The building that once housed Timbers on Concord Road SE in Smyrna is under renovation, taking shape as Rock Dawg Tavern. Owner Terry Tucker is overseeing a complete remodel and new branding at 730 Concord Road SE, aiming to turn the familiar watering hole into a sports-and-home-cooking spot with a fresh identity.
The city and Georgia Department of Transportation are seeking feedback on proposed improvements to South Cobb Drive between Windy Hill Road and Concord Road. The city says the project is intended to improve how the road serves travelers and residents while supporting the area’s communities and economic activity.
According to Business Debut, Tucker is reworking the former Timbers space with a complete renovation and new branding as Rock Dawg Tavern. The tavern is targeting an opening after the first of the year, though an exact date has not been announced, the outlet reports.
Sports, Screens, and Live Music
Rock Dawg Tavern is planned as a new tavern built around home-style cooking and a sports focus, with Georgia Bulldogs, Atlanta Falcons, and Atlanta Braves games set to air during their seasons. The setup calls for 11 televisions upstairs and two downstairs; the two 75-inch HDMI screens on the main floor are for primary viewing, while bands will perform there.
Planned hours have the tavern opening at 11:30 a.m. and running until 2 a.m. Sunday through Friday, stretching to 3 a.m. on Saturdays, per the same report. Those hours, along with the entertainment lineup, are still part of the pre-opening plan rather than confirmed operating details.
Homemade Menu in the Works
On the food side, Tucker is planning homemade spaghetti, country fried steak, chopped steak, and potentially meatloaf, alongside Taco Tuesdays and seafood Fridays, the report notes. Homemade sides are expected to include mashed potatoes, fried okra, green beans, corn, deviled eggs, pinto beans, mac and cheese, green bean casserole, and navy beans.
The menu is also shaping up to include hearty homemade soups, a full line of burgers, hot sandwiches, appetizers, salads, and homemade desserts. Tucker said he wants to offer a daily low-cost lunch special as well, rounding out a menu built around comfort-food staples.
Rock Dawg’s proposed menu joins a sizable statewide industry: Georgia had 23,959 restaurant locations and 505,600 restaurant and foodservice jobs, with $47.2 billion in foodservice sales, in 2025 data compiled by the National Restaurant Association. Those figures cover the broader sector, not independent taverns alone, but they show the scale of the market in which Smyrna’s returning neighborhood-bar concept would compete. The association’s Georgia industry snapshot provides the state-level totals.
Tucker's History With the Building
Tucker's connection to the Concord Road location runs deep. He opened Bonz Sports Grill in 1997 in the Kroger shopping center across from the old Timbers, running it until around 2009, when he bought Timbers itself. He has owned the building for about 10 years and operated Timbers from 2009 through 2021 before selling the business while retaining the property, the outlet reports.
The buyer who took over Timbers after Tucker's sale ran it for four years before closing it, setting the stage for Tucker's return with the Rock Dawg Tavern concept. Tucker said his alcohol license has been approved through 2027, according to the same report.
A local alcohol license is only one part of the city’s rules for serving drinks. Smyrna requires establishments selling alcohol within city limits to hold a current city license, and says Georgia also requires state licensing; new local license requests are advertised before a City Council public hearing, while applicants undergo a police background check. The city lists on-premises pouring sales among the license types it regulates. Smyrna’s business-license guidance lays out those steps, providing context for Tucker’s statement that the license was approved through 2027.
For now, anyone hoping for updates will have to watch closely. Business Debut describes the Rock Dawg Tavern Facebook page as inactive at the time of its report, leaving the exact opening date as the biggest open question for Smyrna regulars eager to see the renovated space.
