FOLEY — Colt Grill BBQ & Spirits is coming to downtown Foley in one of the city's oldest buildings.

Colt Grill serves both traditional barbecue and other dishes and food, such as hand-ground burgers and handmade tacos, which is made from their own smoked meats. What makes the establishment different from many others is its "walk up and order" style to dining.

Owner Brenda Marie Clouston, who comes from a background of interior design, said she wanted the restaurant to look and feel more elevated than a traditional barbecue restaurant.

"I want it to feel cozy to people, and I want it to be affordable," Clouston said. "So, by making it a walk-up grill and not having waitresses, we can keep the menu prices down as far as we can."

Clouston comes from a family of furniture builders, which is where a lot of the furniture in Colt Grill is sourced, including the chairs and tables. They bought a 100-year-old farmhouse in the area that they have been remodeling and had the chance to meet and talk with many locals, including city officials, who have been helping Clouston in bringing Colt Grill in downtown Foley to fruition.

"They were making a conscious effort trying to help our business open, help our farmhouse get remodeled using the proper channels and all of that," Clouston said. "We've done a lot of construction in our life, and this was the first community that really showed a willingness to help you. … They're very kind in the way that they manage their offices and their communications, so after I met with the Main Street president and the Building Department, I decided to open a business here."

Colt Grill is giving new life to the old Foley Bakery building, which was built in 1925, at the corner of North Alston Street and West Laurel Avenue. After the most recent business closed there in 2007, a Cactus Cantina, the City of Foley acquired the site in 2012 to preserve it, selling it to developers Mark Wright and Jeremy Freidman, who have been renovating the building to attract a tenant.

The building renovation will also include adding several apartments and a restaurant office on the second floor.

"We're going to provide employee housing upstairs. As we all know who are in small business, it's difficult to find employees. So that's one of the investments for us. To use those apartments," Clouston said at a Foley Main Street meeting in June 2024 when the restaurant was announced for the first time.

"I believe in using my gifts to help other people, first and foremost," Clouston said. "It's an advantage to build something in the center of town where you can be a light and you can share your gifts with other people. We chose [the location] so that people who came into the restaurant would not only have a good experience, but that they would use their resources on the menu."

One of the ways Colt Grill does this is through the purchase of a "Cowboy Cookie." With each one sold, a portion of the sales are donated to Secret Meals for Hungry Kids, a local charity dedicated to providing meals for children in Alabama and Florida. This is Clouston's and Colt Grill's way of giving back.

Colt Grill has four locations in Arizona. The small chain's website says it is female-owned and family-run and has dog-friendly patios.

"We've opened up restaurants in local Arizona cities, and we have chosen Foley to put down roots here because it's just an amazing place," Clouston said at the Foley Main Street meeting. "We were looking at cities to expand to and we always loved the South."

Colt Grill is looking to establish itself within Foley as a site of good food and hospitality, with Clouston saying they plan to be open for business by the end of January, barring any setbacks.

"I want to give people the gift of a warm experience," Clouston said. " I want you to be able to come into the restaurant and sit down and forget about all of your problems outside. To me, that's caring for people, and that's at the core of hospitality."