VICTOR — After a devastating early morning kitchen fire last October, Big Hole BBQ is now open and relishing the smells and sounds of summer.

Teton County Fire’s investigation listed the cause of the blaze as undetermined. While the front of the house remained relatively unharmed, the kitchen and roof were critically damaged.

On the morning of the fire, Teton County Fire Marshal Earle Giles told the Teton Valley News that “they’ll need a new roof” and that “it’s a gut job for the kitchen.”

Exactly nine months from that day, the barbecue joint would reopen with a brand new roof and kitchen. Owner Nick Jacob was understandably amazed at just how quickly things turned around.

“We were in a really tough spot and the community came together and got us back up and running in an incredibly short amount of time,” Jacob said.

To say the community support was stunning is an understatement considering the turnaround times Jacob saw from area businesses. Jacob exclusively hired local help for the rebuild.

Perhaps the most impressive anecdote from the rebuild came from Teton Truss, located in Thayne. Trusses were quoted initially as being six to eight months out. The trusses arrived in Victor two weeks from the order date.

“Without the trusses, we don’t have a roof; without a roof we don’t have anywhere to start,” Jacob said.

After weeks of not being able to touch the affected areas due to the investigation, contractors threw the house at the rebuild for the Teton Valley staple.

“Some contractors are 18 months to three years out and I am beyond thankful for the local community,” Jacob said. “We went local for every contractor from plumbing, electric, drywall, roofing, framing, the list goes on. Every one of them took a crew off their jobs that they were already backed up on and came in and banged it out.”

That being said, it was not always smooth sailing. Jacob detailed the process of trying to find a new flat top grill after putting one on order just five days after the fire.

“They told us it would be six to eight weeks. They contacted us in March and said it was going to be another six to eight weeks, so we started getting a little nervous,” he said. “The estimated date of delivery was June 12, they contacted us on June 10 and said it was going to be another three to four weeks.”

Yet again, Jacob seemed to pull a miracle to acquire a piece of equipment that would get the job done.

“I was lucky enough to come across a flat top that will get us by. It’s not ideal, but it’s working,” he said. “We got that and it ended up showing up in five days, which enabled us to open back up.”

The kitchen and back of the house are entirely new. The front of the house remains relatively unchanged, although there are now more TVs, refreshed local art, and an increase in the number of beverage taps. A new smoker is also on order and due at the end of August.

“We completely reconfigured the kitchen which we could not be more ecstatic about,” Jacob said. “All of our kitchen staff is beyond excited at the space that we are working with.”

While those improvements should in due time enhance the efficiency of the kitchen, Big Hole BBQ is somewhat limiting output while training new staff. The restaurant is not offering takeout ordering until further notice.

“A majority of our kitchen staff is back, around 80 percent. There are a handful of new employees that we’re still training,” Jacob said.

Jacob has relied on those returning employees to enable a faster training-in period, necessitated by opening in the middle of summer. Having a fully staffed restaurant is something he does not take for granted.

“It wasn’t November; it was July 5,” Jacob said. “Now, three weeks in, they are just rolling and we’re fully staffed which is a blessing. It is a very tough industry to get employees and thankfully we are on the good side of that. Couldn’t be more thankful for that.”

All of these fortunate developments combined to create a very emotional atmosphere on the day of the reopening. Big Hole BBQ staff spent the entire Fourth of July weekend preparing for opening day.

“We finally saw the light and it was very emotional. From the morning of the fire and looking at what happened to 36 hours before opening your door, the process and the progress, everybody that came together locally from the business standpoint went above and beyond,” Jacob said.

“It was extremely overwhelming. It felt like you almost won the lottery, like you’re starting your life back over,” he continued.

After the positive emotions were rightly celebrated and acknowledged, Jacob still has difficulty sleeping at night due to the incomprehensible stress of seeing his business up in flames. While the building may be healed, Jacob hasn’t quite shaken those feelings.

“I don’t want to ever go through that again, it was beyond anything I could imagine,” Jacob said. “I’m constantly running around looking at everything from the air unit down to the ice maker. I’m checking my panels downstairs where the power comes in. I definitely have some nightmares, to say the least.”

“I knew I was going to have these feelings once we opened but I’m getting better though, I’m getting some sleep,” he continued.

Everything considered, Jacob attested that overcoming the adversity has transformed the restaurant back into a place of happiness where everyone is welcome to enjoy some fantastic barbecue.

“The days are getting better. The restaurant is in a really cool place. All of our employees are really happy to work front and back of the house. Our vendors, everything. It is a real special thing,” Jacob concluded.