It would be easy to say the first 4 months have been a breeze. That isn’t entirely true. Ultimately, Executive Chef Sean Brock says opening their 4th Husk was easier, but that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been a ton of work. “We opened a month after Greenville” he told us during a recent conversation, “so it was much easier than it would have been walking in and opening a restaurant we had never operated before.”
I would imagine opening 2 restaurants the size and scope of a “Husk” property would present its challenges. The promise to the clientele is that they are all different, so you can’t just cut and paste a menu from one to the next. No, anyone familiar with the Husk brand will share with you the fact that the goal is be representative of the cuisine of that particular city. Indigenous foods from Charleston are different than Greenville, which are different than Nashville and ultimately, different from Savannah.
“It has been so much fun developing the relationships in Savannah. The locals have been more than welcoming to us.” Brock says.
Of course, there have been a few challenges. There always are with restaurants. A couple of months in, Husk Savannah replaced its chef. In came a team from Husk Nashville to take the reins until a permanent replacement is found. The cynic may raise an eyebrow at that, but the positive is that the team in place in the kitchen now is more than familiar with Husk’s systems and “The Husk Way.” Which can only make for a better dining experience.
There are no training wheels at a Husk. There are roughly 230 seats in the 10,000 square foot space. The goal was always to get up to full speed as quickly as they could. Much like an airplane, once an empty seat goes unfilled, that’s not something you will ever get back. “It’s tough to do, you are leaving revenue behind” Brock says. “But we have found it is better to ease in to it. The idea of knowing what you are capable of and sticking to that.”
“Fridays and Saturdays we are doing about 250 covers.” says Kenny Lyons, Director of Hospitality and Performance for Husk. “We expect to eventually get to those numbers during the week plus we’ve opened our 3rd floor event space. Which will keep the kitchen busy as well.” says Lyons.
The big news that comes with getting your systems up to speed, however, is the addition of lunch service at Husk Savannah. That is expected to begin on May 16th. With that comes the “official” roll out of the Husk burger. A burger that, while different at every Husk location, has drawn national attention as being one of the best in America. “This one is the most insane burger I’ve ever eaten or made” Brock says “and I eat a lot of burgers.”
“We sat down and asked how can we change the burger without changing the identity.” he says. “And we think we’ve done that. I made the first one. Took the first bite and laughed for 2 minutes straight, it was so good.” he says. The burger actually debuted on their Sunday Brunch menu, which rolled out weeks ago.
Regardless of what time or day you visit Husk, Brock says the feedback they have gotten from the Savannah community has been overwhelmingly positive. “I’ve been so amazed at the support of the locals and how adventurous all of the diners are.” he says “Once we started serving Whiting, it was amazing how many people thanked us. It’s a cheap fish. It’s stereotyped. But that doesn’t mean that it isn’t insanely delicious.” he adds.
Husk is located at 12 West Oglethorpe in the heart of Downtown Savannah’s Historic District.
For my full, unedited conversation with Chef Sean Brock, check out our podcast. Shuck It! By clicking here.
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BBQ Chicken Sandwich. Slow Roasted Chicken, Pull the meat. Tossed with Alabama White Sauce. That goes on the bun. Top that with Fried Chicken skins and slaw made from Sauerkraut.
