15 restaurant and retail news items to know, from a Gay Street shop to new BBQ at Archer's
Keenan Thomas, Knoxville News Sentinel
Updated 7 min read
The new year has swept us out of the holiday season and into 2024, bringing with it some restaurant and retail news to help you plan your year of eating and shopping.
The latest news brings some new Gay Street additions including an outdoor equipment store, a restaurant and a sparkling new upscale hotel. There are also pizza shop closings, a new tea room in Fountain City and a new barbecue restaurant taking over an abruptly closed restaurant space.
These are the 15 openings and closings to know as January kicks off 2024!
Smoky Mountain Angler fishes out a spot on Gay Street
A new fishing store is open on Gay Street.
Smoky Mountain Angler of Knoxville opened at 618 S. Gay St. Suite #103 on Jan. 2. The store carries fly tying selections, fly rods, fly reels, conventional reels, conventional rods, fishing gadgets, waders, packs, bags, fishing luggage and clothes. Manager Chad Fouts said the store is still stocking more items.
Fouts told Knox News the lease was signed in December, and he and the Smoky Mountain Angler team built out most of the location from scratch. It is the second location for Smoky Mountain Angler, which started in 1988 in Gatlinburg.
"Our main goal for this Knoxville area is 100% to serve the community that already exists, but also help it grow," Fouts said. "And by that, I mean a lot of guys around here love to fish and love to tie flies, and now they have a place where they can go. And if we don't have something, we're gonna get it. Then as far as new anglers — people have never been before — we're going to be doing classes and tying classes and casting lessons."
The Knoxville store is open 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday.
New Andy's Frozen Custard planned for Knoxville
The plans for a new Andy's Frozen Custard were approved Dec. 14 by the Knoxville-Knox County Planning Commission.
This second Knoxville location will be at 513 N. Cedar Bluff Road, across the street from Knoxville Catholic High School, and it will be another drive-thru facility with a walk-up window.
Franchisee Tom Gass has plans to open more Andy's Frozen Custard locations in the area. He opened the locations on Bearden Hill in Knoxville and Dolly Parton Parkway in Sevierville.
Marco's Pizza locations close around Knoxville
Several Marco's Pizza locations closed without a word, but the move might be temporary.
Knox News reached out to two remaining locations, but the stores declined to comment, saying the locations that closed were owned by a different franchisee.
Marco's Pizza's corporate office did not respond to multiple phone calls requesting comment.
The Kraken's Cup opens in Fountain City
Tea room The Kraken's Cup opened in Fountain City after months of delays, and it is now happily serving explorers at 4815 N. Broadway St. #107, inside the courtyard to the right of Food City.
It's operating on a limited menu until the grand opening and ribbon-cutting at 10 a.m. Jan. 17. Light refreshments will be served, but otherwise guests will need to reserve a table to try the full menu featuring food and over 80 types of tea.
Simpl partners with Five and Hoek for a pop-up kitchen
Chef Kendale Ball outside of Simpl on Sevier, which closed Aug. 10. He hopes to open a new restaurant, Simpl Cafe, on the riverfront.
The pop-up kitchen opened Dec. 7 at the 200 W. Magnolia Ave. coffee shop and serves breakfast and lunch every day.
The New York-style Simpl Cafe is still in the works at South Banks at Suttree Landing.
Hidden gem for soup and sandwiches closed downtown
Hidden away downtown, Cafe Vicolo closed its doors Dec. 29.
The restaurant was located at 625 S. Gay St., down an alley that leads to Market Street between the East Tennessee History Center and Two Centre Square. It served soups, salads, sandwiches, hot dogs and brats.
Asia Cafe opens new Alcoa location
Owner Philip Lim posing next to the sign of his restaurant Lim Dynasty Asia Cafe. The local restaurant is opening two new locations, bringing its total number to five locations. July 14, 2023.
Asia Cafe has opened a new express location in Alcoa.
The quick-service restaurant is located at 1123 Franck St. in Alcoa next to Texas Roadhouse. It serves a limited menu focused on to-go orders. It joins the Asia Cafe Xpress in Maryville, and is the second new location with 8926 Town and Country Circle where Taste of Thai used to be.
The Asia Cafe Xpress location in Alcoa is open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily.
CJ's Tacos will still be around with food trucks and catering, along with the new venture called CJ's Ice Oasis.
The location inside the Gay Street hotel opened in March 2020 and survived the COVID-19 pandemic.
Knox eSports opens in West Knoxville
A new gaming facility is open in West Knoxville.
Located at 108 N. Peters Road, Knox eSports offers gamers a space to hone their skills individually or as part of a team or to host events. Along with up-to-date consoles and gaming setups, Knox eSports hosts tournaments and leagues to fuel Knoxville's competitive gaming spirit. It opened Dec. 16.
Gamers can get a day pass for $29.99 or a night pass for $19.99. There are also monthly memberships starting at $79.99. Knox eSports is open noon-10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, noon-midnight Friday and 9 a.m.-midnight Saturday.
Hotel Cleo and Lilou are now open on Gay Street
Two new experiences have opened in the same location, at 428 S. Gay St.
Hotel Cleo is a boutique hotel experience that opened Dec. 28. The hotel features 16 rooms, each designed to feel old school, European and luxurious. Each room is uniquely designed along with a common area on each of the three floors.
Hotel Cleo is paired with Lilou, a new French restaurant from the owners of Brother Wolf and Osteria Stella. The restaurant opened Jan. 4 and features modern interpretations of classic French dishes.
Lilou is a homecoming for owners Aaron Thompson and Jessica King, as they previously operated the bar Sapphire in the same location. The bar closed in 2021.
Chismoso Cocktails and Comida is the gossip along Gay Street
Co-owners Corbin Azambuja (left) and Emmanuel Perez (right) standing in front of the future home of Chismoso Cocktails and Comida. The restaurant doesn't have a set opening date, but the two hope to open in spring 2024 at 131 S. Gay St. Dec. 12, 2023.
A new concept is in the works at 131 S. Gay St. where Anaba Japanese Cuisine used to be.
Chismoso Cocktails and Comida aims to be the talk of the town as a new restaurant offering "Mexicanized American food" and quality cocktails.
The concept comes from co-owners Emmanuel Perez and Corbin Azambuja, who have both worked in restaurants for years. They plan to open Chismoso by spring 2024 at the earliest, but it could get delayed with permitting and licensing.
Kern's Food Hall is delayed, but a new addition has been announced
Kern's Food Hall has been delayed in opening, now aiming to open in March followed by a second round of vendors opening in the summer.
However, the good news is that it is adding Eggspectation to the lineup for the South Knoxville food hall on Chapman Highway. The all-day brunch chain is planned to open during the second wave.
Long's Drug Store is closing in Bearden after 67 years
Long's Drug Store at 4604 Kingston Pike will close after 67 years. It is one of Knoxville's oldest restaurants.
The final day of operations will be Jan. 16. The working pharmacy's closure was announced on Facebook, which cited changes in the insurance industry and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Customers can still stop by the drug store's classic soda fountain until it closes.
New Patches BBQ opens in former Archer's BBQ location
Patches BBQ & More opened on Jan. 8, 2024, at 5200 Rutledge Pike.
Patches BBQ & More opened its second location Jan. 8 in the 5200 Rutledge Pike store. It features a similar menu to the original location in Strawberry Plains, but the full kitchen means it can expand.
Owners John and Rycki Macalla opened the original location in 2023. Their new restaurant will be open 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and until 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
CORRECTION: A previous version misstated where Knox eSports opened. The gaming facility is open in West Knoxville at 108 N. Peters Road.
Keenan Thomas reports for the Knox News business growth and development team. You can reach him by email at keenan.thomas@knoxnews.com.
Two of the newest additions to downtown Knoxville have opened in the same building, at 428 S. Gay St.: Hotel Cleo, a 16-room boutique hotel, and Lilou, a French restaurant.
