A sneak peek inside the new Animales Barbeque

Any barbecue fan knows that the good stuff takes time. For chef Jon Wipfli, who launched Animales Barbeque Co. as a seasonal business in 2018, the road to a full-time restaurant has been long. But he’s finally ready.

On Oct. 23, the new Animales will open in a converted 12,500-square-foot space with high ceilings, long tables appointed with rolls of thick paper towels, and plans for long days and nights of great food and music.

Wipfli announced plans for a year-round restaurant in 2022, but as he hunted for space and tried to make the idea tangible, a whole lot of life happened. Locations came and went; an early partnership didn’t work out. But now the married father of two says all the big details have fit perfectly into place.

Animales is a collection of ideas built by a talented crew who have joined Wipfli in his venture to open his dream restaurant — one that stakes a claim for Midwestern barbecue and has enough room to welcome everyone.

He’s partnered with people like Rich Henriksen, the owner of Berlin, to add live music. Jen Whittier came on as programming manager, hired to bring in national acts and foster local talent with a music program to enhance the dining experience.

The focal point of the room is the stage, dark but illuminated with brightly colored icons. Off to one side is a bar, farther down is a whimsical play space. Walking through the restaurant, Wipfli noted the way the sound changes throughout the room.

“You can hear the acoustics shift,” he said, pointing out the sound dampening materials in the ceiling. “It pays to have experts to help us with all this. The goal is for music and conversation.”

To achieve all that flavor, the kitchen is anchored by two enormous smokers.

“In Texas they measure by brisket. These can hold 70 briskets, but here we measure in ribs. We can get 240 racks of ribs in here at a time — maybe a little more,” he said. And the smokers are bright pink. “I let my daughter pick the color.”

The menu will offer a selection of barbecue at market prices starting at 4 p.m., with a when-it’s-gone-it’s-gone availability. But there’s also an “Anytime Menu” of dishes longtime fans of the Animales trailer might recognize: cheesesteaks on sesame seed-studded bread, salads, that exceptional burger and desserts from pastry chef Amber Wedell.

Joining them in the kitchen is chef de cuisine Peter Thillen, who had been working at Sanjusan when he heard about the chance to be a part of the Animales team. “I didn’t know anything about barbecue,” Thillen said. “But it was too good an opportunity to pass up.”

Behind the bar is Adam Witherspoon, whose local restaurant résumé includes Martina and Mara at the Four Seasons. He was also one of the founders of 3Leches NA beverage company, and his nuanced way of building beverages is on display at Animales.

Not everything is spiked, though. Local NA wine Dry Wit, 3Leches and Bauhaus BrewLabs’ NA beer Nah will all be stocked.

The food and drink menu is all part of the everyone-is-welcome vibe of the new space — and that includes pint-sized humans. A soaring, inviting playroom with posted rules like “kindness comes first” is outfitted with soft flooring, a slide, imagination space and more sound dampening to protect little ears.

Standing in the middle of the room, now beginning to fill with staff making final touches, Wipfli watched it all unfold.

“You know,” he said, “I think if this had happened earlier it wouldn’t have been this good.”

And then he took a beat, inhaled deeply and walked back into the kitchen.

Hours: Thursday and Friday 4–10:30 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Look for the possibility of expanded hours and, eventually, brunch.

Barbecue: Offered from 4-9 p.m., or until it runs out. The full-time menu is stacked with other tempting fare.

Ordering: QR codes, but service is available for assistance.

Parking: There are a few dedicated spots by the restaurant in a lot shared with La Doña Cervecería, but the street in front of the under-construction deck has free parking on both sides.

Reservations: None