Cook Out restaurant is preparing to open at 14016 Beach Blvd., its first Jacksonville location.
A sign at the restaurant, which was built-out in a former Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, says it is hiring staff. Cook Out did not return calls to its headquarters in Thomasville, North Carolina, seeking the opening date for its expansion into Jacksonville.
The restaurant is at Beach Boulevard and Suni Pines Drive between West Beaches Dental Care and Mavis Tires & Brakes.
The chain has more than 350 restaurants. It originated in 1989 in Greensboro, North Carolina. In 2010, it began expanding and is now in 11 Southeastern states.
It is now expanding into Florida.
Cook Out calls its combo meals “trays,” which come in adult and child sizes. A tray comprises a choice of a main sandwich or hot dog, one side and drink for children at $7.99 and a main that includes a choice of hamburger, hot dogs, quesadillas, chicken sandwich, chicken strips or barbecue, two sides and a drink for $8.99 for adults.
Sides include fries, onion rings, hush puppies, coleslaw, cheese bites, chicken nuggets, a corn dog, quesadilla chicken wrap, bacon wrap or a walkin’ taco.
Along with traditional beverages, Cook Out offers three dozen flavors of shakes such as banana berry, Orange Push-Up, peach cobbler, Snickers and vanilla. They are not included in a tray, but a regular shake can be added for $1.50.
While many Cook Out locations are drive-thru only, the Jacksonville space is 3,355 square feet with interior seating.
The city issued a permit Nov. 25 for Cook Out to renovate the closed Freddy’s at a project cost of $819,600. Total construction, electrical, mechanical and plumbing project costs were $1.11 million.
Duval County Property Appraiser records show the restaurant was built on an almost 1-acre site in 2015.
FVR Florida LLC sold the Freddy’s property to Cook Out-Beach Blvd Inc. for $2.75 million on May 5, 2025.
The closest operating Cook Out to Jacksonville is about 60 miles north in Brunswick, Georgia.