National chains and locally grown entrepreneurs are both good to have.

While it’s nice that Valdosta is finally getting the Olive Garden that everyone has been craving for the last decade, there is other cool restaurant news going on in town as well.

Our own hometown entrepreneur, Pat O’Neal, is shaking things up again, and while his empire doesn’t yet match the Darden restaurant chain (owners of the OG, among others), give him a few years as he seems to be the man with the Midas touch. It seems appropriate to talk about his brainchild, the Smok’n Pig, on the eve of it’s third anniversary tomorrow. While he built the Express on Bemiss last year, he has plans for another full-size Pig at the Macon Mall, which will be a huge part of its revitalization.

Right now, the work is underway on the massive project, which includes a total renovation and remodeling of the mall. O’Neal says that the Pig here is 10,000 square feet but the one in Macon will be 15,000 square feet, making it the largest barbecue restaurant in the U.S. He is also looking at other possible locations for Pigs and O’Neal’s around the region, so you never know. Also this week, Harveys supermarkets will start selling the Pig barbecue sauces, so they’re really branching out and branding the concept.

He and his team also made some changes at Creekside Tavern. Wanting to give it more of an identity, it’s now Creekside Tavern Steakhouse and there are more steaks on the menu, which still includes a wide variety of entrees and the perennial favorite appetizers. They’ve added early bird specials from 4 to 6 on Wednesday and Thursday and still have the live entertainment for those young enough to stay out late. And Pat says it’s not fine dining but just good, fresh, made-to-order, locally grown and well-cooked food.

So again, while it’s great to see Valdosta finally get the one restaurant everyone keeps talking about, it’s also great to see a native of Valdosta do so well, create so many jobs and put people to work, and give back to the community. And not just here, but all around Georgia and Florida both. Kudos.

Business Roundup

I received a terrific letter from a former Olive Garden employee who lives in the area and said she is in contact with her former co-workers. She said the OG won’t make it open by Christmas, but most likely by February. It’s being built where the old Holiday Inn used to be near I-75.

Exciting news this week also about Marco’s Pizza, which is being built in Camelot Crossing off North Valdosta Road. They will be open Aug. 22, and will be the largest free-standing Marco’s in the company.

The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile is on tour for its 75th anniversary, and if you missed it at Harveys or Walmart last week, you still have a chance to see it today at the Walmart on Norman Drive from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It’s amazing how much of a following the Wienermobile has all around the region. And the driver, Reese Brammell, is loving Valdosta as he had two first cousins come to school at VSU.

More exciting restaurant news this week as the Valdosta Regional Airport announced that a Subway restaurant is being built in the main passenger terminal, owned by local entrepreneurs, and should be open in the next 60 days. There will be designated parking for customers at Subway, and the airport is also redoing the observation area so people can come, grab some food, and enjoy their time watching the planes while they eat.

Other than all of this exciting news and a few ongoing construction projects, it’s been a pretty quiet week. Getting the kids back in school and in a routine always seems to quiet things down a bit even while it heats up traffic, especially in the morning. But once VSU students are settled this week and all the area schools are on a regular schedule, it will even out.

In other words, that’s all I have this week, but if there’s something I missed, please let me know!