NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — There's no simple recipe when it comes to opening up your own restaurant. But Josh Robertson, Operations Director for Eggs Up Grill in Hermitage, says it's worth all the hassle when it's a longtime dream.
"Eggs Up Grill is a family-friendly breakfast, brunch and lunch restaurant," said Robertson.
Robertson works for a Middle Tennessee couple who purchased the rights to open up franchises of the South Carolina-based restaurant. For six months, they worked to procure all the permits, order all the food and trained the staff — only for the grand opening date to be set for Monday, January 15th.
Yes, the same Monday January 15th that ended up featuring a winter storm that kept most of the Nashville area at home. They had to postpone opening up to keep their employees and customers safe.
"It just wasn’t happening — the roads were a bit too slick," said Robertson.
By Tuesday morning, the roads were a little better. Still, the only way they could possibly open would be for Robertson to go pick up key employees and bring them into work. Did he want to open up the restaurant THAT badly?
"I had to go to each person’s house, pick them up," explained Robertson. "I felt like a UPS worker for a minute — I was like, am I in logistics now? I have to figure out where to go get everyone."
But the drive became all worth it when their tables and kitchen orders started filling up. "And you’re just like wow. We did this. We’re here, we’re doing the thing," he said.
To be clear, a winter storm was never in the recipe, but like any good restaurant should do, the team still served up a great first impression.
"We love it," said Jim Severms, a customer who lives nearby. "It’s nice to have a great breakfast place in Hermitage."
Eggs Up Grill in Hermitage is open seven days a week, from 6 am to 2 pm. They have plans to expand to Murfreesboro this spring and to other Middle Tennessee communities in the coming years.
I LOVE Forrest's stories on the history of NewsChannel 5 as we celebrate our 70th anniversary. Here's a story I wasn't familiar with until recently. Eudora Boxley had a live cooking show in the early days of the station. She may have been the first black on air at NewsChannel 5 and perhaps, one of the first African Americans to have a TV cooking show anywhere in the country. It wasn't until her grandson reached out to me that I even heard of Ms. Boxley. Thankfully, I was able to connect him with Forest to learn more about this great nugget in NewsChannel 5 history.
-Lelan Statom
