FORT MYERS, Fla. (April 15, 2015) – The state’s first Rib City franchise is set to open this weekend in Grant-Valkaria.
According to company President Craig Peden, Rib City’s Grant-Valkaria franchise, located at the new Grant Station and operated by Grant Station, Inc., will open to the public on Saturday, April 18.
“We are really excited to have Rib City as an intricate component of the new Grant Station,” said Chris Pozgar, president and owner of Grant Station, Inc. “Rib City at Grant Station is a win-win in that it will bring an outstanding, yet affordable, national barbecue chain to our community as well as the numerous jobs this new destination creates.”
Located at 5390 U.S. Highway 1, the site was formerly the Grant Grocer and the town’s original post office. Grant Station is on the National Register of Historic Places as Jorgensen’s General Store. Built in 1893, it was run as a general store, post office, telegraph office and trading post. The railroad runs directly behind the building, which faced west at the time. In 1929, Highway 1 came through the town and Grant sprung up as a small fishing community.
The antique-themed Grant Station is an entertainment destination and also hosts an ice cream shop called Old Grant Creamery, Market on the Tracks, an open-air market, The Antique Surf Café and a wedding center that includes a barn to host events for any special occasion including weddings and birthdays.
Grant Station also has a host of water-sport rentals at Island Paddle including paddleboards, canoes and kayaks. Guests may enjoy paddling, camping and hiking on the nearby island or Mullet Creek Preserve. This part of the Indian River Lagoon is a popular eco destination.
Grant-Valkaria is located south of Melbourne, between Palm Bay and Sebastian. The town was incorporated in 2006 by joining the two previously unincorporated communities of Grant and Valkaria.
This new location marks Rib City’s 17th franchise and includes 70 seats. Pozgar is looking to open additional Rib City locations between Merritt Island and Vero Beach.
Founded in Fort Myers in 1989, Rib City is celebrating 26 years of operation in 2015. The family-owned national barbecue chain currently has 12 corporate restaurants in Florida with 10 locations in Southwest Florida, and 16 franchise restaurants across the country including Washington, Utah, Colorado, Tennessee, Ohio, Illinois, Missouri and Virginia.
“We are proud to be celebrating 26 years and brining our first franchise location to the east coast of Florida,” said Peden. “Through leadership, dedication and a love of the restaurant business, we have been able to maintain superior quality in our products and services.”
Rib City offers a menu of barbecued meats, specialized sauces and complementary side dishes such as made-from-scratch baked beans and coleslaw. Rib City achieves authentic backyard barbecue flavor by slowly cooking baby back ribs and chicken over selected hardwoods, including Red Oak, carefully balancing heat and cooking time to seal in the distinctive Rib City barbecue taste. Meats can be topped with one of four secret recipe sauces: brown sugar-based sweet sauce, vinegar-based tangy sauce, Carolina mustard sauce or hot sauce. Additional menu items include fried okra, three-cheese fries, fried shrimp, coconut cream and Southern pecan pies and more. Rib City’s complete menu is available online at www.ribcity.com.
Rib City is listed with the Franchise Registry, a list of franchise systems whose franchisees have the benefits of a streamlined review process for US Small Business Administration financings.
