South Knoxville drive-thru restaurant closing to make room for food hall
On a strip of Chapman Highway lined with fast food chains, a beloved local drive-thru for burgers and signature “free fries” will close after five years in business to make room for Kern’s Food Hall.
Burger Boys at 2400 Chapman Highway has practically remained a one-man operation since the start. Owner Andre Bryant, who was featured in Knox News’ award-winning “Black in Business” project in 2021, said he made every burger for every customer.
An Oct. 23 Facebook post by Burger Boys announced Bryant will grant access to a stoplight that serves his restaurant so that Kern’s Food Hall can have a proper entrance.
A closing date was not shared.
After several delays, the food hall is now scheduled to open at the former Kern’s Bakery in December. It would be Knoxville’s second food hall after Marble City Market opened downtown in November 2021, but the concept differs in multiple ways.
For one, a brewery and distillery are planned for the food hall, as well as a rooftop bar. Performance spaces and retail vendors also are in the plans, in addition to a handful of food vendors.
Here’s the full list of vendors, as of August:
● Archer Paper Goods
● Ava Italian
● Awaken Coffee
● Amaryllis Taqueria
● Clean Smoke BBQ
● Drop Zone Distilling
● F45 Workout
● Flourish Flowers
● Hey Bear Café
● Irvey’s Ice Cream
● Jessica Wang (jewelry)
● Kandilige Spicy Food
● Mae Lee’s Boutique
● Mellow Boutique
● Monday Night Brewing
● Myrtle’s Bakehouse
● T. Ralph’s Burgers
● Won Kitchen
● Zukku Sushi
Burger Boys indicated its decision was an amicable one. Bryant has formed a friendship with food hall developer Alex Dominguez over the past three years and has been “struck by Alex’s genuine character and the absence of any undue pressure or coercion,” according to the post.
Property records show Bryant does not own the property, as its been in the same hands since 1959.
As for the future of Burger Boys, Bryant is looking forward to a “well-deserved break to reflect on his next steps,” according to the post.
Bryant fell in love with the burger business during his first job at a Wendy’s in Columbus, Ohio. While working behind the fryer, a 15-year-old Bryant was simply amazed the franchise was owned by a Black man and decided he wanted something similar for his life.
“I don’t look at my race and think that it’s something special or something unique about it,” he previously told Knox News. “I’m a business owner. I’ve always approached it like that. I treat everybody the same. I don’t see certain people come through the drive-thru in a Mercedes-Benz and stand up straighter.”
The tiny restaurant sits in the shadows of the 75,000-square-foot food hall. It’s so small you can easily count the squares on Burger Boys’ checkerboard floor.
There are no indoor chairs, just a handful of spots to sit outside. The restaurant relies on its drive-thru, a model that Bryant said made him “pandemic-proof.”
“I have cherished every moment spent serving you all at Burger Boys,” Bryant said in the Facebook post. “And I promise that I will keep you updated when I decide on the perfect location for the new Burger Boys in the near future.”
Ryan Wilusz is a downtown growth and development reporter. Phone 865-317-5138. Email ryan.wilusz@knoxnews.com. Instagram @knoxscruff.