma County branch. The organization is representing Austin over concerns about fairness and transparency in the city’s handling of the case, The Press Democrat reported.
