A senior marketing official with Jack’s Family Restaurants confirmed last week that the Southern-style fast-food restaurant will be locating in Grenada with an anticipated opening date in the Spring of 2024.
The new state-of-the-art restaurant, which officials said will seat more than 60 guests, will build on the site of the old Church’s Texas Chicken building on Sunset Drive next to McDonald’s. Crews demolished the old building last Wednesday and immediately began preparing the site for the new construction.
Jack’s Chief Marketing Officer Billie Jo Waara provided additional details on the Grenada location last Friday from her office in Homewood, Ala., where it all began for the restaurant chain more than six decades ago.
“It will be what we call a Southern Charm design” she said. “It features an indoor, casual dining area with a fireplace, a window where you can see our biscuit makers at work and then it has an outdoor setting as well with a porch and some rocking chairs. It’s a very comfortable and very Southern-inspired design.”
The restaurant will also feature a drive-thru and adequate parking for dine-in customers.
Matthew Harrison, CEO of the Greater Grenada Partnership, believes the new restaurant compliments the industrial growth surge the county is experiencing.
“Bringing Jack’s Family Restaurants to Grenada marks another significant step towards community enrichment,” he said. “We are excited to work together with all of the various partners for a brighter, more prosperous greater Grenada.”
Waara added that the construction timeline could vary depending on several factors including weather.
“There’s a lot of steps and a lot of processes and approvals that we need to get as we walk through each stage, so that is our tentative timeline,” she said. “We don’t have anything confirmed yet.”
With a Spring 2024 target date for opening, Waara said Grenada’s Jack’s will employ between 45-60 individuals. The company will open its 30th Mississippi location in Ellisville later this month.
“Jack’s has more than 240 restaurants and we typically grow 20-25 restaurants a year,” Waara said. “This one in Grenada is definitely part of our pipeline as we look at the first half of next year.”
Harrison views Jack’s as another piece to Grenada’s growth puzzle.
“A new restaurant isn’t just about food; it’s a recipe for community growth, job opportunities and a richer local experience,” he said.
Besides Alabama and Mississippi, Jack’s also has restaurants in Georgia and Tennessee. The first Jack’s opened in Homewood, Ala., and was initially a walk-up “hamburger joint,” which also offered 10-cent sodas, 15-cent fries and 20-cent shakes.
“We’re excited about coming into the community and being part of this great town,” Waara concluded.
Jack’s now serves breakfast, lunch and dinner to hungry customers. Favorites include the Breakfast Deluxe and Breakfast Special, biscuits and gravy, made-from-scratch buttermilk biscuits with numerous meat options, a variety of hamburgers and chicken sandwiches, chicken fingers with a wide selection of dipping sauces, seasoned crinkle-cut fries, mashed potatoes and gravy, fried pies, ice cream, shakes and much more.
