On the five-month anniversary of the opening of
Red Rock Downtown BBQ in Ypsilanti the new restaurant in the center of town is a central attraction.
Red Rock with its 500-pound smoker hanging out back and a slate of special events has caught on and is adding to the cool feel to Michigan Avenue - Ypsi's Main Street.
Its pulled pork, in-house smoked bacon, St. Louis style ribs and its changing and changing selection of craft beers - 70 percent of them Michigan-made is pulling in customers and creating jobs and traffic for downtown Ypsi, and owner and manager Shawn Cool (great name,huh?) is grateful.
"It's a lot of work, but it's great," says Cool, who's trying to make his investing partner parents proud. "Ypsi's been great to us."
Red Rock employs 40 people, 30 of them full-time, says Cool. And the business has expanded into food vending at University of Michigan games. Red Rock Downtown BBQ is sold at the main gate, section 10 and in two spots on the club level, sections 3 and 4.
This week Cool and the staff were adding a new walk-in cooler to keep up with demand.
Source: Shawn Cool, owner, Red Rock Downtown BBQ
Writer: Kim North Shine
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