Santa Fe restaurant chain finds new home in McComb
Posted: 01/17/08 - 12:36:52 pm CST
Danny York came to Pike County in 2007 to hunt deer and bagged a new location for his
business.And the search for his quarry was inspired by lunch.“We were waiting at the McComb airport to go back to Tennessee,” said York, founder and chairman of the Santa Fe Cattle Co., a restaurant chain based in Brentwood, Tenn. “The plane was delayed, and it was lunchtime.”
York said he and his companions went to a restaurant for lunch and he was amazed at the line of diners waiting to eat.
“I told my real estate guy who was with me to take a look at the area,” he said.
On Tuesday, York and company president John Davis were in McComb to break ground for what will be Santa Fe Cattle Co.’s 25th restaurant.
“I think we’ll do great here,” York said.
The company has restaurants in Tupelo and Columbus, and in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Indiana, Kentucky and Oklahoma.
Santa Fe ended 2007 with $33.9 million in sales and projects reaching $61 to 62 million in sales this year, and anticipates opening 10 restaurants during 2008 — most of those in small towns.York said he initially looked at Jackson to locate his third Mississippi restaurant but decided to open a restaurant in the southern part of the state, and McComb fit the bill.
He anticipates that the McComb restaurant could be the hub of a group of three or four restaurants, with one in the Jackson area and in Hammond.
He said the company’s policy is to have a supervisor who lives in the area where a restaurant is located and oversee the operations of three to four restaurants.
McComb’s Santa Fe Cattle Co. restaurant will be built by Clark Construction Co., which is also building another restaurant for the company.
Clark Construction owner Brad Clark said his company developed a relationship with Santa Fe Cattle Co. in 2007.“We have worked with this development for several months and are delighted to bring Santa Fe to McComb,” Clark said. “Santa Fe will help fill a void in the full-service, sit-down restaurant and will provide up to 80 jobs for the area.
“We are proud to be associated with Santa Fe and be included in their future growth,” he said. “We also appreciate the support of the city of McComb and Mayor Zach Patterson and the Pike County Economic Development Foundation Director Britt Herrin.”
York has 20 years experience in the restaurant business, previously owning a multi-unit Western Sizzlin Steakhouse franchise and developing the Logan’s Roadhouse restaurant concept.
He began the concept for Santa Fe in 1996 and later sold his interest in the restaurant. He bought it back in 2003.
The restaurant offers a varied menu built around fresh, hand-cut steaks.“All of our meat is fresh and aged to a set of specifications,” York said. “All of our steaks are cut in-house.”
Besides the steaks, Santa Fe’s menu offers chicken and seafood, Tex-Mex and soups and salads.
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