“My dad was in the convenience store business when I was a child,” says Marty Griggs, owner of America’s Freedom Fuels in Phenix City and Fort Mitchell. “Later he sold it and we were in the restaurant business together for a few years.” In 2004,...
Nothing is quite as mouthwateringly delicious as the taste of juicy smoked meat. Usually, this quintessential Southern food is laboriously cooked in a pit. But you don’t have to have a time- and labor-intensive pit to get that scrumptious smoky flavor. You can add delicious...
Tommy Thompson (Liberty Convenience Center) Tommy Thompson knows it’s easier keeping C-Stores current with consumer trends when you’re part of a larger corporation. That hasn’t stopped him. “Sure, I'm independently owned, and I don't get a steady supply of corporate research. I'm kind of on an...
Richard Boyles (Moe’s Original BBQ) Richard Boyles knows a great bargain when he sees one. Which is why, in the summer of 2017, he jumped at the chance to buy a used Bushwacker machine from a local equipment dealer for his soon-to-open Montgomery location of Moe’s...
[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_column_text] Pete Flach (Hamburger Heaven) In 1992, Pete Flach was on the verge of accepting a job in medical sales when his father-in-law, Eli Stevens (owner of Birmingham’s Lloyd’s Restaurant since 1971) suggested he consider a career in foodservice. Stevens...
Geri Martha and Ryan O’Hara (Big Spoon Creamery) Imagine you’re Frank Stitt walking into Bottega — one of three wildly successful restaurants you own — and your Sous Chef (who's been with you for seven years) and Pastry Chef (five years), have something to discuss with...