Barbecue lovers rally behind Joe’s Barbecue amid licensing, zoning issues in Brimfield

For the past seven years, foodies have flocked to a corner lot at state Route 43 and Tallmadge Road in Brimfield to get their fill of pulled pork, beef brisket, bourbon banana pudding and other southern comforts.

But licensing issues and new zoning laws are threatening to put the brakes on the popular food truck that routinely draws customers from throughout the region.

Joe Menendez, owner of Joe’s Barbecue, closed his business for five days in early March after Summit County Public Health declined to renew his mobile food service operation license, which expired March 1.

At the same time, Menendez is fighting efforts by some in the township to enact stricter rules for food trucks and other pop-up businesses.

Despite these obstacles, Menendez is determined to reverse Brimfield’s zoning laws and stay in business — even if it means giving his food away for a voluntary donation.

His plight has inspired barbecue lovers to rally behind the business both on and offline. Some are attending zoning meetings; others have taken to yelling “We love Joe!” as they drive past his trailers and even more have offered to host his mobile business on their property.

“They’re putting all these roadblocks in place for us and other businesses and then the health departments are basically not doing their job and approving our license," Menendez said.

How Joe's Barbecue got its start

Menendez moved to Austin, Texas, in 2012 to pursue a film degree but quickly fell in love with the city’s restaurant scene and became enamored with cooking and recipe development. He developed plans for a Neapolitan pizzeria, pasta food truck, sandwich food truck and a dog biscuit company, but it was barbecue that won him over in the end.

After moving back to Ohio, he began selling ribs on the same corner he does now, only from a small red pop-up tent. The menu eventually expanded to pulled pork, brisket and chicken. He also built a cedar barbecue trailer to cook it all in. His family owned the property, which included Sully’s Tavern.

But soon at least one resident began complaining about the trailer blocking drivers from seeing down Route 43 when turning right off Tallmadge Road towards Suffield. Competing business owners said he had an unfair advantage in the restaurant scene and that the trailer was an eyesore.

Menendez moved the trailer as instructed and continued building his business, eventually buying the land from his family.

Over the next seven years, his operation grew into its current look: A cedar trailer containing his 20-foot long smoker and a red trailer to sell his meats and other items to customers. Menendez now sells barbecue staples as well as brisket burgers, meatloaf, pork chops and more.

Mobile or permanent food truck?

As a food truck operator, Menendez is required to have a valid food service license. He received one from Portage County Combined Health District from 2018 to 2023. After he moved to Akron in 2023, he obtained a license from Summit County Public Health for 2023 to 2024 under the assumption that the registration should be linked to his residence.

Menendez contacted Summit County Public Health Feb.13 to renew his license, which expired March 1, but was denied and told Feb. 20 that he needed to get it from the Portage County health department. He applied in Portage County on Feb. 26 and is in the process of obtaining a mobile food license from that health department.

Tonia Burford, environmental health director for Summit County Public Health, said the issue surrounding Menendez’s renewal is two-fold. Joe’s Barbecue is located outside of Summit County and does not move every 40 days as required by the Ohio Revised Code.

“Most mobiles, what they do is they have a trailer,” Buford said. “Even if it's their home or whatever it may be, we'll go to their house and inspect it if that's where they park it normally, and then they'll take it to the fair…they'll go everywhere, but really, he has set up shop in a parking lot in Portage County and hasn't moved.”

When confronted by Summit County Public Health about not moving his trailers, Menendez sent videos of them parked at 2:35 a.m. in Rootstown. The code does not specify how far or for how long food trucks must have to change locations.

“We believe the intent of the code is that they are mobile, that they do not set up shop in one location and operate there continuously because there's another type of license for that,” Buford said. “If he was setting up his barbecue in that parking lot and he hauled his unit away [each] night, then we wouldn't have an issue with this 40-day thing. [It would be] moving, but he's just leaving it there.”

Buford said Portage County Combined Health District informed the Summit County agency of the trailers’ whereabouts.

Pulling up the ladder

Although Menendez is hopeful that his licensing will be squared away soon, he remains concerned about whether Brimfield’s increasing zoning regulations will impact his business going forward.

He said he believes the stiffer zoning rules and health department issues are being fueled by two competing restaurant owners and a resident who frequently complains about his business.

“It's ridiculous. We've been here forever. We're widely loved. We have no issues. We cause no issues for anybody,” Menendez said. “These couple people that are very incessantly complaining are causing the issues for everybody.”

Michael Hlad, Brimfield’s zoning inspector and economic development director, said it has been a work in progress to regulate temporary vendors as the township has had issues with people popping up and selling artisanal rugs, political memorabilia and other goods in the past.

This process started in August 2019 when the township introduced a temporary use permit that could be renewed every six months, according to Jendy Miller, Brimfield’s Economic Development and Zoning secretary. Menendez said the permit had a year-long term before it was shortened to six months. Last May, the timeframe was shortened to 90 days.

The latest amendment, approved March 6, specifies that temporary vendor permits could not be issued to applicants intending to operate on a vacant lot. However, this will not impact Joe's Barbecue because the blue building on the property is considered to have a primary use, and therefore it is not vacant.

In October 2023, Menendez was granted a variance that exempts him from the 90-day limit for a full year. While his business isn’t impacted by the zoning commission’s decisions right now, he feels as though it discourages small businesses from following in his footsteps.

“This affects everyone that wants to do what we did,” Menendez said at the Brimfield board of trustees meeting March 6. “It’d be like me pulling up the ladder behind me after we did something that worked well.”

The food truck owner, who plans to build his brick-and-mortar location on the lot by October, also expressed concern about whether he would be shut down if his building isn’t complete when the variance expires.

There are no limits to the number of variances a business can receive, according to Hlad. He suggested Menendez and those trying to emulate his business model use a mixture of 90-day permits and variances, which are granted by the board of zoning appeals, to stay longer.

But at the March 4 zoning commission meeting, Mogadore resident Clyde Pierson, who is an alternate on the zoning board, raised concerns about letting more food trucks adopt the Joe's Barbecue business model in the future.

At a meeting later in the month, Pierson identified himself as the complaining resident Menendez said is partially responsible for his zoning and health department troubles.

Portage County Combined Health District has received three calls from Pierson about Joe’s Barbecue within the last year.

He also called Summit County Public Health in October to ask whether Joe's had been inspected, according to the agency. When a Summit County supervisor called him back, Pierson declined to make a formal complaint and instead asked questions about how food code pertains to mobile establishments.

“What this brought up was…is, you know, Joe down there at Joe’s Barbecue, he’s been there five years and it turned into a problem but now he’s going to build that building,” Pierson said during the March 16 meeting. “That’s what we don’t want to happen again. We don’t want [people] to go down there and put a hotdog stand somewhere and stay there for the next five years.”

This same statement was read aloud at the board of trustees meeting March 6, where trustees voted on whether to allow temporary use permits on vacant lots, by trustee Nic Coia.

Coia said that he is concerned partly because there is already a procedure in place to deal with the troublemakers the zoning commission said the amendment will address. He was the only trustee to vote no to the amendment, stating that he felt the legislation targeted Joe’s Barbecue.

Multiple zoning commission members have stated in public and private meetings that they believe the commission has bent over backwards to accommodate Joe’s Barbecue in its legislation.

Brimfield recently put out a statement addressing community members’ concerns about its zoning commission and its involvement in Menendez's health department licensing and permit process.

"Assuming Joe's Barbecue obtains the necessary approval from the Portage County Health Department, we stand ready to continue to work with the business, as we have for the last six years, and look forward to the building of a Joe's Barbecue restaurant," the statement said.

What’s next for Joe’s Barbecue, Brimfield?

Since Menendez does not yet have a license from the Portage County Combined Health District and cannot legally charge for goods or services, he has been accepting at-will donations for his food.

His loyal customers have responded, making the past two weeks the busiest he's been since his opening.

Menendez made $1,200 to $1,300 over what he would have earned had he operated normally. The extra money has gone into his employees’ tip jar, according to Menendez.

He plans to continue taking donations until the food truck receives its license — and maybe a little afterward, just for fun. Menendez said he will also continue putting pressure on the township to reverse the changes it’s made to the temporary vendor permit.

Hlad said that the zoning commission is looking into creating a specific street for food trucks where they would have water and sewer hookup.

At the March 20 board of trustees meeting, Coia made a motion asking the zoning commission to review the permit and consider expanding it to six months with consecutive renewals.

Issues related to food trucks will be discussed at the next zoning meeting, which is April 11.

“We're trying to build the healthiest business that participates in the community that we can. There has been roadblock after roadblock and people causing issue after issue,” Menendez said. “There's a lot of drama surrounding it but that's not the point.

"I just want to be able to do our thing.”

Got a restaurant recommendation? Contact Beacon Journal reporter Tawney Beans at tbeans@gannett.com and on Twitter @TawneyBeans. And follow her food adventures on TikTok @akronbeaconjournal.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Joe’s Barbecue food truck faces licensing, zoning issues in Brimfield