Open for only six months, Dickey’s Barbecue behind Bartells at 5704 E. Lake Sammamish Drive, in Issaquah is temporarily closed.

Jami Zimmerman, associate director of public relations for the Dallas, Texas company, said Dickey’s Barbecue, Inc. is in the process of transferring ownership of the location which should re-open by the end of the year.

“Dickey’s is an awesome brand with 360 locations across the nation,” she said.

Zimmerman was not at liberty to share the name of the new owner.

Dickey’s opened last June to much fanfare by mother and son team, Sarah and Alex Forest, both originally from Texas.

The original general manager Denise Bassett said the restaurant had problems from day one, and that she resigned July 5, moving back to Montana.

Bassett said she stayed until shortly after opening, and that she trained all the employees.

“There was a lot of potential, but there were a lot of problems,” she said.

The reviews of the Issaquah Dickey’s on Yelp, an online business review site, are mostly negative.

Chris Williams, who was the assistant manager, said he quit when Bassett did.

“I wasn’t used to the management style,” he said. “It reminded me of the line in Apocalypse Now, ‘do you find my methods unsound?’ I didn’t see any method at all. Denise was trying real hard.”

Zimmerman said she was sorry to hear the reviews were so bad, but she said it’s a matter of finding the right person for the space.