BY AMY BALTODANO
Hays Post
A new restaurant soon will open its doors — The Golden Griddle, 230 W. Ninth.
Manager Brady Herman said the “cabinets are getting put in this weekend” at the restaurant, which has been extensively renovated across the street from its sister establishment — the Golden Q.
Herman, who co-owns the business with his parents, Danny and Jenna Herman, bought the building April 2014, but had some difficulty getting the permit to renovate the former PrintCraft Printers building.
“We had some issues with getting our permit and stuff that took about eight months,” he said. “I think we finally got it the beginning of December. (For) flood-proofing purposes, we had to hire an architect to draw everything up for us just to make sure all the codes are right.”
Coming up with a name was an easy decision.
“We wanted to tie in with the Golden Q, somehow. We obviously cook on griddles back there so it kind of flowed. And I tried to create a name that could be shortened — that is why we have the GG above our logo on the front sign you can see it,” Herman said. “It’s kind of like the Q — everyone calls it ‘The Q.’ ”
There’s no firm opening date for The Griddle, but Herman said he would like to be serving customers by the time university students return.
Hours of operation also are up in the air, but The Griddle won’t cater to the late-night crowd.
“We will be open seven days a week and will start opening at 5 a.m. in the morning. If that seems to be too early, we will cut it back,” Herman said. “As far as how long to be open, I’m kind of almost wanting our customers to tell me that.”
Another reason he is excited about this venture is he hopes a solution has been found to help those customers of the Q, who must stand in line for their food.
“A big reason why we bought this building was for our carry-outs for the Q. We put a pass through window on this south wall in our kitchen at the Golden Griddle, to where people could just drive in, grab their food to go,” Herman said. “So, we have a whole another kitchen line that we cook on just for that.”
The public will be able to order food only from the Golden Q, but then get to pick it up at the Golden Griddle drive-through.
“I definitely want this breakfast place to grow and do well, but I would love to see our carry-outs just keep expanding, and I know how many people order food and they have to come all the way in and they got to wait in line over there, rather they can just drive through, grab it and go,” Herman said.
Herman will also have a liquor license at the new restaurant.
They will have a drink menu, including some breakfast cocktails — but no beer.
Construction began last December, with one unplanned expense.
After significant rain, the roof leaked in a few spots and they had to redo the entire roof.
“It is just a long process of gutting the place and starting from scratch. All of the contractors we have had been really good,” Herman said. “They met our expectations. They’ve been doing a lot for us, and we appreciate it.”
“I’ve been shooting for some soft opening dates — mid- to late July — so unless we have a hiccup in the last few weeks, we should be there,” he added.
In the next couple of weeks, they will be setting up WiFi, getting dishwashing plumbing kinks resolved and then they will be able to put in pop and coffee machines. They will also be getting the bathrooms completed, installing their point of sale system and hiring help.
The Golden Griddle is currently hiring for all new staff including cooks, wait staff, dishwashers, hosts and hostesses. Applications are available at the Golden Q.
According to Herman, he and his father have been wanting to have a breakfast establishment for many years — they just had to find the right building.
“I think it’s a no-brainer, for everybody in the town of Hays, we are lacking breakfast establishments, especially on the south side of Hays,” he said. “We want it to be a win-win for us and for everybody, as far as having another breakfast place to go to, good food and also on the Golden Q side of it.”
The menu will be filled with a signature breakfast bowl and a 7-ounce steak and eggs, as well as omelets, skillets, pancakes and waffles.
Herman would like to encourage the public to come out and to the new restaurant when it opens. He feels this is a very family and student friendly establishment.
He said they would also like to have a grab-and-go menu, mainly for when school begins. The menu will include breakfast burritos and breakfast sandwiches prepared each morning.
“It’s kind of a modern look, modern feel, yet it still feels warm and inviting,” Herman said. “We want you to bring your kids in, and we have a little bit for everybody on the menu.”