Longview’s Sunbird Barbecue is about to open its first dine-in restaurant.
Bryan Bingham and his wife Kimmy and David Segovia opened their mobile barbecue business in 2021 after previously working at Mobberly Avenue Bodacious Bar-BQ. Segovia’s wife, Kay, also helps out at Sunbird Barbecue.
“We’ve always known we wanted to go into brick and mortar,” Bryan Bingham said, and they expect to open at their new location, at 415 N. High St., within a few weeks.
The building was most recently home to The Cace Kitchen until that business moved deeper into downtown Longview at 104 N. Green St.
“The trailer was great, but we’re pretty exhausted with what we can do,” Bingham said. Also, without the building, customers had nowhere to sit and eat because of the weather.
Their barbecue pit will be on-site, and he said they also hope to add an outdoor dining area at a later date.
Community support for the business has been “overwhelming,” Bingham said.
“We wouldn’t be anywhere without the support of the community,” he said.
Sunbird’s food truck will remain open at Hyundai of Longview, at 3680 US 259, for now, but Bingham said they hope to open on High Street in a few weeks.
The restaurant’s hours will still be 11 a.m. to sell-out Wednesday through Saturday, but Bingham said they hope to expand those hours later as business grows.
New El Sombrero location
El Sombrero opened Friday at its new location at 2005 Toler Road in West Longview.
Mike Kittner opened the original restaurant 22 years ago on McCann Road in the Brookwood Village Shopping Center. He previously operated locations in Hallsville and Kilgore, but sold the one in Hallsville. The Kilgore restaurant has been closed since a fire in August, and Kittner plans to tear it down and rebuild it later.
He also plans to open a second location in Longview.
The location that just opened, in the former Catfish Village, is nearly twice the size of the McCann Road restaurant at 9,200 square feet, with a drive-thru and a larger bar.
Opening hours are from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. from Monday to Wednesday and from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. from Thursday to Saturday.
Change of ownership
The Ritz Salon at 1901 Judson Road is under new ownership.
Claudio Castro and Jeff Pugh bought the salon in late 2022. They learned it was for sale while working at the Barber Institute.
Pugh works at the salon full time, while Castro continues to work at the Institute full time and then at the salon in the afternoons. She expects to eventually work at the salon full-time.
She is a beautician, she said, while Pugh is a barber who offers both shaves and razor cuts.
“We do all kinds of haircuts,” Castro said.
Working hours are from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Tuesday to Thursday and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the salon accepts appointments and walk-ins. The hours will likely be extended later, Castro said.
“We hope we can bring the best to Longview and continue to grow the business,” Castro said.