Our Story
Chip grew up in the sand hills of eastern North Carolina where he was introduced to the lost art of stick burning. This style of barbecue cooking is the art of using only 100% oak and hickory firewood as his heat source. He lives by the stick burners creed, "if you want good food, cook with wood", and he still cooks his barbecue that way to this very day. Whether it was for his legendary parties in high school or college or for the local church fundraiser, he knew that some kind of spark had lit the fire in his soul that would eventually lead him to produce some of the finest barbecue around. After moving to Atlanta in 1996, Chip would work construction for 3 years 'til he found a small ad in the local paper that simply stated "small BBQ stand for sale". Chip called the number on Wednesday, set up a meeting for Thursday, where he would make a hand shake deal and then promptly quit his job on Friday. He would start working the stand on September 19th, 1999. After working a few days and adding in his own recipes, he knew it was time to name his new business. It would hit him like a bolt of lightening, see Chip lost his father and his brother at a young age, so he thought it was only right to name his business after the ones he had lost, his brother Jeff and his Father David. After a few years of people asking if he was J.D., and him getting tired of telling the story, he finally said YES, I am J.D.
Chip (J.D.) learned about the service side of the business from that small stand. This would end up being more valuable than his cooking skills. Four years would pass before him and his family would move just down the street to a small hole in the wall restaurant. J.D. and his family started that journey on July 31st 2003. They would get more customers every year that would eventually lead them to opening a 2nd location in downtown Acworth. After renovating an old school house built in 1925, they would open the doors on September 22nd, 2011. J.D. stayed true to his unique style of cooking and service for a whole new customer base. We are very proud that both of these locations are still going strong today. Back to the little hole in the wall spot, J.D. had been looking for a new spot to bring his passion to more people. He wanted a location that allowed him to present barbecue in the same way he grew up on. So in the Spring of 2020 he will relocate that small hole in the wall restaurant to a bigger location, just a ¼ mile from where he originally started in 1999 and will hold a whole hawg barbecue every Sunday !
Chip (J.D.) learned about the service side of the business from that small stand. This would end up being more valuable than his cooking skills. Four years would pass before him and his family would move just down the street to a small hole in the wall restaurant. J.D. and his family started that journey on July 31st 2003. They would get more customers every year that would eventually lead them to opening a 2nd location in downtown Acworth. After renovating an old school house built in 1925, they would open the doors on September 22nd, 2011. J.D. stayed true to his unique style of cooking and service for a whole new customer base. We are very proud that both of these locations are still going strong today. Back to the little hole in the wall spot, J.D. had been looking for a new spot to bring his passion to more people. He wanted a location that allowed him to present barbecue in the same way he grew up on. So in the Spring of 2020 he will relocate that small hole in the wall restaurant to a bigger location, just a ¼ mile from where he originally started in 1999 and will hold a whole hawg barbecue every Sunday !