Check, please! More restaurants close up shop
After 38 years in Mandarin, Wing-It Jax has closed its dining room. But fans of the mom-and-pop restaurant have two more days to enjoy its popular wings.
The restaurant will be offering carryout service only 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday.
“Thank you all for an amazing 25 years and an epic last month in business!” owners Dave and Charleen Morency said in a May 21 Facebook post. The couple took over the restaurant tucked in the corner of Mandarin Central shopping center at 11018 Old St Augustine Road in 1997.
“Again, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We feel so fulfilled in how we have spent the last 25 years and this past month was a reminder of that, which was the perfect way to close this chapter.”
[There’s more restaurant news below, including the opening of World of Beer, the first of two planned for Jacksonville; the opening of the area’s second Huey Magoo’s; Caron Streibich’s review of Bold Birds in Murray Hill; and just in time for Memorial Day, our look at the best BBQ spots in Jacksonville.]
Earlier this month, Dave Morency talked about his decision to close the restaurant.
"We've had a good run. But you know I'm pushing 70 and with the times as uncertain as they are and my lease here is up. … It's time to move on," Dave Morency told the Times-Union's Teresa Stepzinski. "The last few years have brought a new set of liabilities with the chicken prices and labor shortages, and we just aren’t able to commit to a long-term lease and continue working at the level we have been to make it work."
Olio, Willard's, E Street: In 2022, some longtime favorite Jacksonville restaurants have closed. Here's a list.
In response to the couple’s Facebook post, Wing-It customers shared their memories and appreciation to the couple:
“Man, I am going to miss you guys. I’ve been eating your wings since ‘86, at your first location. Your wings have always been at the top of my list! Best of luck in your next chapter.” — Jason Gerona
“Wishing you both the best with your next chapter. You will be greatly missed but life will go on. Just might have to call in one last order since I'll have the chance.” — Debbie Capo Profetto
“Thanks for giving our families a place to hang out and eat the best wings for 25 years! Not to mention a place for the grumpy old men to hang out at the bar! You guys will be missed!” — Debbie O'Neal
Morency told the Times-Unions he and his wife are in excellent health and "can't imagine slowing down." He plans to focus on his consulting business while she likely will continue teaching group fitness classes.
More goodbyes: Randeez Nutz, Barrique
Wing-It isn’t the only restaurant closing up shop this month.
Just a year after opening his first brick-and-mortar restaurant, gourmet boiled peanut entrepreneur Randy Waters of Randeez Nutz fame has closed the restaurant 14985 Old Saint Augustine Road, saying that a group of investors plans to take over the spot and open a sports bar.
Waters developed a following selling a rotating selection of 6o flavors of boiled peanuts, elevating the popular roadside snack to gourmet fare from his roadside food trailer.
And Barrique Kitchen & Wine Bar announced that its last day of service would be Monday, May 30.
The restaurant, at 3563 St. Johns Ave., has been a part of the Avondale dining scene since its opening in December 2017 by a group of partners from Ponte Vedra Beach and New York. Resembling an Old World wine cellar, Barrique specialized in modern European-influenced small plates married to a bountiful wine list, former Times-Union reviewer Jay Magee wrote in 2018.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville restaurant closings: Wing-It Jax, Randeez Nutz, Barrique
