Robert Owens is a Georgia native, Southern through and through. Spending summers growing up in South Carolina with his grandmother Harriet, he attributes his love for fresh vegetables & thoughtful care for his cuisine to her and his memories of picking vegetables from her garden, bringing them straight to the kitchen to make meals alongside her.
When his family moved to the Roswell area, Robert started his professional career working in local restaurants. He spent time with excellent company and learning from staple names in the Atlanta restaurant scene, like Araxi & Todd Annis, Deux Plex & Hector Santiago, plus a number of Concentrics Hospitality Restaurants with Bob Amick & Todd Rushing. In the early 2000s, he started looking for something a bit different and that he could spend the rest of his time learning, honing the quality & making his own – ultimately finding himself immersed in all things barbecue, thanks to a reconnection with the beloved (and dearly missed) Dave Roberts of Sam’s BBQ-1.
In 2011, he opened Grand Champion BBQ and grew to 5 stores by 2015. Earning accolades for its mac and cheese + brisket and ribs from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and named “Best Runner-Up BBQ” by Atlanta magazine, Robert eventually wanted to redirect his focus to the highest quality meats, woods, smokers and fresh sides – paring down the Grand Champion menu to perfect the best of the basics.
He now operates Owens & Hull out of Grand Champion’s location in Smyrna, where he blends Texas & Carolina styles of BBQ to create his own Georgia brand – focusing on curating the highest quality ingredients to smoke and serve, with a rotating menu of fresh & creative sides.
Since opening, Owens & Hull landed on Eater Atlanta’s “Hottest New Restaurants” list for several months in a row, and was named to Southern Living’s “Top 20 Hottest BBQ Restaurants in the South,” alongside features in Texas Monthly and earning writer Daniel Vaughn’s third spot in his list of BBQ destinations around the U.S. in 2024.
Robert has over 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry, with 15 of them specific to BBQ. He resides in the Atlanta area and enjoys F1 racing in the time he’s not tending to the smoker.