R.U.B. BBQ Pub serves up eats, drinks and 50 more jobs in Ann Arbor

The newly opened R.U.B. BBQ Pub is filling one of the last few slots in Ann Arbor's culinary palette. The eatery, located at 640 Packard St., began serving barbecue and hundreds of different beers during the last weekend of 2012. A student grand opening will be held from Thurs., Jan. 10 – Sat., Jan. 12. "I like to call [Ann Arbor] the restaurant capital of Michigan because there's so many different palates of cuisine to choose from. The one particular taste of food that's missing is great authentic from-scratch barbecue," says Omar Mitchell, regional manager of R.U.B. BBQ Pub, which also has locations in Detroit and Warren, Mich. The restaurant group is owned by the Yono family. The eatery, formerly home to the Packard Pub, has been newly painted and has over two dozen TV screens, more tables and chairs, LED lighting, and energy-efficient coolers.  "We're doing little things like that to give back and go green, you know?" Mitchell says. About three dozen new hires staff the pub, which still has several job openings. Ultimately, the pub will have over 50 employees, according to Mitchell. It is open seven days a week and also offers curbside pickup, delivery, and catering. Source: Omar Mitchell, regional manager of R.U.B. BBQ Pub Writer: Tanya Muzumdar