Help Save Smokin’ Dutchman BBQ

We never imagined we’d be here—our savings gone, homes refinanced, and now facing shutoff notices just to keep the lights on. After seven years of serving Kalamazoo with pride, we’re at risk of losing everything. We achieved our goal of paying the utilities, now we need to chip away at our back rent of $40,000. Smokin’ Dutchman BBQ would love to cater your events, feed your family and friends and ultimately give back to our community's non-profits.

But we believe in a God who restores, and with your help, this story doesn’t have to end here.

In 2018, we opened our doors with nothing but hope, excitement, and a whole lot of smoked meat. From day one, it’s been about giving back—donating catering for school auctions, supporting local sports teams, putting ads in school plays. If the community asked, we said “yes.” Always with a smile. Because for us, it has always been about serving people first.

But today, Smokin’ Dutchman BBQ is at a critical crossroads. Without immediate help, our future is in jeopardy.

Here’s how you can help keep Smokin’ Dutchman alive:

✅Donate to help us catch up on rent and utilities.

✅Dine with us and bring your family and friends.

✅Hire us to cater your next event—from tailgates to weddings, we’re here to serve.

✅Share this story so more people in Kalamazoo know what’s at stake.

This hardship stems from pre-petition debt tied to our former three expansion stores, which we closed in order to restructure and provide financial strength moving forward to negotiate with our creditors. These debts are not from our current restaurant but remain tied to us. If our luck couldn't get any worse, we had a grease fire at the restaurant on May 17th, which forced us to close and remediate for almost 2 months.

The difficulties began under the Dickey’s BBQ Pit franchise. As reported in the New York Times (June 3, 2025), Dickey’s exploited owners through hidden costs, threats, and unprofitable business models. Like so many others, we poured our retirement into staying afloat, only to find ourselves buried under debt, legal threats that arrived more often than birthday cards, and stress no family should ever carry.

We filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy—only to learn it’s expensive to tell people you don’t have money. So, we exited it, choosing instead to take the hard road: working with creditors directly and negotiating to pay back what we can. It’s not the easy way, but it’s the right way. It’s how we were raised—to work hard, to respect others, and to honor God by doing the right thing.

On June 13, 2025, we became proudly independent: Smokin’ Dutchman BBQ.

And here’s what this fight is really about: people.

✅Megan, our Pit Master, who will one day share in ownership because she believes in what we’re building—alongside her daughter and niece who work with her.

✅John, who dreams of one day opening his own place, and his niece, whom he gets to work with every day.

✅The high school students who got their first jobs with us and came back to work summers after college.

✅Our own children, who worked in the restaurant knowing they were helping their parents hold onto a dream.

This has always been about community, opportunity, and creating something bigger than ourselves. We’ve called Kalamazoo home for more than 50 years, and we want to keep giving back to the city that has given us so much.

Our vision for Smokin’ Dutchman BBQ is to bless this community even more:

✅A community platform where local families can showcase their backyard BBQ recipes and share them with Kalamazoo.

✅A catering program that not only feeds events but also helps inspire and mentor new food entrepreneurs—supporting the next generation of local restaurants and food trucks.

✅Locally sourced food—from Michigan-raised meats and Jack's Blend Rubs in Hudsonville, to baked goods from Schultz Sweets.

✅A BBQ menu that honors tradition while adding new twists—featuring a local family’s backyard BBQ every month.

That’s our dream. But right now? We need help just to survive.

Every single dollar, every meal purchased, every event catered, every prayer, and every share makes a difference. Together, we can keep the pits burning at Smokin’ Dutchman BBQ, spark the next wave of Kalamazoo’s food entrepreneurs, and show the power of a God who restores.

We believe the best is still ahead.

Thank you for your love, kindness, prayers, and support through these past 7 years.

— The Smokin’ Dutchman BBQ Family