‘An honor to serve you.’ Why a Columbus barbecue favorite has closed its doors.
A beloved barbecue restaurant open for nine years in Columbus announced its closure this week.
Zombie Pig BBQ, 6201 Veterans Parkway, has closed. The restaurant announced the news “with heavy hearts” Sunday on Facebook.
“From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank each and every one of you who has supported us throughout the years,” the restaurant said on Facebook. “It’s been an honor to serve you, to share in your celebrations, and to be a part of this incredible community.”
The business owners said they appreciated the memories made with customers over the years.
“We are beyond grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this community, and while this is goodbye for now, we’ll always carry the spirit of Zombie Pig BBQ in our hearts.”
David DeSteno, owner of Zombie Pig, told the Ledger-Enquirer he was overwhelmed by the positive support of the community in the comments of his closing post.
“It really warms my heart knowing that the city will support local businesses, and when those businesses take a downturn, the city is there for you,” DeSteno said. “I’m proud of what I did with this restaurant.”
The Zombie Pig BBQ restaurant started as a response to popularity in sales from barbecue competitions with the Kansas City Barbecue Society, which later developed into a popular food truck business. The popularity of the food truck encouraged DeSteno to open The Zombie Pig storefront in 2016.
“We would sell barbecue on Saturdays at the roadside. We’d start out the day with ribs, pork, chicken and brisket about 400 pounds,” DeSteno said. “We’d open at 10, and by 2 o’clock were sold out.”
Now, the rising costs of food supply and rent are the main reasons why Zombie Pig is closing. DeSteno said that over the last 10 months, sales at Zombie Pig have dropped 30% to 40%. He cites this drop in sales to customers trying to save money in the face of economic hardship.
“The first thing that does is (stop) people going out to eat, for the most part,” DeSteno said. “That’s just the way it is when you’re trying to save money.”
After he finalizes the details with the closing in the coming weeks, DeSteno plans to take some vacation time with his family. Then he plans to pursue other business ventures in Columbus.
“I’m a former Army vet, and nothing keeps down the Army,” DeSteno said. “We’ll bounce back and find new things to do.”
This story was originally published March 4, 2025 at 1:55 PM.