by Miranda G. McLeod
Staff Writer
At the corner of 9th and Main in Springfield, there are now three fast-food fried-chicken restaurants. The newest coop on the block serves only one item: “golden friend chicken fingers.”
Guthrie’s, a college-town tradition, entered the Jacksonville market Dec. 7, and hopes to flourish here as it has in Tallahassee and Gainesville.
“There’s a lot of people who had a Guthrie’s going to college,” said Dustin Sweeney, general manager. “It’s personal food. They come in and can’t believe it’s here. There’s a lot of graduates that come in and still ask for a ‘gut box.’”
A gut-box is served to-go and includes chicken fingers, cole slaw, fries, garlic toast and special sauce.
“Our food is consistent. People expect it to be and that’s what they are happy about; that’s why we can have limited items,” said Sweeney.
Everything is made fresh daily at Guthrie’s, from the cole slaw to the secret sauce — a drawing point of the restaurant — and don’t ask the help for the recipe. You may have a better chance of getting the nuclear codes from the White House. Sweeney said he had to sign papers, essentially taking an oath of secrecy to not disclose the ingredients of the sauce. He is the only one who know’s the recipe for the Jacksonville location.
Guthrie’s, and its secret sauce, started in Birmingham, Ala., as a family owned restaurant in 1965. There are now several franchised stores in Florida, Georgia and Alabama. Sweeney says there are plans to open more Guthrie’s locations in Jacksonville.
“We’d like to try and get a couple going in 2006,” he said.
Sweeney also said there are no plans to expand the menu, citing franchise regulations, but there may be a kid’s menu coming soon.
Sweeney, whose father William owns the Jacksonville franchise, says they are still feeling out the community.
Jacksonville resident Cherilyn Ivey works downtown and is excited about the restaurant. She said she remembers Guthrie’s from her trips to Tallahassee.
“I always made it a point to go there, especially after late night drinking,” she said. “It was always good food and a good price — especially for college students.”
The restaurant’s tentative store hours are 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; open until 11 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Sweeney says he hopes to expand the hours to accommodate the late-night crowd.