A touch of the south has found a home in Saratoga Springs since 1938 at Hattie’s Restaurant on Phila Street, known for its down-home cooking and homey atmosphere and catering to ordinary folks, tourists and celebrities alike. Now, this comfort food institution will welcome its very first spin-off when Hattie’s Chicken Shack opens in Wilton in mid-November.
The new location will be taking what we have and freshening it up. Obviously it’s a brand new construction project so we’re taking a lot of pictures we already have at the original location, scanning and reproducing them and putting them on the new walls. There will be key design elements going in that people will recognize and it will have that same Hattie’s charm, said Beth Alexander, who co-owns Hattie’s with her husband, chef Jasper.
Alexander said Hattie’s has been doing a quick-service style of cooking at the racetrack for the past three years. That venture’s success got her and her husband to thinking about establishing a permanent take-out location. The Wilton eatery will be at 3057 Route 50 in the Wilton Plaza, nestled between Chipotle and The Meat House, a destination with ample parking and the potential for a lot of foot traffic.
`It’s hard to replicate the original Hattie’s, so this will be a fast casual concept,` said Alexander.
The take-out location, open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week, will also have eat-in seating`approximately 70 seats`and will feature some of Hattie’s most famous recipes, like fried chicken, marinated grilled chicken sandwich, rock shrimp po-boys,s french fries, sweet potato fries, cranberry coleslaw, cajun cole slaw, cucumber salad and The Fried Chicken Sandwich.
`It will be the same chicken that we get at Hattie’s and the same recipe,. We’ll be doing something that’s become almost a cult favorite at the track, the fried chicken sandwich, and will have more fryer space,` said Alexander, who said large platters will also be available to order.
The Alexanders took over Hattie’s from its second owners 10 years ago and said maintaining both the quality of the food and the restaurant’s traditional dining atmosphere were most important.
`It really is the same recipe Miss Hattie used from the beginning and we want to make sure everything tastes the same everytime you make it. We’ve added a few new items but have stayed true to the Hattie’s tradition,` said Alexander. `Hatties has always been accessible to everyone and we strive very hard to keep the prices down, try to use local food and farms.`
Another Hattie’s mainstay has been charitable contributions and a strong community presence.
`Hattie was very big on charitable contributions and we continue to do so in her name and her spirit,` said Alexander.
When Hattie’s first opened, it was open 24 hours a day because of the `gambling, speakeasies and smoky jazz clubs` of the ’30s and ’40s. It moved to its current location at 45 Phila Street in 1968 and established itself as a destination by providing good southern food in a family atmosphere, spearheaded by a woman known for her generosity, sense of humor and quality of treating everyone the same.
Co-owning Hattie’s has been like a childhood dream come true, said Alexander, and something she’s proud to carry on.
`I knew Miss Hattie but I never worked for her. I grew up here so I remember fondly going to dinner at Hattie’s. I just loved the restaurant, there’s something about it that’s very special. It’s very unique and has a really warm feeling about it,` said Alexander.
For more information about Hattie’s and Hattie’s Chicken Shack, visit www.hattiesrestaurant.com.
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