Known for bringing a modern mashup mentality to fried chicken and Southern food, Southerns is planning to open its second location in the Northshore. The new location will be in Hammond, at 1720 West Thomas St., in a former Qdoba. It will be situated near other popular fried chicken chains, such as Popeye’s and Raising Cane’s, just a few miles from Southeastern Louisiana University campus. In addition to a menu that’s more chef-inspired than those chains, the new Southerns location will offer cheaper prices than the original location in Metairie, due to lower operating costs in Hammond.
When it opens in September, the new Northshore location will have a menu identical to the Metairie location, but may also feature one or two special items, such as a smashburger. Co-owner Anthony Cruz recently told What Now New Orleans that a big part of the Southerns concept is developing special menu items by leveraging staff members’ creativity.
“If they have a good idea, we nurture it and then run it as a menu special if it’s really good,” he said. “So, they have a platform for their creativity. I’ve worked in a lot of restaurants. I didn’t have that platform, and we definitely try to give that to them.”
In addition to engaging staff members creatively, Cruz and co-owner Gene Colley want to make them part of Southerns’ growth strategy. Cruz said he’d like current staff members to become general managers at future locations where they would be making “six figures.”
“If this thing grows, I want them to grow with us,” he said. “So, that’s kind of our goal.”
Cruz and Colley are also passionate about supporting New Orleans restaurants during the slow summer months. Cruz said all of the closures this summer have been especially frustrating. To that end, the Southerns co-owners and others are launching the inaugural Savor the City food festival at The Broadside in August that will include high-profile chefs like Nina Compton and Charly Pierre from Fritai. Profits from the festival will be shared equally among the participating restaurants, and Cruz said future Savor the City events would be bigger and geared toward sharing profits with lower-profile restaurants.
“Is it gonna save your (struggling) restaurant?” Cruz asked rhetorically. “No, but one good day will save your week.”
