After years on the Knoxville food truck circuit, Wells Station BBQ is opening its own restaurant.
Owner Marcus Stokely is partnering with A Dopo co-owner Brian Strutz to turn his mobile business into a permanent brick-and-mortar one at 1617 N. Central St. The restaurant − also named Wells Station BBQ − will be in the same parking lot as Wild Love Bakehouse and Mid Mod Collective, just north of the Happy Holler neighborhood.
Stokely has a background in fine dining, working at places such as A Dopo, Blackberry Farm and J.C. Holdway.
He expects to open Wells Station BBQ sometime in 2027.
Wells Station's barbecue journey in Knoxville
Stokely stepped away from the formal restaurant world to start a family but later picked up barbecuing on the weekends to reignite his love for cooking. Wells Station
BBQ grew from a pop-up to a locally beloved food truck, but Stokely only operated his business on the weekends while continuing to work in IT.
Strutz told Stokely that if he ever decided to grow his concept into a full-service restaurant, he wanted to help. They looked at locations around town, including the former Sweet P's Downtown Dive location, but the spot on North Central had something unique: It's in a growing neighborhood that feels like home.
Cooking was a central part of Stokely's childhood. He can still remember the distinct smell of homemade meals lingering in his grandparents' home. His family hosted cookouts where 40 people would gather for a night of good food and better community.
Stokely hopes his new restaurant will recreate that feeling.
Wells Station will offer counter service during lunchtime before shifting to a plated, full-service experience for dinner. Stokely plans to build off his experience at places like Blackberry Farm and A Dopo to bring a more elegant (but not too elegant) version of barbecue to Knoxville.
"I've worked in fine dining enough where tweezers are in my past," Stokely told Knox News.
Construction on the new location will start later this year, but Stokely does not have a firm opening timeline. Wells Station will continue to operate as a food truck before the brick-and-mortar opens.
"Barbecue is more than just a style of cooking," Stokely said. "It's an ingredient. You can add smoke to anything."
Knox News reporter Joanna Hayes covers restaurants and retail for the business growth and development team. Email: joanna.hayes@knoxnews.com; Instagram: @knoxeat65. Sign up for Joanna's Eat65 email newsletter to get the latest drink and dining news, as well as restaurant recommendations, at knoxnews.com/newsletters.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Wells Station will pair fine dining and barbecue at new storefront
