Fire up the smokers: Wiped out by mudslide, BBQ joint back in business

After a giant mudslide wiped out a well-known BBQ restaurant in Olympia last week, the owners had no idea how — or if — they would recover from the loss.

But a local hotel is reaching out to help the Ranch House BBQ restaurant, and its international award-winning pit master, to get up and running again.

Last Monday, co-owners Amy Anderson and Melanie Tapia watched as a wall of mud slid from the hilltops surrounding their property and swallowed up their barbecue restaurant during the state's devastating storm. It destroyed the water and septic systems, the smokers that made their signature barbecue meats and the warm checkered curtains that welcomed the restaurant's customers.

The losses were estimated at $4 million and insurance did not cover any of the damage, said Tapia.

Last week, the owners received a call from Sandra Miller, vice president and general manager of the Governor Hotel in downtown Olympia.

She has offered to let the barbecue business use the hotel's kitchen for free — no charge for rent or utilities — until the owners can get on their feet.

Tapia said she and Anderson cried when they heard the news.

"We never in our wildest dreams thought we would have had such a fabulous offer," said Tapia. "And free of charge. That's amazing."

The arrangement is temporary — the Ranch House will move into the hotel's facilities as a new restaurant is rebuilt on their property. It will take at least six months to a year, Tapia said.

The kitchen in the hotel is three times the size of the one in the old Ranch House, where the dining area held about 40 people. The hotel's dining capacity is double that.

The Ranch House staff will supply the hotel's complimentary breakfast in the morning, but other than that, the kitchen and dining area are theirs to do with what they wish.

"They've got an excellent reputation in town," said Miller. "They were local folks who needed help."

Miller admitted having a barbecue joint in her hotel "is kind of a different combination," but she thinks the hotel will benefit from the arrangement.

Some salvaged memorabilia — the barbecue trophies and wagon wheels — will be put on the walls. Anderson, a worldwide and five-time state barbecue champion, has put in orders for two new smokers so that the staff can continue serving up its signature menu items.

"If I don't look at the destruction and I don't look at the loss, and focus on all the support ... it's pretty amazing," said Tapia.

Most of the Ranch House's 22 employees will join them at the hotel when they kick off opening day on Jan. 4.

Tapia is hoping the old customer base — which ranges from loggers in dirty boots to state workers in three-piece suits — will do so as well.

Olympia locals Sharon and Bruce Roberts have been going to the Ranch House every Tuesday since it opened four years ago.

"You bet we'll be there," Sharon Roberts said.

Christina Siderius: 206-464-2112 or csiderius@seattletimes.com