(Photo by Jake Williams)
Black Dog Smoke & Ale House is yet again spewing the aromas of smoked meat throughout downtown Urbana after a five-year closure.
The restaurant, which got its start in Urbana 15 years ago, opened a Champaign outpost in 2015. Both locations operated from 2015 until 2020, when the COVID-19 lockdown forced the closure of the original location. Even after the relaxation — and eventual elimination — of social distancing, it remained shuttered.
(Photo by Jake Williams)
Until now.
“Keeping things to one location at that time made sense financially because there was so much uncertainty,” Cochran told Chambana Eats.
Even after things returned to normal, Cochran said that over the next four years, there were many reasons for the location to remain closed.
This March, the time was finally right.
“About a year ago, we got to a place where there wasn’t a reason not to open,” Cochran said. “It’s a nice space and we had always intended to reopen it, and finally we got to the place where we thought we could hire enough people to do it, and financially we were in a good place that we could afford to do it.”
(Photo by Jake Williams)
Because the building had sat vacant for many years, the crew had a lot of maintenance work to take care of before reopening Black Dog’s doors. Cochran said the main goal of these renovations was to keep a similar atmosphere to what people remembered. This included adding more seating options, a new bar rail, and mirrors along the back walls.
“Before COVID happened, we ordered [new chairs] and then we shut down and they got delivered in April of 2020, so nobody sat in them for five years,” Cochran said.
(Photo by Jake Williams)
Now, the new seats get to serve their purpose, welcoming both returning guests and new customers alike. Cochran said he is pleased by the number of familiar faces he’s seen stop in.
The restaurant soft-opened March 27 with reservation-only seating before fully opening a week later.
The business is now open from Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The new and improved Urbana location boasts a revised menu featuring specialty items that aren’t available at the Champaign location. Some popular new options include short ribs, tri-tip, smoked shrimp, and a smoked porchetta sandwich.
“One of the reasons why we’re doing a different menu is because in the beginning we were a unique place in downtown Urbana, so we had a menu you couldn’t get anywhere else,” Cochran said. “We’re sort of revisiting that 15 years later."
Business has taken off since the early-April opening, and he hopes for it to remain consistent at both the Champaign and Urbana locations going forward.
“Happy people in seats, if we’re busy lunch and we’re busy dinner and people are showing up, that’s what we’re looking for,” Cochran said.
From then to now
The Urbana location originally opened in 2009 after Cochran spent a long time searching for the perfect location to set up shop. He chose a quaint shop in downtown Urbana that was previously owned by a friend of his, John Messman, owner of the previous business, Todd & John’s.
After long talks of selling, Cochran finally got his restaurant.
“At that time, when we were starting something new… so we started looking in downtown Urbana for places, and this was a place that was already set up mostly to do what we wanted to do,” Cochran said. “It was just a good fit.”
(Photo by Jake Williams)
Since the reopening, the Urbana location has indeed kept to its history. The menu is simple, with a limited selection of meats (as well as a vegetarian jackfruit option) that can be served as a platter or as a sandwich. Sides and sauces are limited, too, especially compared to the expansive menu at the Champaign location.
The restaurant also sports a full bar, stocked with a variety of both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options.
Jahzara Norris is an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and a staff writer for The Daily Illini.