The Owner of D.B.A. Barbecue Is Getting Into the Fast-Casual Restaurant Game

D.B.A. Barbecue owner Matt Coggin has been working in Virginia-Highland for the majority of his career (since 1997 to be exact), including 14 years at his popular neighborhood restaurant D.B.A. But he’s decided it’s time to branch out beyond Virginia-Highland: news broke earlier this month via What Now Atlanta that Coggin will open two new restaurants this spring and summer.

Don’t worry, D.B.A. Barbecue’s original location isn’t going anywhere. Instead, Coggin is getting into the fast-casual game. The first example of that will be called D.B.A. BBQ, and it will open in the former Greater Good BBQ location on Roswell Road near Chastain Park, a location Coggin is bullish on.

It will play off the original restaurant’s menu, but scaled down and focusing strictly on barbecue as seen in pork, brisket, chicken, turkey, wings, and sides. Beer, wine and cocktails will also be available.

D.B.A. Barbecue

The next location will feature those barbecue items, but there’s a twist, adding tacos to the menu as well. “Barbecue and Mexican food aren’t that far apart,” explains Coggin of his upcoming outpost, dubbed D.B.A. Tacos and BBQ. This 2,600-square foot outpost will be located in Clarkston on East Ponce de Leon Avenue, in the former home of a Taco Bell and KFC, and the restaurant’s former incarnation served as an inspiration of sorts for the two-genre menu.

Expect to find eight tacos to choose from, using smoked meats like brisket tacos instead of carne asada or smoked chicken instead of chicken tinga, along with a birria taco featuring braised goat. Three tacos will rotate in and out as specials, and Coggin plans to serve four different salsas and extras like chips.

Coggin is very excited about another aspect of the Clarkston location. “I’ve always wanted drive-thru,” he says. He’s giving the existing drive-thru a modern renovation for as speedy service as possible — along with a board that will inform drivers which barbecue meats have already run out for the day.

Each of the new restaurants will have its own smoker on the premises. “We’re not changing how we do our food,” Coggin says. “We have already worked on how to make the exact same food, exact same quality, just faster.”

D.B.A. Tacos and BBQ is slated for a summer opening, while D.B.A. BBQ is expected to open in late spring.