Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint heading to Midtown Nashville

Michael W. Aldrich | The Tennessean

Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint is bringing the art of West Tennessee-style smoked meat to Midtown, announcing Wednesday it will take over the Logan’s Roadhouse space at 2400 Elliston Place in Nashville for its newest location.

The move is part of a joint venture, under which Logan’s Roadhouse contributes the lease to the building in exchange for a small minority ownership in this single location.

Martin’s, known for their low-and-slow cooked barbecue, will have full control of the day-to-day operations and will operate under the Martin’s Bar-B-Que brand.

Rooted in the tradition of whole-hog barbecue, Pitmaster Pat Martin acquired his meat-smoking expertise 25 years ago in Henderson, Tennessee, before making Nashville his permanent home.

“We’re pleased to have this opportunity with Logan’s to bring Martin’s to Midtown Nashville and look forward to welcoming our guests to this new location,” stated Martin.

This Midtown Martin’s will mark the sixth Middle Tennessee location and eighth location overall of the nationally-recognized barbecue brand.

Logan’s Roadhouse, which filed for bankruptcy in August 2016, is one of many chains that has struggled to reclaim its popularity as restaurant trends have shifted from traditional casual dining to a new wave of “fast casual” eateries.

The casual dining industry started to decline in the early 2000s as fast-casual spots like Panera Bread and Five Guys Burgers and Fries offered a high-quality, middle-ground alternative to fast food and traditional casual dining. That, in addition to rising labor and food costs, has been the underlying reason for the struggles of restaurant chains like Logan’s Roadhouse, Outback Steakhouse and Carrabba’s Italian Grill.

“The barbecue segment is gaining national popularity, and Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint is clearly the gold standard when it comes to authenticity and high quality in the art and craft of West Tennessee-style smoked meats,” stated Logan’s Roadhouse Chief Executive Officer Hazem Ouf. “We are excited to be a small part of this high caliber brand’s growth and look forward to supporting the success of Martin’s Bar-B-Que in this new location in any way.”

Martin's Bar-B-Cue Joint of Midtown is scheduled to open in late 2018.