Johnson County barbecue restaurant closes after 6 years: ‘Difficult choice’
.jpeg "Smoke Town BBQ is closed in Overland Park.")
After six years of operating along Shawnee Mission Parkway, a barbecue restaurant has closed.
Smoke Town BBQ, 7702 Shawnee Mission Parkway in Overland Park, announced its closure via social media over the weekend.
“This was not an easy decision, but due to personal circumstances, we have made the difficult choice to close our doors,” the post said.
The post went on to explain that Smoke Town required the owners to work long hours, six days a week and demanded “countless sacrifices.” Now, the owners wrote, they’re deciding to put family first.
“Thank you for every order, every recommendation, every kind word, and every memory we’ve had the privilege of sharing with you,” it further read. “We will always be grateful for the opportunity to serve this amazing community.”
Smoke Town appears to have deleted its Facebook page Monday afternoon.
The restaurant opened in 2020, moving into the former Maui Express location. Pitmasters Brian White and Mike Barnhart had previous experience at barbecue restaurants, according to reporting from the Johnson County Post.
The Star reached out to the owners of Smoke Town but did not receive a response Monday.
Overland Park lost another barbecue restaurant, Harp Barbecue, in May. It operated at 12094 W. 135th St. Owner Tyler Harp said rising beef prices, fewer customers and staffing shortages created strain on the business.