CHATTANOOGA (WDEF) – After 16 years in the Hamilton Place area, Famous Dave’s restaurant closed for good over the weekend.
The local version of the barbecue chain was across Gunbarrel Road from the mall, next to a Payless and Petco.
The owners say their lease was ended because the property owner wanted to renovate and re-purpose the building.
They told employees a week ago.
“This is an emotional time for us,” said Co-owner Doug Renegar. “We opened our doors here 16 years ago and feel like we’ve truly been a blessing to the community, and that community to us. It feels a bit like we closed the family home.”
The restaurant had hoped to make it through the weekend, but they lost too much of their staff to continue on Sunday.
“We had to make the tough call to close on Saturday night,” Renegar said. “We hated to do that to our Friends and Guests hoping for one final Famous meal. But we were glad our Team Members found new positions. We hope the community understands that tough call.”