Guy Fieri’s favorite California BBQ sparks major health concerns

A Sonoma County barbecue joint that quickly won over Guy Fieri is in major hot water with its neighbors, who say the restaurant’s smokers are suffocating the area with fumes.

A&M BBQ opened in Sebastopol in June 2024 and instantly racked up a loyal following, but now it’s at the center of a messy fight over its outdoor cooking equipment.

During a City Council meeting, local residents finally broke their silence. Megan Cowan described the situation to SFGate as “untenable” and said conditions worsened after the business installed larger smokers with taller smokestacks,.

Pitmaster and owner Kristopher Austin was genuinely blindsided by the backlash.

“I never wanted to be a nuisance to anyone,” Austin told the outlet.

What started as a neighborhood complaint has snowballed into a zoning nightmare that could actually shut the restaurant down.

Austin said city officials approached the business in March and asked that one of its two smokers be removed. The smoker is now in storage, reducing the restaurant’s production capacity.

Sebastopol City Manager Mary Gourley said that in April, A&M BBQ was told its commercial smokers were not allowed at that location because local zoning rules ban outdoor commercial barbecues there.

It all came to a head when the city sent a formal notice giving the restaurant just 10 days to quit using its outdoor equipment.

Amid the uncertainty, Austin and business partner Finn Liss took to Instagram to address the ongoing drama.

“For nearly a year, we have actively been searching for a more appropriate long-term location that can better support our growth and operations,” they wrote in a May 14 post.

“Throughout this process, we have remained in communication with City staff and continue working toward solutions.”

But finding a new, zoning-compliant home in Sebastopol is proving to be a massive headache.

Recent attempts to move the smokers to an old Mary’s Pizza Shack site and a parking spot at a local Mexican restaurant didn’t pan out.

Gourley told the Daily Mail the city “values” A&M BBQ and its contribution to Sebastopol’s economy and community character.

“City staff remains committed to working with the business owner to identify complaint solutions and potential operational options moving forward,” she said.

Meanwhile, as the restaurant’s options become limited, Sebastopol mayor Larry Robinson suggested installing high-tech filtration equipment to meet the city’s wood-smoke rules—but a commercial setup like that can easily cost thousands of dollars.

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