Southern Luv BBQ Awards First Multi-Unit Development Package in Tampa Bay

TAMPA, FL — Southern Luv BBQ has awarded its first multi-unit development package for the greater Tampa area, marking the first milestone in the brand’s Florida franchise expansion.

The agreement is built on a footprint deliberately smaller than the category norm: 600 to 1,000 square feet, using ventless, hoodless kitchen technology. That removes the single largest barrier to placing a barbecue concept in non-traditional real estate — the hood system — and opens up food halls, airports, campuses, and urban retail where a conventional pit could never operate.

“Most BBQ concepts are stuck in the past — huge buildouts, massive overhead, slow everything.”

— Essi Tadrus, Chef & Founder, Southern Luv BBQ

The model is the product of two decades in the business. Tadrus had his first barbecue rib at five years old near Fort Hood, Texas, where his father was stationed, learned to cut meat and make sausage by fourteen, and opened his first barbecue restaurant at nineteen.

“When someone takes that first bite, I want them to stop what they’re doing.”

— Essi Tadrus

Southern Luv BBQ is currently awarding both single-unit and multi-unit development packages across Florida.

About Southern Luv BBQ

Southern Luv BBQ is a fast-casual Southern barbecue concept founded by Chef Essi Tadrus in Tampa, Florida. Brisket and chicken are hand-trimmed and smoked over pecan wood, and sauces, sides, and barbecue potato chips are made from scratch. Franchise information is available at franchisesouthernluvbbq.com.