The space previously housed Hawthorn Grill and Sweet Prince Deli. The Hawthorn Grill opened in 2010 and operated as a full-service restaurant until April 2017, when the owner announced she was ceasing dinner service and re-branding as Sweet Prince Deli, a breakfast and lunch spot. Less than four months later, the restaurant shut down for good.
TJ Chumps, founded by Dunn and Terry Brill in 2002, has become a go-to spot for lovers of ribs, salmon, burgers and beer over the past two decades.
In 2021, the Dayton-area restaurant chain filed for liquor permits for 4084 Wilmington Pike in Kettering, Ohio Division of Liquor Control records show. The requests have since been canceled.
Dunn said he wished they would have opened a restaurant in Kettering sooner because its Dayton’s biggest suburb and the only place they don’t have a store, but unfortunately the previous deal fell through.
The Kettering restaurant will be TJ Chump’s smallest location, Dunn noted.
“We are planning on doing a lot of delivery out of there and if things go well eventually we will look for a place to put a bigger footprint,” Dunn said. “We’re looking forward to finally getting into Kettering.”
TJ Chumps could open in Kettering around June, Dunn said.
The restaurant has locations at 12 E. Linden Avenue in Miamisburg, 559 S. Main Street in Englewood, 1100 E. Dayton-Yellow Springs Road in Fairborn and 7050 Executive Boulevard in Huber Heights.
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