The Bistro, new downtown restaurant, brings back memories of Shoney's

Greg Bailey, Gadsden Times
·4 min read

A new restaurant in downtown Gadsden is reviving memories of a longtime local dining favorite.

Carolyn Parker opened The Bistro at 110 N. First St. in August, harkening back to her days “in a past life,” as she put it, working at Shoney’s.

That chain closed its East Gadsden restaurant on Meighan Boulevard in January; another location in Attalla shut down years ago.

Owner Carolyn Parker and head chief Charles McCurdy are pictured outside The Bistro, a new restaurant in downtown Gadsden that opened in August at 110 N. First St.
Owner Carolyn Parker and head chief Charles McCurdy are pictured outside The Bistro, a new restaurant in downtown Gadsden that opened in August at 110 N. First St.

The Bistro, open Thursday through Sunday, has brought back two of Shoney’s signatures, however: full-service breakfast and salad bars.

Two veteran Shoney’s employees, including a cook with two generations’ experience there, are working with Parker in the venture, and other familiar menu items could be seen down the road.

Parker, a former Etowah County commissioner and Gadsden mayoral candidate, has set up in a building once owned by a colleague on the commission, the late Larry Payne. A Realtor, she sold it for Payne and now is leasing it.

Her first thought was to channel another former local favorite, The Coffee Well on Court Street, “coffee, pastries, tea, that sort of thing.” She conferred with Kay Moore of Downtown Gadsden Inc. and Lesa Young, former head of the Gadsden Commercial Development Authority, who told her there was a need for a downtown coffee shop — but another one opened a few blocks up Broad Street.

Parker’s game plan kept evolving — she even considered, after equipping the building. with a bar having a coffee shop in the a.m. and a sports bar in the p.m. — before thinking back to her past.

“With Shoney’s closed, I had a lot of equipment already,” she said. “So, we had the opportunity to do a breakfast bar, which is a big thing, and a salad bar. I thought I’d take advantage of the void Shoney’s left.”

Parker said she worked at Shoney’s from high school “until I was about 23,” mostly in Attalla but for a couple of summers in East Gadsden.

“I kind of grew up in Shoney’s,” she said, noting that she developed relationships with employees at both local locations, “and I kind of missed it.”

She turned to Charles McCurdy, who cooked for Shoney’s for 41 years, and Cynthia Elston, a former assistant manager with the chain.

"I called them up, and we got back into it,” Parker said. “I thought we might try to recreate something on a smaller basis, have a brunch spot. It’s a good location.”

The breakfast bar is available throughout The Bistro’s business hours. It features “traditional’ Shoney’s favorites,” Parker said, like bacon, sausage, eggs, breakfast rice, grits, gravy, biscuits and cinnamon rolls. The salad bar is also fully stocked — including baked potatoes, with toppings to “load them up” — and is available every day but Saturday.

The dining area at The Bistro, a new restaurant at 110 N. First St. in downtown Gadsden that opened in August.
The dining area at The Bistro, a new restaurant at 110 N. First St. in downtown Gadsden that opened in August.

On Sunday, the main attraction is a hot bar featuring “comfort food,” as Parker described it, like pot roast, chicken and dressing, chicken and rice, and vegetables including fresh collards. DJ Buster Porch plays jazz as entertainment.

The regular menu features burgers and sliders, turkey and grilled chicken club sandwiches, grilled chicken sandwiches and hot dogs with unlimited toppings. (Diners get a choice of chips, sweet potato fries or potato salad.)

Wings, nachos, chips and salsa, loaded sweet potato fries and grilled chicken and turkey cranberry salads are available.

The dessert fare is sweet potato pie and chocolate covered strawberry pie. Parker said McCurdy knows how to prepare Shoney’s sweet favorites, such as strawberry pie, and a take on the chain’s trademark hot fudge cake is a possibility.

The bar area at The Bistro, a new restaurant at 110 N. First St. in downtown Gadsden that opened in August.
The bar area at The Bistro, a new restaurant at 110 N. First St. in downtown Gadsden that opened in August.

Parker said she opened The Bistro in a time frame that generally is slow for restaurants, with school going back into session and the holidays ahead. However, she also has an income tax preparation business, so it was “the time I had between taxes and stuff.”

The restaurant was shut down for a couple of weeks while she was out of the country, but it’s regaining its momentum. “This past weekend, on Saturday and Sunday, we sold out of food before we closed,” Parker said.

“It’s a lot of work, something different every day,” she said. “It’s a challenge, but I like challenges.”

Parker said the restaurant is accepting small catering jobs, and she has plans to launch by the end of October a meal preparation service, providing a week of meals for customers.

The Bistro is open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Take-out orders are accepted; call 256-459-5093.

This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: The Bistro, new downtown restaurant, brings back memories of Shoney's