For 26 years, Silicon Valley engineer John Vink had a weekly lunch routine.
Every Wednesday he’d head to the nearest Armadillo Willy’s barbecue restaurant for the Pit-Smoked Boneless Chicken Sandwich, a juicy thigh topped with jalapeno-spiked barbecue sauce and fresh jalapenos.
“When I worked for Apple I went to the Cupertino location. Then when I worked for Nest I went to Los Altos. Then Google bought Nest, so we” — by then it was a group, the VIM, Very Important Meeting lunch club — “had to come to this location,” he said, sitting in what was formerly the Sunnyvale Willy’s.
It’s now his restaurant.
The abrupt closure of three Armadillo Willy’s in late June set Vink in motion. “I had to buy it,” he said, or lose his favorite sandwich. “We moved fast.”
Vink negotiated a bankruptcy court sale and a new lease on the El Camino Real property and partnered with restaurant veteran Ousmane Barry, who was general manager of the Santa Clara Willy’s. They renamed the place Empire Armadillo BBQ & Deli, which reflects both the Texas barbecue side of the menu and the new New York City-inspired deli sandwiches.
Empire Armadillo opened quietly a few weeks ago and will hold a big public celebration starting at 4:30 p.m. Thursday with a blues band, local dignitaries, the obligatory ribbon-cutting and a food deal for the first lunch and dinner customers.
Former customers have been posting excited reactions on social media and hugging and thanking the staff when they arrive. “It’s open!” customer Lani Ogilvie rejoiced when she spotted the sign Friday. She ordered a baby back rib plate and said she couldn’t wait to break the news to her colleagues.
Besides a refreshed restaurant with new tables, diners will find something else new: A display case of iPhones and other products that Vink had a role in creating over the decades..
For his nascent culinary venture, he has engineered a knowledgeable team, hiring several of the restaurant chain’s longtime pitmasters,
“It’s great that they wanted to keep the Armadillo Willy’s legacy going,” said Jerzy Alanis, chef and assistant GM, who is a 30-year veteran. He’s joined by pitmaster-cooks Maricruz Sanchez (28 years), Mario Miranda (26 years) and Omar Hernandez (17 years).
They’re stoking the familiar fire pit near the front door with oak wood and making recipes they’ve been churning out for all those years. Besides the bestselling brisket and ribs, they smoke pork, turkey breast, tri-tip and Texas jalapeno sausage.
Willy’s side dishes are particularly popular. “People come in for the beans, the coleslaw.” a slightly spicy peanut version, Alanis said, “And the cornbread muffins,” Miranda chimed in. Those are served with honey cinnamon butter.
A trip to SAP Center led to the expanded menu vision. Vink was inspired by the Augie’s Montreal Deli sandwich he had at a San Jose Sharks game, so he and Barry hit the road to visit delis in New York and Los Angeles. They settled on a Pastrami, a Corned Beef and a Reuben, along with a French Dip.
And then there’s the prominent addition to the dessert menu. Barry, who worked in management at Magnolia Bakery for years, has developed a recipe for Banana Pudding that dials back the Southern-style sweetness to a more appealing West Coast level.
Founded 42 years ago in Cupertino by John Berwald, the venerable Armadillo Willy’s chain grew to several Bay Area locations. One restaurant, in San Mateo, remains. Prior to the June shutdown of the Sunnyvale, San Jose (Blossom Hill) and Santa Clara restaurants, the San Jose (Camden), Los Altos and Dublin ones closed.
Could customers see the resurrection of any of those locations?
If there’s news on that front, Vink won’t keep fans waiting. But the priority now is reminding locals that this spacious smokehouse is back in business and ramping up for group events and catering gigs. The beer-and-wine license should be issued soon.
And he has a lot of eating to do. Devoted as he was to that chicken sandwich, “I never had the ribs until I bought the place!” he said, laughing. So he’s on a mission to familiarize himself with everything on the massive menu. “I’m not done yet.”
Details: On Thursday, the first 25 customers in line for lunch will receive a free side dish with their order, as will the first 25 customers in line at 5 p.m. The High Water Blues Band will play from 4:30 to 8 p.m., and the ribbon-cutting ceremony will start at 5 p.m. Empire Armadillo is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. at 161 E. El Camino Real, Sunnyvale; www.empirearmadillo.com
