Etanya Lucas has signed a lease to open the first of three-planned Hattie Marie’s Texas Style BBQ & Cajun Kitchens as part of a franchising deal announced earlier this year, Hattie Marie’s Co-Owner Willie Griggie confirms.
Expected to debut in October, the new Hattie Marie’s will operate out of a 2,500-square-foot space inside the Courtyard by Marriott Atlanta Decatur Downtown/Emory. In addition to the usual Texas barbecue and Cajun seafood that Hattie Marie’s is known for, the Decatur location will feature a full bar.
“Overall, it’s pretty much the same Hattie Marie’s,” Griggie said in an interview with What Now Atlanta. “It’s just, I guess, on steroids, you could say. There’s going to be a full bar. It’s more of a hangout space with the outside patio. We think it’s going to be a good thing for the area.”
In 2017, Griggie opened the first Hattie Marie’s in College Park with his wife, Ramona. The restaurant was named after Griggie’s mother, a chef and baker in her own right. Much of the food she cooked lives on in Hattie Marie’s. That legacy grows with each new location.
The first franchisee for the restaurant, Lucas still has two locations to come in the near future per the deal she agreed to in December.
“Now she’s looking towards Conyers and Duluth for the second and third location,” Griggie said. “So just be on the lookout for those coming in.”
