Some restaurants truly have a cult-like following. That is true for two great new Moxley Carmichael restaurant clients: Tupelo Honey Cafe, based in Asheville and opening on Market Square in September, and Chuy’s, a fun Tex-Mex eatery based in Austin and opening July 31 in west Knoxville.
The folks at Chuy’s, which has quite a local following due to its four Nashville-area locations, like to have what they call a “Redfish Rally,” which is a pre-opening party, about six weeks before they officially start serving customers. That fun event was last night in a big tent in the parking lot of the restaurant at 9235 Kingston Pike.
The big deal about Chuy’s is that everything is fresh. Seriously. They put freezers in their locations, but the freezers contain only two items: French fries for the kids’ meals and push-up ice cream pops for the kids’ meals. Everything else is made from scratch.
Tortillas are hand rolled — that’s why they aren’t always perfectly round. Whole chickens are roasted and the meat is pulled from them by hand for use in the burritos, tacos, enchiladas and other dishes. Salsa fresca is made every hour from fresh vegetables. Anaheim peppers are fire-roasted overnight every night. And seven sauces are made fresh every day. Well, you get the picture.
One of the sauces — creamy jalapeno sauce — has its own cult following and its own Facebook page with almost 26,000 fans (including me!). And — get this — Chuy’s had nothing to do with starting this page. It was started by customers. Many of the posts are about trying to figure out the recipe. “Nobody’s gotten it yet!” laughed one Chuy’s insider last night when we were talking about the phenomenon. Click here to go to that page.
When the folks at Chuy’s hired us a few weeks ago to help with their Knoxville launch, they insisted that our account executive assigned to them, the amazing Lauren Christ, take a field trip to Nashville to truly become immersed in the Chuy’s culture. It did not hurt that Lauren already was a big Mexican food and margarita fan. “Tell her to wear stretchy pants,” the Chuy’s marketing manager, Hilary Delling, warned. “She’s going to be sampling a lot of food!”
Lauren came back to the office the next day wearing a Chuy’s t-shirt and preaching the Chuy’s gospel! She had tasted tons of dishes (and beverages!) and had witnessed for herself how everything truly is made fresh in-house. “When they say the margaritas are made with fresh lime juice,” she said, “it means they squeeze the limes themselves!” Wow, that’s a lot of limes!
Because everything is made from scratch, a Chuy’s restaurant requires more employees than some other eateries. The Chuy’s in Knoxville will need 170 employees when it opens. If you know of someone who might like to work there, a hiring trailer will be on site staring June 18 for folks to apply in person Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Some other great news about Chuy’s: they believe in being involved in the community. They have selected the Shangri-La Therapeutic Academy of Riding (STAR) to be the beneficiary of their grand opening activities. STAR folks were at the Redfish Rally last night with some adorable miniature donkeys and a miniature horse.
And look for Chuy’s folks at Bark in the Park this Saturday evening on Market Square. They will be staffing a booth where you can pay $10 to have your dog’s picture taken. The photos will be framed and placed on Chuy’s “dog wall,” a display of customers’ pets that is traditional in many Chuy’s locations. Proceeds from that will benefit the Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley.
Biggest question last night? Why is the restaurant called Chuy’s? We were told that the original owners went to Mexico to do research and they kept hearing folks say, “Hey, Chuy!” They found out that the term means “buddy” or “pal.” So that’s what they named their friendly new Tex-Mex concept. That was 30 years — and 30 Chuy’s — ago!
Well, I could go on and on. There are so many unique things about Chuy’s — and each Chuy’s restaurant is different. That’s why they have a saying: “If you’ve seen one Chuy’s, you’ve seen ONE Chuy’s.” So go see this one! Starting July 31.
The News Sentinel’s Carly Harrington had a great story about Chuy’s, Tupelo Honey Cafe and some other restaurants opening soon in Knoxville. Click here for that.
Hate to ask what may be a stupid question, but how do you say it? Is it “chew-ees”?
And how does one get on those invite lists for openings? Cowabunga!
Yes, that’s the correct pronunciation. Chuy’s gave a bunch of invites to the Redfish Rally away through Facebook. There will be more fun things coming up. Just go to the Chuy’s Knoxville Facebook page and hit ” like” to be in the know – and in the running!
Annette–It’s pronounced like “chewy’s.” The creamy jalapeno sauce was awesome. I can see why it has such a following. It was my favorite of the four things we tried. The guacamole was great, too. Mox–I know why you invited me to ride with you. You needed someone to pose with the fish. I didn’t mind–very cute mascot. Liked the matching turquoise sunglasses and shoes.
WOW! Couldn’t get by event but looks like a great one! I had no idea about this concept -everything fresh!!! Can’t wait!
Gay: I truly appreciate you! One day we should pull together all your photos from The Blue Streak! It would be an interesting chronicle of your life! Thanks again!
Christi: i’m seeing future meetings there!
Cynthia-I had to arrive and leave early, so I missed you. However, I had a delightful conversation with Lauren & Hilary; they are two dynamic and energetic young ladies! No wonder it was such a great event (the margaritas & queso didn’t hurt either)!
I’m so disappointed — thought I’d be back from Nashville in time to go, but got back to K’town later than I had planned. Sounds like I missed a great time! Can’t wait til it opens!!
Carole: Sorry I missed you!
Regina: Let’s meet there after it opens!
I’ll be there on July 31!! and many days after. It is great. Best tortilla chips I have had in Knoxville. So thin and crispy!!
Mickey: I agree. Let’s go together!
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