A look at what's going on in Trinidad, on H Street, and in the larger area north of Capitol Hill.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Chuck's Wagon Bar-B-Q Closing
Chuck's Wagon Bar-B-Q is closing its H Street location due to a dispute with the landlord. The owners have stated that they want to continue to be part of the H Street scene.
23 comments:
Anonymous
said...
Um, this news is scrolling across the official Web site, and has been for about a week. I would say that makes it official. Says they're closing because of "irreconcilable differences" with their leaseholder.
Check out how Pilgrim came to own those properties. Was it with your tax money? With Anwar Saleem's help? How many actual jobs have either of them ever created with all this money? http://www.thecommondenominator.com/112398_news9.html
Just a gentle reminder to Chuck's: When you reopen, be sure to obtain a business license, get proper building and operating permits, pass your health department inspections and be sure to understand and pay your taxes. Many new businesses are not aware of all the rules and regulations and once you get on the wrong side of DC's bureaucracy, it can create alot of expensive delays and problems.
Also sanitation and cleanliness are are important and your clients can and do read DOH inspection reports online.
Not so gentle reminer back to the last anonymous poster. I was one of the first customers at Chuck's Wagon when it opened and can't be more upset that they were "Forced" to leave. After speaking with Chuck directly he informed me that they were operating under Inspire cafe(never heard of them), the current leaseholder and as such they were in full compliance. Chuck who by the way is a class act had the opportunity to rip into the landlord but chose the high road and would not get into specifics.Unlike the last anonymous poster who I now suspect is affiliated in some way with inspire and is trying to make it seem as if it was Chuck's fault they left. Chuck explained that tension had been growing for sometime and it was best for his company name to leave on a high note. Chuck, your food was great and we hope you get back on your feet soon and we would love to have you back in the H st. cooridor. As for inspire.....
Anon. 8:09, before you discredit the helpful advice being provided by Anon 7:46 ("I now suspect is affiliated in some way with inspire and is trying to make it seem as if it was Chuck's fault they left."), you were only listening to Chuck's side of the story. There are two sides to every story and I thought Anon. 7:46 was giving basic DC business operating regulations. Maybe you are conspiring with Chuck for all we know.
But wait a second, 9:24 am. How do we know that you're not conspiring with 7:46 am who is conspiring with Inspire against 8:09 am who is conspiring with Chuck's against Inspire who is also conspiring with 7:46 am against Chuck's, God, freedom, 8:09 am and the American way?? Hmmmm???? And what about Inked's role in this whole conspiracy mess? I think that needs to be investigated as well.
LOL @ Dolemite, Last Comment; my comments are indeed one sided because I really took a liking to that family, they really had a passion for what they were doing and it showed. Integrity means alot to me, When we stopped by 650 H st. to see if we could speak to the owner on saturday, there was a sign that said Chuck's Wagon was closed for the Thanksgiving holiday....Seriously! Check the blogs, they announced Friday that they were closed due to irreconcilable differences with their landlord, why lie and put up an out of town sign? Then your comment about licensing that clearly wasnt to help but to insinuate. What was the purpose of that and please don't say to help. Nice try Anon 9:24. we see through you, Stop being spiteful the neighborhood is watching.
Wow! hey guys on behalf of my family and Chuck's Wagon BBQ I cant tell you how much we appreciate the support you all have shown since our closing. We are aggresively working to better serve you all in a new location. Our catering division is still operating strongly and we are still available to serve all of your BBQ needs. Thanks again for all of your support and we hope to serve you again real soon.
Message to H Street property owners sitting on unimproved, vacant buildings:
Do everyone a favor and sell your hobo terd infested rat hole to brother Chuck and his family so he can keep bringing BBQ goodness to H Street. Seriously. I understand you're holding onto that lucky lottery ticket a little longer so you can really cash in after everyone else drives up property values with hard work and determination, but it's time to let go. The H St express has left the station, full speed ahead and all you're doing is holding us back. Face it, you're dead weight.
Wow! Guess I opened a can of worms. I'm the poster who made the comment about the need to follow the regulations.
When Chuck's Wagon BBQ opened up, I checked the DCRA and DOH websites. I found no record for the establishment having a basic business license (although my guess is that they were piggybacking on Inspiron Cafe's license - which is not really legitimate). I did find several health code violations, which I presume were promptly resolved, but I don't know.
I was sincere in wishing them well. We desperately need more retail establishments on H Street and clearly, there is demand for BBQ. However, everyone needs to follow the same baisc rules. The problem is that many small business owners (and even some big ones) either don't know the rules or just flaunt them. Doing so is usually a bad idea for the business and is also unfair to those businesses who do take the trouble to follow the regulations and bear the associated expense (which can be considerable).
My comment about taxes was made based on what I know about two small local food establishments that didn't understand the DC tax code and found themselves owing alot of money to DC Office of Tax and Revenue. One business went bankrupt over the incident, the other was able to come to an agreement with OTR on a payment plan but it nearly wiped out the owners personally.
So to summarize, my comment was not made with an ulterior motive and I don't wish the proprietor or their business any ill will. However, I am advising them to comply with the local regulations regarding licensing, sanitation, and paying taxes. Really, its pretty simple and any legitimate business ought to be able to do these things and deliver a great product and service.
As a customer who really enjoyed their food, I'm sorry to see them go. I really hoped that there would finally be a successful food establishment at that location. Unfortunately, it seems like Chuck's suffered the same fate that every carryout does in this location. As a person who works across the street, I really thought this place would make it. I'm not sure I would give my money to any business at this location again....
I wish Chuck's well. I also hope that when they reopen they resolve some of the operating issues that made it difficult to patronize their establishment. If you post operating hours, be open during those hours. Cooking to order is great in concept and the food is pretty good, but it isn't good enough to wait 40 minutes in line because they haven't given thought to how the order, payment, food prep and delivery work together.
Before I get slammed by others, I want them to succeed, but those basic issues need to be resolved for them to survive.
23 comments:
Um, this news is scrolling across the official Web site, and has been for about a week. I would say that makes it official. Says they're closing because of "irreconcilable differences" with their leaseholder.
http://www.cwbbq.com/
They posted a comment on CapitolBites saying that they were closing. You can find it here: http://bit.ly/bfZk4Q
They left a comment like that here. If it's on more than one site it's likely legit. I just like to confirm by phone/in person.
Brutal, I was just there on Wednesday and had a great pulled pork sammy.
How does this happen? Did they even begin to make any of their start-up money back?
It didnt look like they did much to the place, but I imagine there was some equipment purchased.
I hope they find something else. Their food is good
Who is/was their landlord? Anybody know?
Save Chuck's!!
Those grey buildings are owned by Pilgrim Baptist Church at 7th & I NE.
@anon 5:24:
Tax. The. Churches.
Wait. Wrong thread.... But seriously, why do churches own and rent commercial property in the District?
Check out how Pilgrim came to own those properties. Was it with your tax money? With Anwar Saleem's help? How many actual jobs have either of them ever created with all this money?
http://www.thecommondenominator.com/112398_news9.html
Just a gentle reminder to Chuck's: When you reopen, be sure to obtain a business license, get proper building and operating permits, pass your health department inspections and be sure to understand and pay your taxes. Many new businesses are not aware of all the rules and regulations and once you get on the wrong side of DC's bureaucracy, it can create alot of expensive delays and problems.
Also sanitation and cleanliness are are important and your clients can and do read DOH inspection reports online.
That said I wish you success and good luck!
Not so gentle reminer back to the last anonymous poster. I was one of the first customers at Chuck's Wagon when it opened and can't be more upset that they were "Forced" to leave. After speaking with Chuck directly he informed me that they were operating under Inspire cafe(never heard of them), the current leaseholder and as such they were in full compliance. Chuck who by the way is a class act had the opportunity to rip into the landlord but chose the high road and would not get into specifics.Unlike the last anonymous poster who I now suspect is affiliated in some way with inspire and is trying to make it seem as if it was Chuck's fault they left. Chuck explained that tension had been growing for sometime and it was best for his company name to leave on a high note. Chuck, your food was great and we hope you get back on your feet soon and we would love to have you back in the H st. cooridor. As for inspire.....
Anon. 8:09, before you discredit the helpful advice being provided by Anon 7:46 ("I now suspect is affiliated in some way with inspire and is trying to make it seem as if it was Chuck's fault they left."), you were only listening to Chuck's side of the story. There are two sides to every story and I thought Anon. 7:46 was giving basic DC business operating regulations. Maybe you are conspiring with Chuck for all we know.
But wait a second, 9:24 am. How do we know that you're not conspiring with 7:46 am who is conspiring with Inspire against 8:09 am who is conspiring with Chuck's against Inspire who is also conspiring with 7:46 am against Chuck's, God, freedom, 8:09 am and the American way?? Hmmmm???? And what about Inked's role in this whole conspiracy mess? I think that needs to be investigated as well.
Or we could just tax the churches....
LOL @ Dolemite, Last Comment; my comments are indeed one sided because I really took a liking to that family, they really had a passion for what they were doing and it showed. Integrity means alot to me, When we stopped by 650 H st. to see if we could speak to the owner on saturday, there was a sign that said Chuck's Wagon was closed for the Thanksgiving holiday....Seriously! Check the blogs, they announced Friday that they were closed due to irreconcilable differences with their landlord, why lie and put up an out of town sign? Then your comment about licensing that clearly wasnt to help but to insinuate. What was the purpose of that and please don't say to help. Nice try Anon 9:24. we see through you, Stop being spiteful the neighborhood is watching.
Wow! hey guys on behalf of my family and Chuck's Wagon BBQ I cant tell you how much we appreciate the support you all have shown since our closing. We are aggresively working to better serve you all in a new location. Our catering division is still operating strongly and we are still available to serve all of your BBQ needs. Thanks again for all of your support and we hope to serve you again real soon.
Message to H Street property owners sitting on unimproved, vacant buildings:
Do everyone a favor and sell your hobo terd infested rat hole to brother Chuck and his family so he can keep bringing BBQ goodness to H Street. Seriously. I understand you're holding onto that lucky lottery ticket a little longer so you can really cash in after everyone else drives up property values with hard work and determination, but it's time to let go. The H St express has left the station, full speed ahead and all you're doing is holding us back. Face it, you're dead weight.
Wow! Guess I opened a can of worms. I'm the poster who made the comment about the need to follow the regulations.
When Chuck's Wagon BBQ opened up, I checked the DCRA and DOH websites. I found no record for the establishment having a basic business license (although my guess is that they were piggybacking on Inspiron Cafe's license - which is not really legitimate). I did find several health code violations, which I presume were promptly resolved, but I don't know.
I was sincere in wishing them well. We desperately need more retail establishments on H Street and clearly, there is demand for BBQ. However, everyone needs to follow the same baisc rules. The problem is that many small business owners (and even some big ones) either don't know the rules or just flaunt them. Doing so is usually a bad idea for the business and is also unfair to those businesses who do take the trouble to follow the regulations and bear the associated expense (which can be considerable).
My comment about taxes was made based on what I know about two small local food establishments that didn't understand the DC tax code and found themselves owing alot of money to DC Office of Tax and Revenue. One business went bankrupt over the incident, the other was able to come to an agreement with OTR on a payment plan but it nearly wiped out the owners personally.
So to summarize, my comment was not made with an ulterior motive and I don't wish the proprietor or their business any ill will. However, I am advising them to comply with the local regulations regarding licensing, sanitation, and paying taxes. Really, its pretty simple and any legitimate business ought to be able to do these things and deliver a great product and service.
As a customer who really enjoyed their food, I'm sorry to see them go. I really hoped that there would finally be a successful food establishment at that location. Unfortunately, it seems like Chuck's suffered the same fate that every carryout does in this location. As a person who works across the street, I really thought this place would make it. I'm not sure I would give my money to any business at this location again....
I wish Chuck's well. I also hope that when they reopen they resolve some of the operating issues that made it difficult to patronize their establishment. If you post operating hours, be open during those hours. Cooking to order is great in concept and the food is pretty good, but it isn't good enough to wait 40 minutes in line because they haven't given thought to how the order, payment, food prep and delivery work together.
Before I get slammed by others, I want them to succeed, but those basic issues need to be resolved for them to survive.
-ZD
hey inked -
any word on whether the bbq at inspire is made by the chuck's people? there is a sign in the window - something like - "still serving bbq."
- riblette
riblette,
not sure who is serving up that Bar-B-Q.
Absolutely not! That food is not only not chucks but it shouldn't be called BBQ!
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