Owners of new Rexburg restaurant turn negative social media comment into clever marketing tool
Published at
REXBURG – A new Rexburg restaurant opening inside the old JB’s, which closed in June after 51 years of business, is slated to open in a few weeks.
Sparks BBQ will open in mid-October at 150 West Main Street, serving up a variety of smoked meats and sides.
RELATED | JB’s in Rexburg closed in June. Now this restaurant is moving in.
News of the restaurant’s opening has elicited a slough of reactions on social media, including one negative comment the owners are having fun with.
Dave Chambers recently posted on Facebook: “I’m betting they will be gone bye (sic) April.”
Soon after, a sign with Chambers’ comment appeared in front of Sparks BBQ, along with a comment from the owners: “Hey Dave, stop by in April. We’ll buy you lunch!”
The conversation between Chambers and Sparks BBQ was captured on social media by Chamber’s sister and posted in the “I Love Rexburg” group, where it amassed a little over 700 likes in a matter of days.
In a conversation with EastIdahoNews.com, Chambers says that while it was his intent to stir people up with his comment, he’s impressed with how the owners have handled it.
“Let me be clear, I wish Sparks BBQ zero bad luck and hope the best for them,” Chambers says. “Hats off to Sparks for making this a fun issue when the country needs a few laughs.”
Jacob Muller, co-owner of Sparks, says he’s also enjoyed turning the banter into a creative way to promote the opening. He’s confident the restaurant will be successful.
“If you look at our track record and the combined experience of all our partners … I can promise you we’ll do well,” Muller says. “We like to have fun with it and dish it back a little bit.”
Muller owns the building with Matt Smith and Chris Sparks, from whom the restaurant gets its name.
Sparks is the resident “smoker” whose unique recipes and techniques have been in development for seven years.
“I bought my first smoker as soon as I could afford one,” Sparks says. “My brother and two of our friends would always send food pictures and share what we found with each other.”
As the group began cooking, it became a competition.
“One of us would cook a nice piece of meat, and of course we would brag about it with each other. It was just fun, and I got really passionate about it,” he says.
Smith also own Pizza Pie Cafe, which functioned as a ghost kitchen for Door Dash and food delivery apps for a while.
RELATED | New business in Rexburg offering barbecue food from a ghost kitchen
Smith has opened 26 different restaurants over his career, including Red Rabbit Grill in the strip across the street from Spark’s.
Years of experience in the restaurant industry has stretched his efforts between Arizona, Utah, and Idaho, but his plan moving forward is to focus on building businesses in Rexburg.
“I’ve always wanted to have five restaurants in town,” says Smith. “It’s a lot easier than having them in Arizona. It’s so difficult to deal with things … with it so far away.”
Smith initially hired Muller to manage the Red Rabbit. Muller’s efforts increased revenue nearly six times over, Smith says, and Muller came on as a third partner.
The trio are excited to open Sparks BBQ and bring another option to people in Rexburg.
“We really want to bring a quality product and quality service to Rexburg, and it’s something that we’ve done before, and we want to do it again,” says Muller.