Wichita home-cooking restaurant opens as fried chicken place next door temporarily closes
Things are happening at two neighboring restaurant buildings on Wichita’s south side, and both of them offer fried chicken and fish.
One of those things is the temporary closure of Krispy’s Fried Chicken & Seafood, a restaurant at 3009 S. Hillside that’s been a go-to for fried chicken fans since the summer of 2014. The owners of Krispy’s closed the restaurant on July 6, saying on social media that they planned to remodel and reopen on Aug. 10. A sign posted on the door also says the restaurant will reopen on Aug. 10, which is a little more than two weeks away.
The owners haven’t returned messages about their remodeling plans, and so far, there are no visible changes on the outside of the building.
Meanwhile, a new restaurant has taken over a spot next door that has seen a long list of eateries move in and out over the last few years. The Appetite 316 has been running a soft opening for several weeks, and its owner — a young chef who studied with Butler Community College’s Culinary Arts program — is about ready for his big grand opening celebration.
Marcus Wooley said his restaurant at 2959 S. Hillside serves “home-style” food. The space has over the years been home to concepts like The Angry Elephant, Birrieria La Nieta De Villa, Azul 21 and Senor Burger.
Wooley said that he’d been wanting to open his own restaurant for a while, but his health slowed him down.
“It got pushed back because I didn’t believe I was able to do it,” he said. “Now that I am able to do it, I got up and did it.”
Wooley, who will celebrate the restaurant’s official opening on Friday, Aug. 4, said that the business has several unique features. One of them: It stays open until nearly 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights. So far, Wooley said, he’s been drawing people who are hungry after the bars close as well as second-shift aircraft and medical workers.
He said he hasn’t completed the culinary arts program at Butler but has plans to go back. He discovered a love of food after being reluctantly put in a culinary class at Northwest High School. Once the class started, he was surprised to discover that he had a talent for food.
“I fell in love with it,” he said. “I like to make food that I feel like sticks to the bones and really feeds the heart.”
His menu includes a variety of burgers — including a meatball burger made with Italian sausage — chicken and waffles, chicken strips, wings, fried catfish and fries.
Wooley will reveal his official logo and his full menu at the grand opening. The next day — Aug. 5 — he’ll be a contestant in the ICT Burger Battle fundraiser.
The Appetite 316’s hours are 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6 to 11:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 4 a.m. Fridays; 6 p.m. to 4 a.m. Saturdays; and 3 p.m. to midnight Sundays.
