Ahead of court date, East Nashville's Roy Meat Service says business is booming

Evan Mealins, Nashville Tennessean
Updated ·2 min read
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Find the good in it.

That's what Jeff Roy's dad used to tell him. It's what he thinks he'd be telling him now, while a neighbor sues him over the smoke coming from his neighborhood smokehouse she moved next to in 2021.

And despite the lawyer fees and general stress it's caused him, he's found some good. Business at Roy Meat Service has picked up in a big way.

"Now I have to have two smokers to keep up with the demand," Roy said Monday.

The next-door neighbor of the shop sued Roy and the property owner in January 2023. She complained that a concrete pad that the grills sat on out back encroached a little over a foot onto her property, that he wasn't allowed to operate a restaurant on site, that the smoke from the grill made it hard to enjoy her backyard and threatened her health.

Owner Jeff Roy and his son Dustin Roy work the smokers behind Roy Meat Service on Dec. 7, 2023. The owner of the property behind the store says this concrete slab and shed encroach on the property line and is suing Jeff Roy.
Owner Jeff Roy and his son Dustin Roy work the smokers behind Roy Meat Service on Dec. 7, 2023. The owner of the property behind the store says this concrete slab and shed encroach on the property line and is suing Jeff Roy.

Months later, the story of the lawsuit spread on Nashville social media accounts, in the press and in conversations between locals, who in near-unison denounced it. It struck a chord.

On one level, it seemed to some like an attack against an honest local business. But more than that, it was an example they could point to of the threat of losing what remained of Nashville's small-town charm.

Roy said that after the lawsuit was filed, he had been negotiating with the neighbor and was even willing to make a few changes, but he said she stopped responding. The neighbor's lawyer did not respond to an emailed request for comment. Roy said he's not going to stop operating unless a judge tells him to.

Owner Jeff Roy speaks outside Roy Meat Service in Nashville, Tenn., on Dec. 7, 2023.
Owner Jeff Roy speaks outside Roy Meat Service in Nashville, Tenn., on Dec. 7, 2023.

"There's no reason for me to change in any way, so I'm not gonna do it," Roy said. The two parties have a court date on May 24 over a motion filed by the neighbor's lawyer to pause the case for four months for scheduling issues.

Roy said the lawsuit has only helped his business.

"I'm doing twice as much," he said. "If she'd have just left it alone, there'd have been a lot less smoke, a lot less people coming in and out, a lot less cars parked in front of her house."

"Sometimes you've gotta watch what you wish for."

Jeff Roy purchased Roy Meat Service from a friend of his father's in 2015.
Jeff Roy purchased Roy Meat Service from a friend of his father's in 2015.

Evan Mealins is the justice reporter for The Tennessean. Contact him at emealins@gannett.com or follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @EvanMealins.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Roy Meat Service in East Nashville sees business boom since lawsuit