Blackburn’s still coming, but not at planned location

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Restauranteurs Chris Blackburn and Sarah Keith, the pair behind Josephine’s Kitchen and Lindley Park Filling Station, had planned to open Blackburn’s Smokehouse and Raw Bar at 310 S. Elm St. in downtown Greensboro. They announced the plan five months ago, and the property owner said the duo had signed a lease.

But Keith said this morning that, unfortunately, the restaurant won’t work at the site.

“The numbers just didn’t add up because it’s such a unique concept,” she said. “The kitchen is not going to be big enough. It’s hard because we’ve been so excited about it.”

Keith said that in order to make the space work, they would have had to compromise the quality of the food because there isn’t enough space to make their own sausages, pastrami and other elements.

“It’s just not going to fit,” she said. “It’s definitely not scratched, it’s just not going to work in that spot. We’re actually meeting with somebody next week.”

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Keith said they are currently slammed with traffic from the ACC tournament but that next week they will meet with somebody about a different potential location for Blackburn’s. They would like to keep it downtown, she said, adding that the meeting is about a space downtown that “hasn’t even been built yet.”

The original 310 S. Elm St. location is next door to the building where 1618 Downtown is opening soon. It will be the third 1618 restaurant in the city, and a ribbon cutting for the building is scheduled for March 26.