RICHMOND, Va. — The Smoky Mug recently opened its new location along North Avenue off Brookland Park Boulevard in Richmond.
Co-owners Dan Lee and Ryan Maynes recently appeared on the Eat It, Virginia podcast to discuss their coffee shop and barbecue restaurant concept and what it took to expand from the original, and much smaller location, to the new restaurant space.
The restaurant’s origin story began during the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 when Maynes, then a paving superintendent, invited Lee and his wife over for dinner…