A new Zaxby's restaurant held its grand opening Monday morning at 6544 Thomasville Rd.
General manager Steven Flynn said franchisee Danny Demersseman wanted to expand.
“Aside from his other Zaxby franchise stores, franchisee Danny Demersseman wanted expansion in the city of Tallahassee,” Flynn said.
Demersseman’s objective was not solely to expand, but after years of doing business in Tallahassee he felt the Thomasville or Bradfordville area was in need of its own Zaxby’s.
Surrounding the area is Bradfordville Baptist church and local homes, so assistant manager Eric McNeal said it's extremely valuable to have this specific location.
“I feel like it’s pretty exciting to be at this location, and well needed. We have some restaurant choices out here,but now Zaxby’s can bring more to the area as far as a great tasting fast food and good customer service,” McNeal said.
Some of the Zaxby's popular menu items are Zesty Zalads, Zappetizers, Meal Dealz, Wingez and Fingers, to name a few.
Flynn thinks the new location is welcomed by the community.
“Business has been great. We are a bit busier than we were anticipating. I think we are well received by the community and everyone seems exciting about us being here,” Flynn said.
Zaxby’s customer Kier Riley said this was her first time being in a brand new restaurant.
“It was a great atmosphere. It was extremely welcoming and really clean. I’ve never been to a restaurant brand spanking new before, so I was pretty amazed. I enjoyed my experience a lot,” Riley said.
When people come to the Bradfordville area, they’re likely to search for reasonable food prices. McNeal said this new location gives Tallahassee students a place to hang out.
“The location gives the students around Tallahassee another hang out spot, and with our huge lobby and outside patio that gives everyone enough space to be comfortable and enjoy their visit,” McNeal said.
McNeal said he is satisfied with the environment in which he works and feels as though he has gained some sense of advanced knowledge while working with the Zaxby Company.
Flynn said the franchise is working to properly train their employees, and that’s why they hired people without experience.
“A good portion of our employees are local to the area. The intentions for hire was to hire everyone brand new without Zaxby’s experience so that everyone could be trained by the book from day one. This helps with our getting everything done by the standards of Zaxby’s,” Flynn said.
Zaxby’s crew member Matt McKiernan said even while business is thriving employees of Zaxby's remain positive through a busy day, and crew members are learning from management.
“There is a good relationship between the managers and the staff. We have a good time, and we have quality work ethic. We learn, work hard and we get the job done,” McKiernan said.
To consistently create encore experiences that enrich lives, Zaxby’s mission statement remains the same.