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Sonny’s BBQ is a full-service BBQ brand specializing in serving slow-smoked signature pit BBQ classics, including meats, appetizers, sidekicks, sandwiches, salads, and desserts, along with proprietary rubs and sauces.
Our Business Model Includes
Signature BBQ:
- Slow-smoked over oak for hours
- Made in-house daily at each location by a certified Pitmaster
- Beef brisket
- Sliced or pulled pork
- Sweet & Smokey and House Dry Rubbed St. Louis Ribs
- Smoked chicken
- Smoked turkey
- Sausage
- Baby Back Ribs
Sandwiches:
- Pork, chicken, turkey, or brisket
- Classics including Sweet Carolina
- Specialty sandwiches including Sonny’s Cuban
- Guest favorites such as Sonny’s Steakburger, Whole Hog, and Brisket Grilled Cheese
Sidekicks:
- Baked Sweet Potato, Tater Tots, and Crinkle-Cut Fries
- Homestyle Mac & Cheese, Homemade Coleslaw
- Original Recipe BBQ Beans, Corn, and Green Beans
Appetizers, Salads and Desserts:
- BBQ Pork Egg Rolls, Loaded Tots, Smoked Wings, Corn Nuggets, and Fried Okra
- BBQ Salad, Smokin’ Caesar Salad, BBQ Cobb Salad, Side Salad
- Cinnamon Sugar Donut Holes, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Homestyle Banana Pudding
Our certified Pitmasters oversee all BBQ operations and help ensure that every meal Sonny’s BBQ serves meets our exacting standards for quality.
Catering
Sonny’s BBQ offers more than sit-down and takeout dining options. We also provide complete catering services for guests who want to bring a touch of Southern hospitality and unforgettable Sonny’s flavor to their next special event.
Our catering options range from guest pickup to delivery to a full carving station setup and service, with a menu of Sonny’s BBQ classics and elevated selections specifically designed for the catering market.
Catering Add-Ons:
- Starter platters including Pimento Cheese & Hot Link Crackers, Chicken Tenders, Chicken Wings, Smoked Buffalo Chicken Dip, BBQ Meatballs, and Burnt Ends
- Sweets including Fruit Cobbler, Banana Pudding, and our Dessert Platter
- Carving stations serving Smoked Prime Rib, Salmon, Brisket, or Pork Loin (Set-Up & Serve Only)
- Build Your Own Bar options including BBQ Taco Bar, Baked Potato Bar, Mac & Cheese Bar, and Mashed Potato Bar
Every catering order includes a choice of meats, three sides, paper plates and utensils, lemonade and fresh-brewed iced tea, and our signature Sonny’s BBQ sauces.
Our Story
The Sonny’s BBQ story begins in Gainesville, Florida, in 1968. Sonny Tillman opened a BBQ restaurant with a simple vision: the best quality meat, slow-smoked over oak for flavor and tenderness, and served with a smile in an environment that emphasizes Southern hospitality and superior guest care. It didn’t take long for our reputation as a place for a craveable, melt-in-your-mouth, guest-focused take on traditional pit BBQ to catch on and spread across the region, and the Sonny’s brand was up and growing.
Franchising
In 1977, Sonny’s BBQ expanded our horizons and began franchising our brand to grow the business into new markets. It was the right move at the right time. Within a few years, we had grown into a regional name in BBQ and a daily destination for guests across the South, with an expanding pool of loyal guests and a business model focused on sustainable growth. It’s an approach we continue to pursue to this day and guides our development as a brand.
Great Food, Southern Hospitality
From ‘68 through today, our concept has remained the same and is the secret sauce to our growth. We stick to the basics — traditional recipes and expert Pitmasters paired with a tireless devotion to our guests.
Our journey begins at the BBQ pit. Every Sonny’s BBQ has a certified Sonny’s Pitmaster® on staff to oversee the process from start to finish. Great BBQ takes time, and our Pitmasters understand that. They take exactly as much time as needed to slow-smoke our meats daily to perfection and use advanced techniques to bring out the best in every meal.
We combine our dedication to quality meats and sides prepared with expert care and love with a focus on the guest experience. Our brand hails from the South, and we bring the tradition of limitless hospitality along with us to every community we serve. When a guest visits any of our locations, they get a full-service experience complete with welcoming staff, generous portions, and attentive care that puts their needs first.
The Future of Sonny’s BBQ
Sonny’s BBQ continues to build on our past growth and looks to the future, with industry disruption and leadership combined with sustainable growth as our goal. We’re setting the pace for the industry and working as a team to expand the brand and serve as a beacon of excellence in our communities, with a focus on technological solutions to further enhance the guest and team member experience.
Building the Brand: How We Train and Prepare Franchisees?
Becoming a franchise owner with Sonny’s BBQ places you in a leadership role in a brand that has a reputation for quality at every step. That includes our approach to franchise ownership.
As we accelerate our transformative journey designed to place us at the forefront of the BBQ industry, we work hand-in-hand with our franchisees to give them the essential skills and guidance they need to sustainably develop their business. We understand how to teach others how to operate and grow a Sonny’s BBQ franchise with us, and we’ve established training and support programs to give each of our owners the tools they need to come to work each day ready to spread the joy of good BBQ and have fun while they’re doing it.
We begin with intensive owner training. In addition to our confidential operations manual detailing essential operational procedures, reporting, marketing, etc., we have developed:
Initial Classroom Training: 65 – 85 hours
- Held in person at a company-owned Sonny’s BBQ location in Orlando, Florida, our corporate office, or another designated location
- The franchise owner and operator, along with any other active managers at the location, must complete the initial training prior to launch.
On-the-Job Training: 320 – 450 hours
- Hands-on training for franchisees and any other active managers
- All OJT must be completed by all personnel to the brand’s satisfaction prior to launch.
Continuing Training and Support: As needed
- Franchisor representative assists the franchisee in their territory
- Training provided as required and on request
Answering the Question:
Why Franchise with Sonny’s BBQ?
Franchise ownership with Sonny’s positions you in a brand on the rise with several standalone selling points that set us apart from the competition, including but not limited to:
- Focus on Technology Innovation
- Legacy brand with rich history
- Experienced Leadership
- Major Market Availability
- Proprietary Recipes, Rubs, and Sauces
- A Reputation for Superior Guest Care
- Multiple Revenue Streams
- Supportive Family Atmosphere
And there’s much more to Sonny’s BBQ than just our unique selling points. We’ve been in business for over 55 years, and we bring those generations of experience and knowledge with us to provide ongoing, robust support to every one of our franchisees.
We believe a superior product served in a full-service environment centered around guest needs and Southern hospitality is the foundation for a BBQ brand with promise. With the help of our experienced leadership, intensive training, and ongoing support, you’ll have the backing and tools you need to grow.
Find out more about our exciting franchise opportunities, and learn how Sonny’s BBQ is changing the conversation around the industry today — schedule an appointment to discuss what comes next.
CLICK HERE to Schedule an Appointment