Obi's Barbecue Share

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In the fall of 2019, Obi’s Bar­be­cue embarked on a jour­ney from being a local food truck towards their aspi­ra­tions of becom­ing a brick and mor­tar busi­ness. A con­test called ​“Com­mu­ni­ty Pitch Night” was host­ed by the Grant Coun­ty Eco­nom­ic Growth Coun­cil adver­tis­ing the grand prize as one year of free rent in Rid­ley Tow­er, Down­town Mar­i­on. At this event, the pub­lic pur­chased tick­ets and heard busi­ness­es pitch their con­cepts to a pan­el of judges, sim­i­lar to the pop­u­lar TV show, ​“Shark Tank.” The pan­el inter­viewed each busi­ness, and the pub­lic vot­ed on their favorite to win. Obi’s own­ers, Jeff and Michelle Richard­son, won the grand prize! It’s pos­si­ble that the win was due to the sam­ples pro­vid­ed to the audi­ence, but nonethe­less their deli­cious food took the gold. Win­ning the com­pe­ti­tion enabled Richardson’s busi­ness to become a sta­ple restau­rant in Marion’s down­town com­mu­ni­ty. The grand prize offered by Hal­stead Archi­tects not only gave Obi’s their first year rent-free, but also gave them the abil­i­ty to weigh in on the build­out for the space they now inhab­it at 402 S. Wash­ing­ton St. in Down­town Marion.

Obi’s is a fam­i­ly-run local­ly owned restau­rant that pro­vides food ser­vice, a beer and wine menu, and a casu­al din­ing atmos­phere. The staff are quick to serve and the menu is rea­son­ably priced with large por­tion sizes. Many patrons are a fan of their brisket sand­wich, the Obi­chos (nachos with your choice of meat & top­pings), and meat can­dy. Obi’s also has sal­ads and desserts includ­ing pecan cake. A trip down­town includes free smells around their Wash­ing­ton Street loca­tion as they con­sis­tent­ly smoke meats through­out the day. 

Since open­ing their doors, Obi’s has served count­less cus­tomers, expand­ed their menu and hours, began serv­ing beer and wine, and even opened a patio. Many enjoy live music at the restau­rant both indoors and out­doors. Obi’s also offers cater­ing and take­out which may be ordered online or by call­ing the restau­rant. They also have a pri­vate room in the back that may be rent­ed for birth­day par­ties, fam­i­ly gath­er­ings, or meet­ings of any sort. Obi’s proud­ly offers a 10% dis­count to first respon­ders, vet­er­ans, and active-duty military. 

The Richard­sons also pro­mote their down­town neigh­bors. One way is through a large mur­al they dis­play in the restau­rant with their mot­to, ​“Fire. Smoke. Eat. Repeat.” The mur­al is a com­mis­sioned piece paint­ed by local artist and own­er of Echo Gallery, Tashe­ma Davis. After a vis­it to Obi’s, you might find your­self fol­low­ing their mot­to and ​“repeat” very soon!

Obis​bar​be​cue​.com | 402 S. Wash­ing­ton St., Mar­i­on, IN 46953 | 765.573.4541

Open: Tue, Wed, Thurs, 11am-9pm; Fri & Sat, 11am – 10pm; Sun, 11am – 6pm (closed Mon)

Sub­mit­ted by:
Kay­la John­son
Main Street Marion