Linzie Chabot prepares to serve a customer at Merv’s on Mountain Creek Road. Chabot, who has worked at Merv’s for over two years, said she’s excited for the new Soddy-Daisy location.Merv’s has been a part of Stacy Morris’ life since she was 13 years old, when she first got hired on cooking in the kitchen. Over time, it grew to be more and more important for her, so in 1995, when the opportunity to become the owner of the restaurant presented itself, she had to say yes.
In the last 21 years, her management has helped to grow Merv’s even more, and now she’s looking to do something unprecedented in the restaurant’s entire history.
Soddy-Daisy will soon become the home of the brand-new location of the second incarnation of Merv’s. Morris has faith it will be the first of many.
“I believe we can go coast to coast!” she said, laughing. “We’ve got an amazing product and I know we can grow.”
Once the new Soddy-Daisy location finds its feet and things begin operating smoothly, Morris said she’ll start looking to grow the brand further.
She said she selected Soddy-Daisy as the home of the new Merv’s because of the dedicated customer base that has been built in the community. Morris said she’s always tried to put the customers first, and the work she’s put in has been reflected in the positive response from her patrons.
“I’m very fortunate to have loyal customers come from all over, and I’m hoping to do the exact same thing in the new location,” said Morris.
The original Merv’s location on Mountain Creek Road has been subjected to numerous floods over Morris’ tenure as owner and operator. Each flood has temporarily closed the restaurant, once for as long as eight months while she dealt with and repaired the damage. Morris said she believes the new location in Soddy-Daisy will help provide a level of financial security in case disaster again befalls the Mountain Creek location.
“[The floods] cause a lot of financial setback, and a new flood will inevitably happen,” she said. “I have put a lot of time into the current business. I was always a bit nervous about a new location, not knowing what will happen, but I will make it work.”
Morris said more than anything, she’s excited at the business prospects from the new location, and offering the same burgers that popularized Merv’s in the first place, when the new restaurant opens at 8968 Dayton Pike in mid-February.