‘Up our game.’ Big things coming beyond BBQ for popular Tri-Cities eatery

Swampy’s BBQ will keep its name when it moves into a permanent home at the Port of Kennewick’s Columbia Gardens Wine and Artisan Village later this year.

But owner Ron Swanby promises the Swampy’s menu will expand far beyond barbecue once it is free of the constraints of operating in the confines of its current food truck.

Swanby, his partner Pipeworks LLC and port officials formally break ground on a commissary kitchen and walk-up window at 10 a.m. Monday, May 22, at the construction site, 215 E. Columbia Drive, across from Zip’s.

The new building will have a shaded spot to eat outdoors that’s protected from the wind

Swanby is determined to move in before winter, saying he and his employees won’t spend another season freezing in a mobile food truck.

Swanby is keeping his menu plans secret for now, but promises that once the new spot is ready, it will be a regional destination for diners.

In a hint of what’s to come, he dished up filet mignon sandwiches this week and said the truck has experimented with smoked cheeses, which it uses in grilled cheese sandwiches and other dishes.

“I plan to really up our game,” he said.

While he doesn’t eat barbecue, Swanby said he loves making it and seeing customers light up when they taste it.

The building will let Swampy’s operate during fixed business hours, offer special dinners by reservation only and to partner with the four wineries that call Columbia Gardens home.

Regular business hours

Swanby said being able to offer fixed business hours is a big driver of the new building.

The former hair dresser created Swampy’s as a catering business, then opened the food truck at Columbia Gardens in 2019. The two sides of the business have always been at odds.

If he has a catering event, he has to close the truck.

“I can’t do both at the same time, he said.

Customers complain — loudly — on social media when they find the business closed. And it adds up to plenty of lost business. Swanby hasn’t drawn a paycheck from the business he created since it started more than four years ago.

The building means he’ll be able to keep the window open at Columbia Gardens even if he has catering obligations. It will maintain fixed hours six days a week, he promised.

“I can feed hundreds more people than I’m capable of doing now,” he said.

Go big with menu

A proper kitchen gives him leeway to expand the menu. Most food trucks prepare food in leased space in commissary kitchens. Swanby is a member of Pasco Specialty Kitchen, but said he doesn’t have time to compete for time with other users.

So he restricts his menu to items that can be safely prepared at the truck. Meats are seasoned and put on the grill. And he pays extra for pre-washed vegetables.

“Once I have the kitchen, I won’t be limited anymore,” he said.

The new kitchen will double as a commissary kitchen, meaning other food truck operators can lease time when Swampy’s is wrapped up.

“This isn’t just about me. It’s about what I can do for this area,” he said.

The port called Swanby an ambassador for Columbia Gardens, noting he was the first to station his truck there and was the first to purchase one of the handful of sites available for private development.

“We love what he’s doing. He believes in the vision of Columbia Gardens and we’re just happy that he chose Columbia Gardens for his home,” said David Phongsa, the port’s marketing and capital projects coordinator for the port.

Building a dream

Swanby has dreamed of a physical building since he opened at Columbia Gardens, the port’s wine-and-food themed village by Duffy’s Pond.

He envisioned a sit-down restaurant and was looking at property in early 2020. COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns prompted a rethink. Instead of a restaurant, he wanted a walk-up window attached to a physical kitchen.

“I don’t want to ever be in a position where somebody says I can’t do business with the building I have,” he said.

The realization led Swanby and Pipeworks to approach the port about securing a sliver of land at Columbia Gardens itself. In 2022, it agreed. The site fronts East Columbia Drive and the new building will sport a mural in keeping with the area’s art district aspirations.

Swanby hoped to move into the completed building last October. Delays beyond his control almost killed the business. Some days, he drove to the truck wondering if it was the day he’d be forced to close.

He said the port and city of Kennewick have been strong partners, but staying in business during the wait was challenging.

“This has been the toughest process I’ve ever been through. If I had control over these things, I would have been in a building already,” he said.

But as the ground breaking approaches and business picks up with the warm weather, the future looks brighter.

“I don’t feel near as anxious. We’re going to make it,” he said.

Follow Swampy’s BBQ at Swampy’s BBQ Sauce and Catering on Facebook. It will be closed after breakfast on Thursday because of a catering commitment.

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