Champy’s newest location in Chattanooga will mix influences from what the restaurant owner calls a Mississippi juke joint and Key West.
“We wanted a fun place to hang out,” Seth Champion said last week as workmen finish up on the new Champy’s Famous Fried Chicken eatery on Lee Highway that’s slated for a mid-July opening.
Champion teamed with Chattanooga artist Terry Cannon and made several out-of-town trips to find items for the new restaurant that will locate next to Food City near Lee Highway and Shallowford Road.
Old wood, corrugated tin, and vintage license plates find favor at the restaurant. Outside, a steeple taken from a horse barn marks the spot. Some of the windows came from a cotton mill in Lindale, Ga., Champion said.
Cannon said there’s nothing cookie-cutter about the appearance of the eatery, which also will be lit in red Christmas lights.