More choices on the menu for Abilene diners

Here’s a twist on that old saying about the Texas weather. You know, the one about if you don’t like the weather, wait a minute?

This one is, if you don’t like the restaurant lineup in Abilene, just wait awhile. It will change.

Not only are there new eateries coming to town, but some of the old standbys are changing locations and, in at least one case, one is reopening after damage from a fire.

There are chains coming in — Chipotle, Raising Cane’s and Sam's Southern Eatery — as well as local restaurateurs opening new places. Menu choices range from burgers to sushi.

Kyle Johnson, co-owner of Betty Rose's Little Brisket, said there is no room for the status quo in the restaurant business in Abilene.

“It seems in 2016 and so far in 2017, it’s really gotten a lot more aggressive,” he said. “You have to stay on your game in Abilene.”

Two soon-to-be-opened restaurants on Buffalo Gap Road are banking on one of the busiest roads in Abilene bringing in the customers.

Cordell’s, a gourmet food shop, moved Jan. 13 from the River Oaks Shopping Center to just south of Antilley Road on Buffalo Gap. Cordell’s is expanding from a retail store into a coffee bar and restaurant, according to Joy Beard, co-owner along with her husband Jason. The store will continue to sell gourmet oils, vinegars and spices, but will now enter the coffee wars with a coffee bar. It will also eventually serve lunch and brunch on Saturdays. Joy Beard said the new location allows for a kitchen.

“We’re going to focus on real food,” she said. “We’ll make our own bread with sprouted grains.”

Going north on Buffalo Gap Road, at the old location of the Power Shack gym, Henry Potter will open his second Potter’s Pizza. The original Potter’s is in Graham. Potter’s Pizza features a pizza buffet and salad bar. Potter said the majority of his customers in Graham gravitated toward the buffet as well as the salad bar. He said the emphasis at his restaurant is on fresh foods. His crusts are made from scratch.

“Only three people know the recipe, my two sons and me,” said Potter. “And, it’s not written down.”

Potter said he searched for a few years to find the right location for his second restaurant. He said he decided on Abilene for a couple of reasons.

“The economy and stability,” he said. “The economy in Abilene is diverse. It isn’t dependent on oil and gas.”

The location for his 9,200-square-foot restaurant was the answer to prayers, he said..

“There were several locations where I was ready to move into a make it work,” he said. “But each time, a door would close, and by a door closing, I mean there was a snag. This was a God thing.”

While Cordell’s is moving into a brand new building and Potter’s Pizza into a renovated building, other restaurants are moving into former restaurant locations. Golden Chopsticks will occupy the building that most recently was a Mexican restaurant and originally was Zentner’s Daughter’s Steak House at Sayles and Danville.

Jenny Clinard, who will be the manager of the Asian food buffet, said she isn’t sure when the restaurant will open. It has applied for a liquor license. She said the restaurant will offer more than 200 dishes, including Chinese, Japanese and western food.

“People in Abilene like the barbecue and the steaks,” she said.

Golden Chopsticks will offer Hibachi dishes and seafood, Clinard said, as well as a menu geared toward children.

Sam’s Southern Eatery, which plans a Tuesday opening, is located in the old Taco Bell location on North First Street. It's part of Shreveport, Louisiana-based chain that has grown to 63 locations in nine states since 2008, according to owner Sam Gazawaneha. He said the restaurant features generous portions of Southern food, particularly fried seafood.

“Nobody goes away hungry,” said Gazawaneha. “People usually ask for carryout boxes.”

Raising Cane’s, the Louisiana-based company that serves only chicken strips, gravy, French fries and coleslaw, is opening a 2,700-square foot restaurant at 1602 E. Overland Trail, the Interstate 20 north access road. Area Director Mike Spano said the company has long wanted to break into the Abilene market.

“We have wanted to come to Abilene for years, and I can’t tell you how excited we are to be breaking ground in this great town,” said Spano in a company press release.

About half of Raising Cane’s 320 restaurants are in Texas. The restaurant will have a crew of more than 60 people and plans an opening in mid-May.

Chipotle is opening at 3800 S. Clack St. Calls to the corporation for details on the opening were not returned, but the restaurant is taking applications on its website.

Luigi’s Burgers and Subs in the Frenchman’s Creek Shopping Center on South 14th Street is the latest restaurant opened by Lodovik Tetaj, the owner of the Little Italy restaurants and Texas Cowboy BBQ. Luigi’s, Tetaj’s nickname, follows the trend of the new restaurants of serving fresh food. He said everything in the restaurant will be fresh. Even the pickles are homemade.

The signature sub features prosciutto, the Italian dry cured ham that takes 420 days to cure. Tetaj is also borrowing from his other restaurant to put his own spin on the burgers. The alfredo sauce from Little Italy is used as one of the condiments. The restaurant will be closed on Sundays.

Open since August, Little Ninja is in the Crossroads Shopping Center on Buffalo Gap Road. Owner Coco Li said the cuisine is Japanese, featuring fresh sushi. She said the restaurant also features hibachi and ramen as well as bubble tea, a Taiwanese tea-based drink that is mixed with milk or fruit and augmented with tapioca balls.

Two of Abilene’s venerable restaurants have new homes, or at least remodeled ones. Rachel Castro, the owner of Los Arcos, said her restaurant will re-open in another month or so. It burned on Feb. 22, 2016. Betty Rose’s Little Brisket, which moved its northside location from a strip center on Judge Ely Boulevard to State Highway 351 last year, is constructing a new southside location at 3934 Catclaw Drive.

Johnson said the move into the new location will enable Betty Rose’s to expand its menu.

“Eighty percent of our customers were men,” said Johnson. “Since we’ve moved out to 351, our women customers have increased to about 41 or 42 percent.”

Another restaurant on the move is the Taco Bell on South 14th Street. Land is being cleared at 2522 S. 14th for a new location.

In other changes: