What happened to T-Rav?

The nights on the corner of Bates and Atwood have been a bit lonelier and quieter these past… The nights on the corner of Bates and Atwood have been a bit lonelier and quieter these past few months. The corner was usually filled with the easygoing sounds of Bob Marley wafting through the air as the piquant smell of barbecue sauce drew the masses to the wrought-iron fence that stood between a grill and hungry people.

Students have been wandering around the corner during the weekends, wondering, “What ever happened to T-Rav?” Fortunately for them, T-Rav’s Barbecue Lab will return to its salivating customers. He became involved in a dispute involving a lease issue that ousted him from his grill situated on the corner of the property of the Sphinx Cafe and Hookah Bar. But he’s trying to solve the problem while also looking into new territory.

Travis Huntley, who is known widely by his loyal patrons as T-Rav, served hamburgers, hot dogs and pulled pork Thursday through Saturday from 10 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. The 24-year-old flipped burger patties and hot dogs slathered in his homemade barbecue sauce for two years without any problems.

But this year, the Oakland Real Estate Co., which owns the Sphinx Cafe property, had T-Rav leave the corner because of lease issues. Ramy and Amera Andrawes, the owners of Sphinx Cafe, gave him permission to set up shop on the corner without notifying the real estate company.

The lease for Sphinx Cafe states that if any changes are made to the property, including placing a grill outside of the building, Oakland Real Estate Co. needs to be notified.

A woman who answered the phone for Oakland Real Estate Co. said the company did not have any comments on the issue. She declined to give her name several times and refused to transfer the call to other people in the office or the president of the company, Brian Gallagher, to comment on the matter. She said the matter was a “Sphinx issue.”

The real estate company found out due to complaints, said Amera Andrawes. Included in the complaints were food safety issues and problems with people standing outside, some of whom were intoxicated.

“[Oakland Real Estate Co.] didn’t know he was there. So that made them upset, as well,” Amera Andrawes said.

Andrawes said that the real estate company only wanted to make sure that everything was legal and safe.

“It’s their property,” she said.

Amera Andrawes said she supports T-Rav and would like everything to work out so he can return, but she doesn’t know if he will. Ramy Andrawes also expressed support for T-Rav’s business venture because of his popularity.

“Everybody liked him,” Ramy Andrawes said. “Everybody knew who he was. A lot of people came looking for him after he left.”

T-Rav vanished from the street corner at the end of the summer, leaving students who returned for classes wondering where he was. T-Rav’s Twitter account and Facebook page let his patrons know about his leave of absence, but students felt deprived.

“It’s been awful,” said senior Laura Nizlek, about having to go the past several months without T-Rav’s food. “It’s right next to my house, and my friends and I always end up there at the end of the night.”

Sophomore Kathryn Plummer was shocked and sad about T-Rav’s disappearance.

“My sister came one weekend, and she asked if we were going to T-Rav’s, and I said it doesn’t exist anymore,” Plummer said. “It’s really sad. T-Rav’s was awesome. They had the best hamburgers and hot dogs around.”

But it’s patrons like Nizlek that made T-Rav rethink how he would get his business going again. He plans to relocate and expand. He wants to try and get the lease situation worked out so he can still have his grill in South Oakland, then add an additional location in central Oakland.

For the past two months, he’s been waiting for Oakland Real Estate Co. to respond to a proposal for him to return to his former location. He called on his loyal patrons to post on his Facebook and Twitter pages about their experiences at T-Rav’s as evidence of his popularity. He said that by taking T-Rav’s away, it took away from the Pitt students’ experiences.

After losing his spot on Atwood and Bates, T-Rav tried to seek out a spot on Semple Street, but plans fell through. Then he remembered that IGA had a hot dog stand outside of its business in past years, but he hadn’t seen it this year. He approached the owner of IGA about doing business there because Oakland Business Improvement had already approved for a hot dog stand outside the store.

“I thought it would be a fun thing if it was outside. I think it’s a nice thing for Oakland,” said Ron Levick, the owner of IGA.

Things have gone smoothly since Levick allowed T-Rav to run his barbecue business in front of IGA.

“All I need is a smaller grill and a table and I’ll be in front of IGA,” T-Rav said.

He would like to have the Sphinx Cafe location for the weekends and nights, and have lunch times at IGA and possibly nights, depending on reception by patrons. But as of now, he can only commit to being in front of IGA.

T-Rav wouldn’t say when he would be opening up in front of IGA, only that it would be in the near future. He said he wants to “surprise” everyone. He will be advertising closer to opening day so people know.

On hearing that T-Rav’s was going to return to Oakland, Plummer started to grin and immediately whipped out her cellphone and started to text.

“I’m telling my friend right now,” she said excitedly as her fingers rapidly pressed the keys. “I’m so excited. That’s awesome.”

Nizlek said she is excited for T-Rav’s to come back. It’s not just the food that is good; she also enjoys the atmosphere, which is fostered by T-Rav.

“He’s always singing and dancing,” she said.

T-Rav said the experience that he tries to provide is what brings his customers back. He tries to make sure everyone is having a good time. He believes that negative energy will rub off onto his customers and they won’t return.

“Love everybody, please love. Love is in the air,” he said as he laughed. “You don’t come to T-Rav’s with negative energy. This is the peace zone.”

The positive environment is something that will exist in every location.

“T-Rav’s is going to be the same in every spot,” he said.

But some things will change. With a big smile, he said he plans to add sausages and smoothies to the menu.

And Nizlek is ready to return to what she considers to be her normal night, which ends at T-Rav’s.

“I miss him so much,” Nizlek said. “I’m so sick of eating $5 pizzas.”