The site of the old Broad Street Bakery & Café in Southern Pines will soon have a new lease on life. The Broad Street Bakery closed after 28 years leaving a hole in the local dining scene. Now business partners, JP Longueil and David Bungarz, hope their new venture, Embers BBQ, will soon become a local tradition.
Their website shows a menu with many North Carolina favorites. Barbeque is the central feature, with the meat smoked daily and flavored to taste. You can supplement the meal with sides ranging from French fries, sweet potato fries, and mac and cheese. Some Broad Street Bakery favorites, such as French toast, also grace the menu.
Longueil was the former GM of the Whispering Pines Country Club and worked with Bungarz who was the chef behind the Whispering Q, the country club’s barbecue restaurant.
Owners JP Longueil (left) and David Bungarz are getting ready to light up the local dining scene in Southern Pines.
The project started in earnest in 2021. They viewed a couple of locations but then heard that the Broad Street Bakery was available.
Longueil said, “I knew Steve (Steve Grasso, who owned the bakery with his wife), and he is not going anywhere.”
But as it turned out, the Grassos were ready to retire and sold the building to the partners. Getting the building was the easiest part of this journey, Longueil added.
Currently, major renovations are completed, and they are hopeful for a June 6 opening.
The restaurant will be casual dining, “like McDonald’s — only better,” said Bungarz. The facility will employ 10 people to start, and everything on the menu will be made from scratch. The partners have been overwhelmed by the support and positive outlook their venture is receiving.
The goal for Embers BBQ is to provide great food for the community and to become a staple in the historic district.
Embers BBQ is located at 130 SW Broad Street in downtown Southern Pines.
~Article and photos by Sandhills Sentinel Reporter Chris Prentice. Contact him at [email protected].
