HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- A Henrico County barbecue restaurant is closing its doors on Saturday, saying the strain of rising meat costs was a major factor in the decision. Redemption BBQ and Market, a barbecue restaurant that specializes in Virginia heritage barbecue, will host its final week o f barbecue services, offering customers the last of its pasture-raised meats daily from Wednesday, April 1 until Saturday, April 4. Owner and pitmaster John Vest, otherwise known as "Rev. Dr. Porkchop," said in a statement on the restaurant's website that continuing with business as usual just isn't feasible right now for a number of reasons. "This is a difficult time for restaurants because it’s a difficult time for consumers," Vest wrote. "Barbecue faces the additional challenge of a menu focused on expensive proteins. This is further compounded for Redemption BBQ because of my insistence on only using meat that was humanely-raised on pasture, which costs us two to three times the price of conventional meat (though even conventional meat is getting unsustainably expensive.)" Over 100 drivers pulled over in Chesterfield’s Enon area in just one day Additionally, Redemption has needed to expand for some time now. After being told in May 2025 that a new space was available to them, Vest began preparing for the additional volume by growing Redemption's staff and hours -- working 60 to 80 unpaid hours a week, himself, to keep the business afloat. But Redemption's moving date kept being pushed back -- until earlier this March, when Vest was told the expansion would be "delayed indefinitely." According to Vest, following this news, he didn't immediately settle on the idea of closing. His first thought involved reducing barbecue service to only two days a week and pivoting to increased production and distribution of Redemption's Chicago-style deep dish pizzas. "Unfortunately, by the end of the week I had to face the reality that even that wouldn’t work," Vest wrote. "We just don’t have the volume in our current location to sustain our food and labor costs. I can’t in good conscience employ people I might not be able to compensate or order meat from local farmers I might not be able to pay." PHOTOS: Wreath-laying honors Henrico officer killed 4 years ago More than that, Vest said that trying to persist in the face of these challenges is not worth the financial and personal toll it would continue to take on his family. "I overextended myself for as long as I did because I believe in what we do and I thought there was a light at the end of the tunnel," Vest wrote. "I don’t know what’s at the end of the tunnel now, but I can’t take on any more debt or imperil my family’s finances worse than I have already. More importantly, I don’t want to miss any more of my sons’ childhoods." If you'd like to try Redemption's Virginia heritage barbecue before it's gone, the restaurant -- located at 3420 Lauderdale Dr. -- will be open from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. each day during this final week. However, even after Saturday, Vest said he will still work to make Redemption's pizzas available. ‘Your decisions behind the wheel matter’: Driver arrested, car destroyed after DUI crash in Orange "Not only will this [pizza sales] help me repay the debts I took on to stay open this long, it will keep alive my commitment to serving pasture-raised meats. More on that later." For more information, check out Redemption's website. ...read more read less