Fine Dining - Zaxbys: Chicken Fingerz, The "Sauce Boss," and The Letter "Z"

Episode Date: April 15, 2026

🍗🔥 Zaxbys: Sauce Boss, $16K Beginnings, and the Cult of the Z 🔥🍗 Brought to you by the 2025 Septemburger Tournament bracket winner Craig Majors, this week, I'm joined by actress and improvisor Alex Stedman (@alex.paisley.stedman) to break down the history of Zaxbys. From a tiny college chicken joint called "Zax" to a 1,000+ location powerhouse, this is a story of an obsession with the letter Z that borders on ztupid. We dig into their rise, their ownership changes, and how this Southern favorite carved out its niche in the chicken wars. Also which is a better improv name: Tony Townley or Bernard Acoca? 🍗 Humble Beginnings: Just $16,000 and a Dream Called "Zax" 📈 Rapid Growth to Over 1,000 Locations Nationwide 💰 Acquisition by Goldman Sachs (Now Do Me Next!) 👔 New Leadership from a Former El Pollo Loco CEO 📺 "Sauce Boss" Ads That Don't Deliver on the Promised Vibe 🔤 A Brand Identity Built Almost Entirely Around the Letter Z 🚽 Alex's Dream Restaurant #1: Eat on a Toilet for Maximum Efficiency 💘 Alex's Dream Restaurant #2: A Dining Experience for Singles to Meet ⭐ Yelp from Strangers: Ken R. Decides His Wife Also Won't Be Returning 💬 COMMENT BELOW: Is the Zaxbys branding genius, or just a little too Zilly (I'm not proud of that...)? 📢 SUPPORT THE SHOW & JOIN THE COMMUNITY: 🎉 Patreon (Bonus episodes, extended Yelp segments & more): patreon.com/finediningpodcast 💬 Discord (Food talk, memes, cursed Yelp): discord.gg/6a2YqrtWV4 🎥 Watch full episodes: youtube.com/channel/UCLbraNhL6KhDPkdSWt2yiuw 🔗 All links: linktree.com/finediningpodcast 🎤 Guest: Alex Stedman | IG: @alex.paisley.stedman Patreon Producers:Sue Ornelas & Joyce Van Patreon Subscribers:David Ornelas, Kellie Baldwin, Jeremy Horwitz, Herbert Amaya, Simone Davalos, Scott Bennett, Amy Reinhart, Josef Castaneda-Liles, & Travis Langley Free Patreon Followers:Joe Warszalek, Lauren Cummings, Grace Krainak, Keri Estes, Robert Duran, Patrick Elliott, Michelle Elmer, Dave Plummer, Nicholas Volney, Michael Gerard, Tracy Molino, Phuong Duong, Tyler Robinson, Brandon Gully, Mason Cruz, Michael Milito, Mez, Aaron Hubbard, Steff, Robert McLaughlin, Jewell Hermann, Renae Michael, Crystal C. 👉 NEXT WEEK: It's time to put Zaxbys to the Chili's Test with Alex Stedman.

Is Zaxby's on its way to dominating the crowded fast food fried chicken landscape? With over 1,000 stores to advertise during college football games, Zaxby's has grown an undeniable presence. Was it worth one of the founders selling their drum set to get the startup cash? You show me a white CEO, and I'll show you a man who lacks rhythm. So I'm going to say yes to that. And no other brand has made a bigger deal out of the letter Z than Zxby's, with so much of their marketing strategy,

centering around the question, what if we made the S's into Z's? To that effect, I'm sure they'd love raising canes to the ground, because, you know, competition. This week on the show, I'll toss my sauce of knowledge directly onto your boneless wings of curiosity so that you too may know everything I've learned about Zaxby's. Then, we'll direct our attention to the people of Yelp to see what they're saying about the very Zaxby's we visited. Stay tuned. This is the Fine Dining Podcast Okay

Okay, yeah, the table's ready Take a seat The flavor of the day is mediocrity Wouldn't you like to try a five Guarantee it'll be the perfect fun Okay, yeah, the Z thing Let's talk about the Z thing Great

Because I do think that's very curious And I think it's, I, Zach Bees, Zach's Bees to me, I'm gonna, yeah, I don't know, I'm not gonna It's like, what has he got an apiary? What does he have? Is he a beekeeper? Is he a fucking beekeeper?

Who is Zach? And why does he have bees? And why do they only care about the Z's and the bees? I'm stupid. I think that you're correct because I'm trying to think of Z brands and I don't think any, any come to mind. Zippies is the next one I know and they're a Hawaiian chain that has a couple spots in Las Vegas.

Okay. It's kind of like a Japanese fusion place. Okay. Sounds good to me. I meant to do them when I went to Hawaii and then switched to something else. And then you didn't. That's okay. It happens.

Hello and welcome to the fine dining podcast. the quest to compare all restaurants to Chili's. I'm your host, Michael Ornellis, and in this podcast, we learn the history of our favorite restaurant chains one week before seeing how they compare to Chili's in week two. This week on the show, I'll be talking about the history of Zaxby's, a fast food chicken chain that's popular in the South, and I'll be doing so because of my Septemberger 2025 bracket contest winner Craig Majors. He wanted me to review Zaxpies, so I flew halfway across the country to cover it.

And joining me this week is someone I know from the world of improvising musicals, one of my only friends in Los Angeles who shares a 512 area code. She's like if a car loudly speeding in a residential zone was actually cool. It's Alex Stedman. I love that intro, never got that before. You did tell me you have road rage, so that kind of checks out with that. Yeah, yeah, I do have a lot of road rage. And it's, yeah, it's always under the surface just a little bit. Just boiling.

Just ready to go. How are you doing? Thanks for coming on. I'm good. Yeah, I drove. hour to get here in LA traffic. So the rage has been road it's building and now you're ready to let it all. Rage. Yeah. You've been great though. You've been so mean since you got. I know. I've just been bullying you and beating you up. I'm sorry. I think the bruise will heal. I do have to ask,

do you have a history with Zaxby's? Have you ever been? Was this your first time? No. And when you when you asked me, I was like, oh yeah, I've heard of Zaxbys, but I don't, I didn't know that it was only really in Texas or not in L.A., I guess I should say. Yeah, it did not start in Texas. It's in other places, though. And to me, when I heard Zach's I literally thought that it was like going to be more of a, I don't know why I thought I was going to be more of like a chile, like of a chillies or like a, um, like a sit down,

a casual dining. Yeah, like almost even cheesecakey. I thought it was going to be like fancy. So then when I got there, I was like, oh, Zach's he's doing her own thing. But my brother did know. Did you get upset where you're like, I thought he was inviting me to something nice? Yeah. I got, I cried a little. I was like, oh, well, it's okay. We'll do it with this.

But my brother knew it and he was like, it's good. I was like, great. All right. That was my only reference. I remember a building in Austin that said Zax, Z-A-X. Yeah. And I was like on Riverside near downtown Austin. Yeah. And that was Zaxby's original name.

So I think that was a Zaxby's. Mind-blown. Yeah. Okay, yeah. So I never, I had never been. Yeah. Yeah. I had neither.

This was my first time. I had been on my radar. I've been taken a few. vacations with my parents in North Carolina the past few years. And driving around there, I've noticed a lot of Zaxby's. Like the local chains there are just so different. Yeah. Like they have bow jangles. They have cookout. They've got Zaxbys. I've got Waffle Houses. So it's just a different landscape. But Zaxbys was one where I was like, oh yeah, I should probably do them at some point. So when my September or winter was like, hey, do Zaxbys, I was like, you know what? Yeah.

Hell yeah, why not? Well, that's my history of Zaxby's, and that's yours. Do you want to hear the history of Zaxby's? I would love to hear the history of Zaxby's. Can you say it less sarcastically? I would love to hear the history of Zaxby's. Oh, my God, are you crying? One single tear.

All right, we're going to jump into this week's Eat Deets. Ebery Details. Zaxbys was founded in March 1990 in Statesboro, Georgia. by childhood friends Zach McLeroy and Tony Townley, who scraped together $16,000 to open a 40-seat chicken joint originally called Zaks near the Georgia Southern University campus. Their concept focused on fresh hand-bredded chicken fingers, crinkle fries, Texas toast, and a proprietary dipping sauce quickly caught on with college students. At the time, a fast casual eatery devoted chiefly to chicken fingers was considered a novel

idea despite being heavily inspired in part by Guthrie's in Alabama chicken fingers only chain from the 1980s. I thought it started in Austin because you said that you saw that, Zach's, in Austin, but it started in Georgia. Right. Okay. But one did end up in Austin before the name change. So I guess we'll learn about the name change down the line, maybe.

Honestly, I just, I state the name change. And that's it. We don't know why. There's not really, I don't know why. Because you would think a name change or rebrand would make it shorter and easier. not more complicated, more Z's, and longer. But, hey, what do I know? Zax to Zaxby's?

Zax's. I think... It's too generic. Well, if you go to Zax, it's like Z-A-X, how do you say, I went to Zax? Zax's. That was the problem. They were like, people can't say that they went here. Someone with a Lisp would have such a hard...

Zax's. And they are nothing, if not inclusive. From the outset, Zaxby's cultivated a fun, quirky brand identity through its menu offerings. Salads are cheekly dubbed zalids. appetizers are zapatizers, and chicken tenders are chicken fingers, with a Z, aligning with the Zaxby's name. The restaurant's signature condiment, the tangy, creamy Zach sauce, became a cult favorite. Its exact recipe remains a company secret known only to McLeroy.

Just like SpongeBob and the Crappy Patty. Okay, but are we allowed to talk about the sauce, or we haven't been there yet? Let's not review it, but we can, like, mention that it exists. Well, because what I want to say is kind of about. Okay. It's like cult status and like, you're just like, I don't get it. Yeah, kind of that. So we can.

I think any sauce that isn't ketchup, mustard or mayo, like plainly. Yeah. I think people kind of freak out about it. That's fair. And they're just like, oh my God, there's. Even if it tastes like 5% different from another restaurants. And that's kind of the thing is all of these secret sauces are they're all in the same family. Yeah.

I mean, the crabby patty secret sauce has to just be Thousand Island and something else. Right. We know that. We all know it. We know it. Because Thousand Island is every secret sauce. It's every secret sauce. And that's a fact. And I've always said that.

To expand beyond its single store routes, Zaxby's embraced franchising early on. After a few years refining operations in Georgia, the founders franchised their concept, the first Zaxby's outside Georgia, opened in 1994 in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Franchising soon became the engine of growth. Most Zaxby's today are franchise owned with the founders' company. operating roughly 140 of the locations and the rest run by independent franchisees. The brand gained a reputation as a strong franchise opportunity. It has appeared on Entrepreneur's Franchise 500 list every year since 2013,

thanks to its solid unit economics and loyal regional fan base. 94 is when I was born. That's what stuck out to me. That's crazy. That nothing about Zaxby stuck out. You hear the word 1990. And you're like, that was my birthday. I said day extended to Kentucky the same year I was born.

And that's when tour story came out too. So fun facts. This isn't a 1994 podcast. It is now. Another thing. No, that's literally quite all I know. But I will remember that. So for me, it's important.

Sorry. That was about franchising. Yeah. Okay, but okay, everyone franchises. I don't know. How many are there? Do we know? Total?

Zaxby's? Like over a thousand. That's okay. Yeah. The one we went... So they have to be doing well. Yeah. Okay. I know the question is why. Yeah. But... Hmm. Do you know how many you probably do? Do you know... And sorry, to ask you a question. But do you, off the top of the dome, know how many raising canes there are? I don't. I haven't done an episode on them yet. Oh. Yeah. Just kidding. But I will. Yeah, I'm just curious. They are the closest restaurant to me is a raising canes. Oh. Yeah. Well, don't Google that and find out where you're lives. I mean, you'd have to Google all the raising things. I know. It's because my favorite

restaurant is El Pollo Loco, and I always tell people I live on the corner of an El Pollo logo, but there's a million of them, so it's fine. Zaxby's transition from a local secret to a regional powerhouse was marked by swift expansion and major milestones in the 2000s and 2010. The chains spread through neighboring southern states and eased into larger markets like Atlanta. By 2015, it's 25th anniversary, Zaxbys had grown to over 700 locations and surpassed a billion dollars. in annual system-wide sales. To celebrate that quarter-century mark, the company rolled out a refreshed retro farmhouse design prototype for its stores,

which is what we went to, upgrading restaurant exteriors, dining rooms, and kitchens, including a remodel of the original Statesboro location. Saxby's also ventured beyond its southern stronghold in 2013 at opened restaurants in Utah. Steady growth continued through the late 2010s with Saxby's opening stores in Texas, Indiana, and Missouri. I would love to get my eyes and hands on the original layout of what Zaxby's was in the first original store. Wait, the farmhouse one that we went?

No, no, no, no. Oh, like, pre-farmhouse? Yeah, what was it before? I have no idea. Because I'm like, was it giving farmhouse? Yeah, I don't know. But retro farmhouse. Retro farmhouse.

Like, I was getting saloon from it more than farmhouse. I guess it makes sense because they have a lot of. the chicken stuff in there. Yeah. I don't know. No. Trying to think of the last farmhouse I went to and what it looked like. But when you say get your hands on, I'm picturing like the library and Zoolander, like the model of it. Like that's what you want the diorama. Oh, that's what I mean. Yeah. I want the tiny diorama. What is this? A Zaxby's for ants. And you know with their whatever it was grant that they or how much money did they use to start up? 16,000. 16,000. Yeah. 16,000. I was 16,000. I'm tired. Um, yeah. They definitely had a tiny model. You know that they had that. You're not allowed to open a restaurant until you've made a tiny diorama of it. What is this restaurant for tiny people?

Yeah. You know, someone said that. Yeah. Yeah. A pivotal moment in Zaxby's evolution came in November 2020 when the company announced a significant strategic investment from the Goldman Sachs' merchant banking division. This deal, finalized at year end 2020, saw Goldman Sachs acquire a large stake in Zaxpe's, providing an infusion of capital and resources to accelerate growth. While exact terms weren't disclosed, co-founder Tony Townley reportedly sold a substantial portion of his ownership during this time, stepping back from day-to-day operations.

He remained involved as a leading franchisee, whereas Zach McLeroy continued with the company's leadership. The Goldman Partnership was touted as a way to provide a sustainable, competitive advantage for Zaxby's and help the regional chain evolve into a national brand. And Tony Townley is an improv name. Yes. And you made it up right now. Hi, I'm Tony Townley, attorney at law. Literally, hi, I'm Tony Townley.

I'm the mayor of the town. I kind of want to just always make my improv name Tony Townley. I kind of do too. I think it's going to always work. There's a scenario that will work in. And by the way, before any context has been established in a scene, just be like, Tony Townley. Tony Townley. Yeah, exactly.

And a handshake. Anyways, here's my idea for what the scene is. We're in space. I'll have a show tomorrow night, so I'll be sure to whip it out and see what happens. Whip out Tony Townley. Tony Townley, here I come. But, yeah, Goldman Sachs is a, like, that's a major, that's why Zaxpies is going to be successful. It's okay.

No matter what. Yeah, they've got it. They've got. Because they got. They got that Goldman Sachs behind him. That's insane. I heard I'm next. This podcast is their next acquisition.

Oh, that's amazing. Congratulations. I can't wait for that. And so I will be getting paid. After guiding Zaxby's for over 30 years, Zach McLeroy announced in late 2021 that he would step aside from the CEO role, a significant leadership change for the company he co-founded. In January 2022, Bernard Akoka, a restaurant industry veteran and former CEO of El Pollo Loco,

was appointed as Zaxby's new chief executive, notably the first CEO who wasn't one of the founders. Okay, I've got a lot to say. Oh, I know. Okay. When I saw this, I was like, I'm going to yield the floor to you. This is pretty exciting fucking stuff. First of all, Bernardo Coca, another improv name. Bernardo Coca, more like Bernardi Diet Coca.

Am I right? Yeah. Yeah. I had. Yeah. I just heard from Goldman Sachs that they passed. Fuck. Oh.

Direct correlation. Wait, I'm getting something. They're back in because of what I just said. Nope. Nope. They actually, they told me whatever they tell you is a lie. Shit. This wouldn't be the first time with the last.

Okay, El Pollo Loco. He either left before El Pollo Loco became good, and he is the problem, or he did not do the same thing at Zaxpe's that he did at El Pollo Lpoa Loco. No, he needs time to cook. No, because it would be the opposite. He would have gone to El Pollo Loco. I'm just saying, El Pollo is like a tin for me, and Zaxpeas is like a four. So the fact that they're sharing, you know.

Is it like a four? I'm going to check the score you gave me. Yeah, it might be lower. It might be higher. All right. Is it like a four? It's like a four. It's like a four.

Stay tuned. Yeah, I just think El Pollo Loco is like kind of the holy mecca in my eyes if you're going to get cheap, fast chicken. Okay. The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 was a major test. Dining rooms closed across the country, but Zaxby's quickly pivoted to support its franchisees and serve customers via drive-thrus and takeout. The company provided $5 million in royalty abatements and fee waivers to help struggling franchise operators, offered bonuses to frontline workers at company stores and introduced new Zach's family packs,

bulk meals of chicken fingers and wings, to drive takeout sales. Those moves paid off, drive-through traffic surged, and check sizes grew as families ordered the large combo packs. Yeah, it does seem like a restaurant that would only have drive-thru. So I was surprised that they had a dining area at all. Yeah.

Because when I got there, I was like, oh, okay, I'm getting what this is. And then... And then, lo and behold, retro farmhouse... Retro farm inside. Yeah. Listen. Yeah. So I feel like if you're going to a place like that and you are dining there, that's a choice.

Yeah. That's, that's decisions are being made. If you're doing the drive-thru, it's a lot more forgivable. Well, also the one we went to in particular is in a very inaccessible part of a larger, like, shopping center parking lot. Mm-hmm. So I'm just like, I can't imagine it gets a lot of foot traffic. So if you're eating in, it's so deliberate. That's what I'm saying.

You are making decisions and choices that I'm like, I, have some questions. We made it. We did make it. Yeah, as I'm saying it, I'm realizing, I know what we did. Yeah. I know what we did last summer. We need to judge ourselves. I know. And I am. And I am. Yeah. Zaxbys has built a playful marketing persona to strengthen its brand. In 2025, Zaxby's launched a high profile sauce-centered ad campaign casting actor Omar Epps as the suave sauce boss to promote its lineup of 12 dipping sauces. The company also teamed up with Atlanta rapper Two Chains, a noted Zaxby's fan for a holiday promotion, 12 days of saucemas, featuring the artist and his young son in a series of social media videos touting

special deals, complete with custom gold chains and a limited time cookie butter milkshake tie-in. Okay, if I knew Two Chains was behind it, I would have been more in. If I would have gotten that marketing, have you seen these ads? I watched the Omar Eps sauce boss one. Okay, question. Is that one kind of like Old Spice vibes? No. It is so kind of devoid of like personality.

There's no flavor in the flavor ad. Like he's basically like eating sauces and he's like they're for everyone or whatever. Some people have a favorite sauce. Some people eat all of them. And I'm like, that's crazy. That's crazy. They literally showed someone dipping a sauce, dipping a sauce, dipping into the next sauce. A suicide of sauces. And I'm like, do you not care about like, now now it's like it's tainted it's tainted each individual sauce is not and you're speaking to the integrity of each sauce if you're mixing it all together then yeah what what is what even is it what is it yeah it has no identity but it's funny because I was imagining like old spice vibes for that

so the fact that it's opposite and it's supposed to be a saucy ad for sauces yeah a flavor for flavor and there's nothing that's kind of hilarious like he's kind of just like I'm the sauce boss like there's no even like I'm the sauce boss yeah he's giving nothing there's no like 2004 skateboarding energy, which is what I want, like extreme. When you described it, I was picturing something like that, and then that's, it's sad. But that's very Saxby's, right?

Yeah, Saxby's. Oh. That should be their new, yeah, that's their new ad campaign. Because the name is giving like ZZZ, Z, fun, fun, fun, fun, and then the chicken is kind of. We're worth a lot in Scrabble. Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly.

Yeah. And it's just like, but we're playing scrabble. And then the other ad, the two chains ad, have you seen that one? No. No. I was on my computer and those are social media only, so. Oh. Harder to access.

Surprise I didn't get targeted. Yeah. Targeted. Zatsby's is coming for you. They are now. Yeah. Beyond traditional ads, Zaxby's has heavily embraced sports marketing. It proudly proclaims itself the official chicken of sports fans with a Z.

Uh-huh. And back that up with sponsorship deals covering nearly 30 Division I college athletics programs at its peak, especially across the SEC and ACC schools in. States where Zaxby's operates. The chain even lent its name to a college bowl game, the Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl. In auto racing, Zaxby's gained visibility by sponsoring NASCAR teams, notably backing driver John West's Townley in NASCAR's truck and Xfinity series for several seasons.

Yes, he is the son of Tony Townley, Zaxby's co-founder. There it is. Yeah. Okay. Well, Tony Townley is getting a better and better improv rep name. I'm like he's also a sports race race car driver. Race car driver. Or his son is?

His son is. Well, I like combining the two. Yeah. I'm Towns Townley, a race car driver. NASCAR driver. Sports and chicken. A tale is old as time. Let's be more original, Zaxby's.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. That's true. And I do think I'm curious now if they sponsored anything where I went to school because I'm like, the name is so familiar to me, like seeing it that I'm like, did they sponsor? Like the Zaxby's literature wing? Yeah, or like, yeah. Or I'm sure there was a Zaxby's in love. In Lubbock, Texas.

I don't know. Are you sure there was? Wow. You just said you're sure there was. I'm sure there was in spirit. There was something that like if it wasn't there, something like that. If it wasn't there, something was like that. Or I'm like, did I go to the Zaxby's Dallas Bowl game?

Because maybe. Maybe. Yeah. I went to a lot of games that I don't remember. Yeah. Football happens and I'm just there. Yeah. I can't be responsible for what happens and who sponsors it.

But I'm sure Zaxby's was sponsoring some sort of football situation that I was involved in. Sure. And if not out. was. Yeah. I love Outback. I do. As of 2025, Zaxby's boasts roughly 970 to 1,000 locations across 18 to 19 states, still heaviest in the

southeast, but steadily expanding outward. They opened their first restaurants in Phoenix, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada in 2025 as part of a push into the southwest, and Zaxpe's has signed multi-unit franchise deals to break into the mid-Atlantic region, including Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. The company is also experimenting with. new store formats to accelerate growth, deploying smaller drive-through only units and in-line locations. And in 2025, it inked its first agreement for a non-traditional outlet on a military base to capture high-traffic captive markets. While Zaxby's remains a U.S.-focused brand today,

the Goldman Sachs investment and new leadership have set the stage for bigger goals. executives have hinted that Zaxbys could eventually expand internationally when the time is right. I have a lot of questions for, um, Mr. Townsley because... He backed out. Oh, who's the current CEO? A coca. Oh, Akoka.

Okay. What are they going to do internationally? And also, when you started talking about them expanding different, having different formats, I was like, oh, what else are they doing besides rustic farmhouse? But they're getting smaller. Yeah. And they're like, we're doing the thing that you said they should do. It's just drive through all.

Yeah. And they're literally staying in their lane figuratively and literally. So that's probably good. But interesting. I do think a military base is such a good choice. Smart. Any fast food chain would just clean up. Just like, hey.

We're here. We're here. And that's kind of enough. And that's enough, yeah. I mean, it is smart and it does make sense. And, like, who doesn't like? If you're literally in the trenches, you're going to, who doesn't want fried chicken, you know? Who doesn't want fried chicken and some fries?

Yeah. Do you think that modern warfare has trenches? No, but I'm just trying to make like a connection. Okay. Okay. Well, I'll tell you about this later. I watched a really good documentary about modern warfare. Oh, that'll do it for this week's Eat Meeks. Alex, I hope you were jotting down some notes on how to build a fast food empire because it's time for you to tell me about a restaurant concept of your very own. But before we do that, we need to come up with a theme song for this segment. I need you to give me a style and we're just going to...

Rift. We're just going to... I mean, you only have to do one line, so it's fine. I'm excited. For making my own restaurant? Yeah, but like a theme song, give me a style for that, unrelated to the restaurant. But for the segment of making my own restaurant. Yes.

Okay, so Home Depot. Home Depot is the musical theme. Yeah. You don't know... Dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun. I don't. You don't know the Home Depot theme song? I don't.

It's like, Dad. core. Okay. I feel like you would know it. I don't know it, but I'm gonna. No, I feel like it's like so you coded. Okay. You're a fixer. You said it yourself. I'm not a handy man. Isn't every guy? Well, okay, it's, I've been more handy than I've thought I was. Did you do this? No. Oh, I wish. Okay. Whoever did this, no. Got out to Corey Van Beber. Corrie van Beber. You know the Home Depot song. I know you do. It's um, honestly, she probably does. Yeah. She knows. So it's that. Dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun.

So, lyrically, there's nothing going on. This is an ABCA. Okay. You sing the second line and the fourth line. Okay. And the fourth line is the first line again. Wait, can I read, okay. You want to read you the style choice?

Well, I'm like, if we're going to... You dug your heels in so much on Home Depot. Because we're building a restaurants. We're building a song. We're building things. So Home Depot. Yeah. How corny.

Well, that's where my brain went. I didn't eat a C. I ate a bead. But what I'm going to say now is we're talking about guitar hero. And I kind of feel like it's like a, like it's like a rock song. You know like, man, now. Right, which one do you want? You tell me.

We can do either. I'm going to leave this all in regardless. Damn it. People are going to hear you talking about Home Depot. But we can do a, I'm more equipped to do a rock song because I don't know the Home Depot theme. Then let's tell him. That's funny. Because I don't know.

Yeah. All right. This is the restaurant of your dreams. You are going to eat your. food and da da da da da da da da da da appealing to adults and two tweens da da da da da da this is the restaurant of your dream da da da da da da da da da here we're gonna make you scream da da oh i rhymed it it's done Alex I want to know what you would do immediately after signing the contract for your very own dream restaurant something so good world peace could be established if just every world leader

got a whiff of that kitchen it must be practical delicious and memorable three to one Floor is yours. Okay, well, I am going to preface by saying what I, as a child, if you ask me a child self this, what my answer would be, and then I'm going to give you my answer now, okay? Okay. Okay, so part one. Well, just because it's funny. When I was little, I really did think I would die on the hill that the, why do restaurants not have this? So I thought every restaurant should have a toilet for a seat. Yeah. So you could just eat and take care of business at the same time. Now, I was like five, but I was like, why don't restaurants just have toilet? How fast does your digestive system work?

I guess when I was a little pretty fast. It goes right through you. It goes right through me. But I was like, why don't I have that? Also, I would drink a lot of lemonade when I was little. I would be pounding that shit down. So you got to pee. I don't know.

I was like, why do I have to go the restroom? I don't want to go to the restroom. Great. Yeah, so that was that. But now, as an evolved human. I love the idea that it doesn't matter what you serve. You just want to be able to get rid of it quick. No, I was like every restaurant you had.

This was like a cross. Yeah. Yeah, so it's for everywhere. But I kind of have two still. So I'll just go with, I'm going to combine them. Yeah. So I've always thought that there should be a 24-7 healthy fast food option. I know. I know. Roll your eyes. I know. This is the answer I get. This is I will dial the cell. Everyone gives me this reaction. But picture this. You are so drunk out of your mind. Okay. You don't even know what you're putting in your body. You walk through a sweet green esk 24-7 bar. Okay. A salad bar. A salad bar. A drive-thru. But you're not driving. You're an Uber. Drive-through salad is crazy. And it's crazier that it's 24-7. And they're marketing drunk people. But imagine the relief the next morning. When you wake up, you've had your electrolytes because, yes, they sell electrolytes in every single drink.

You've had a salad and not a thing full of fries and shit that makes you feel worse. And then you feel good. I need to tell you. About your decision. I know carbs absorb the alcohol. I am so. Against this. Regularly supportive of my guests' restaurants.

They can pitch me so much. And I'm just like, I can see how that would work. I'm on board for that. And yet today. You're more supportive than ever. Yeah. Okay. I know everyone says this. Sound off in the comments because some people support me.

You have to see it to believe it and to feel it because I know it doesn't sound good. And you're not, we've already had a debate about sweet greens, right? Like you don't love or you haven't. I've never had it. Okay, so you don't know what you're talking about. I used to love tender greens. Tender greens is good. It can be, it can have bowls.

It can have more than salads. It can be a bowl place. But I would go to tender greens because I like their cookie. I would go to tender greens because their tomato soup had a lot of oil. What about if it's more Chipotle-esque? You can't say that you don't want a 24-hour Chipotle. I don't love Chipotle. Fuck.

Michael. Look, you got to pick a place up here if you want to appeal to me. They're all already open 24-7. No, they're not. No, look, you don't have to change your vision for me. I know. I'm just trying to get you on board. I'm not going to because here's the thing. In my mind, it is, I'm a bull slut.

I'm a slut for a bowl. I love like grains, greens, chickens, chicken, some sort of sauce, you know, like, I love it all in there. And if I could have it 24-7. Can we at least make it like a waba? Like a wabre grill? Like, I want rice. Yeah, I can have rice. Yeah, we can have rice.

I said that. We can have rice. And I want like. Rice is in bowls. And like. And I agree. I think rice is hardy and you want that. Some sort of protein.

Like I want to meat. Oh, yeah. Oh, there's meat. Did I not like that clear? It's whole thing is me. sound like it's just leaves. No, no, no, my bad. Just healthy. Just healthy. And, and think about it. Like, then how's it different from Waba? How are you saying no to Waba when I listed the things? I actually don't know. I actually don't know that much about Waba. What's up with Waba?

Or like they're terriaki bowls. Like a chicken terriacchi bowl or something. Okay. Do you know moon bowls? Nope. Well, my other idea was a restaurant that you go and you have to be single and it's a date. And I want to hear about that. Okay. Well, so this is what I've always. said too would be a great idea. Community building. It's less about the food and more about the community, but the food will be good too, ideally. But it's a fast food chain-esque like restaurant, except the whole thing is like you go in and you either are going for friendship or for date. And there's a flirt station and a flirt light. This is so much better. This is so much better.

A plot twist, it's the same restaurant. No. No. They're serving chicken fingers. They're serving pizza. But that's the thing. You can kind of get along with somebody based on the food that you order, But there's community tables. So if you just want like friendship, there's like eight people for a table and that's a community. And then there's date just two tables, just two seats. Yeah. And then you just. So the people who want a date are like, you're the only two people in the whole building that get to be on a date right now.

Yeah, it's actually just all eight tops and then one two tops. That sounds so high pressure. No, no, no. It's a mix. It's a mix. So you've got 50% two tops, 50% eight tops. And that's kind of the vibe. And the twist.

Just the two people. are sitting on toilets. And then there's people on toilets. And it's only healthy stuff, so it will run through you. Yeah, yeah. And now we've created my ultimate favorite dream restaurant. Great. We've done it.

Thanks for going over all of that with me, Alex. I now have a better insight into what you dream about. Yeah, that's it. One last time. This is the restaurant. Oh, yeah. This is the restaurant of your dream. This is the restaurant of your dream.

It will haunt you in your dreams. Well, haunt you in your dreams. And Michael loves it and we'll be dreaming about it every night. Okay. Now let's bring things back to reality and see what other people think of the Zaxby's that we ate at in this week's Yelp from Strangers. Hmm. We need a little yelp, a little yelp, a little yelp from strangers. A one star, two star, three star, star four or five, y.

So get a little yelp. A little yelp. A little yelp. Give us those complaints while you literally white. Yelp! All right, this is Yelp from Strangers, our segment where we turn to Yelp and read out our favorite. One, two, three, four, and five star Yelp reviews of the very restaurant that we went to. Do you mind if I start us off with the first one?

Yeah, please. Great. Three star review. This is a three star review from Ken R from Mustang Ridge, Texas, July. 10th, 2025. He starts, note. I write Facebook reviews for residents of Turner's Crossing, a new development in Buda, as we all learn about good places to dine in Austin. Okay.

He had to preface. And I want to get into that, but okay. We set the stage. What does he mean? He reviews for a living is what it sounds like. I think it sounds like I run a Facebook group where all residents of a newer neighborhood. and we're just trying to figure out what we like. So it's like a neighborhood watch level of food reviewer.

My dad would love this. Okay, yeah. And they're just keeping an eye out for what's good. So he's qualified. Already, I'm giving him credit. If he can do that. And this is the three star. So he's established what the middle ground is.

Yeah. Okay. Here's a brief review that I will keep to only a few paragraphs because I don't expect to be going back. And if I'm not going back, chances are darn good that my wife is either. Okay, Ned Flanders, let's hear it. That sounds like his wife isn't allowed to go places without him. Yeah. If I'm not going back, my wife is not going. She's sure as hell is not stepping foot in a Zaxby's. She needs to go to your date restaurant. That's what I'm saying. Thank you. She needs to find another man. Yeah. On a toilet. He would put the flirt light on. Oh, what would you name the place?

Table for two. That's so much better. I was trying to think of a pun on relation. I was trying to think of relation table. It was like relationship. Relations sit. Relations sit and shit on the toilet. Nope. Hate it. Anyways, back to Ken R from Mustang Ridge.

Zaxby's is on Old San Antonio Road in Buda in the midst of fast food franchise row. Karen and I were trying this place for the- I know. I know. Is his wife's name? And trust me. Yes, it is. Okay.

We were trying this place for the first time in the two years we have lived in Turner's Crossing. The fast food zone is very convenient to us, so it is often a last-minute destination. However, it wasn't the food that got my tidy whitties in a bunch. Oh. I was flabbergasted after getting an order, including wings, slathered in barbecue sauce, when we were told they were out of napkins. Did they expect us to wipe our fingers on our clothes or just lick them clean?

The vinyl upholstery in the booth was beckoning, but I figured that was probably a bridge too far. My God, he's a poet. Also, this is giving Ned Flanders, for real. Flabbergasted. He's definitely giving, he's giving something. And there's a high dittily ho neighbor. Yeah. And I want to know, does he have kids and are they allowed to go?

Anyways. I don't know about kids. This sounds like he's in his retirement years. That's what I'm like. Judging from his picture, he's in his retirement. Got it. Yeah. An employee just shrugged her shoulders, basically wondering what we expected her to do.

We told her to find some paper towels in the kitchen or refund our money and we'd go elsewhere. I love picturing an argument and your hands are filthy. You're just standing there and you can't touch anything. If you don't get your manager. She should have called their bluff and be like, okay, I'll refund their money. Hand me the card you paid with and they have to like dig through their pockets. Or hand them cash back and have only done it cash. Then they have to touch the dirty cash.

Also, I love the idea of them arguing sauce everywhere. And then her just being like, and so mad on its hand and her being like, yeah I can't help you just like doesn't give a fuck which is so fast food of her I would be annoyed if I were in their position I'm gonna be honest I'm a big napkin

pro napkin person I'm always I'm napkin did up all the time so that would piss me off a little bit yeah they found the paper towels we also suggested that they warn customers about the lack of napkins before they order

finger food covered with sauce food was edible but nothing to rave about Karen had the veggie egg roll She finished them, but pronounced them nondescript. Certainly not worth a return visit. I had a combo plate of the nicely sauced wings and some pretty good chicken fingers. My bone in wings were meaty and decent, but the chicken fingers and especially the fries were over-salted. Most of the chicken fingers came home with me for lunch tomorrow because I really enjoy that stuff cold too.

Psychopath. So he's not that mad. Psychopath behavior. Wait, but pause real quick. I have a question. Yeah. Can I ask? Yeah.

Okay, what would the sign warning people at Zaxby's be about napkins? And it has to have a Zee at the end of napkins because they like their signs and they like their Z. We're out of napkins. There it is. Zoop's. Zoop's. Yeah, perfect. There's also a limit to how much salt I can ingest at one sitting.

The thick cut fries were actually quite tasty, but after a few bites, the salt just became overwhelming. Of course, our enjoyment may have been colored by the apparent lack of interest in paying customers. Also, the decor was the most depressing of any fast food place I have been to in the area. Yeah, I kind of agree. And that's the end of his few paragraphs. And I'm loving that he's thorough. Nothing is not thorough. These are...

Mustang Ridge got a know. Yeah. Turner's crossing. They have to know. They have to be aware. I mean, at three is fair. I think reading the review, I would think he would have rated it lower. I think he's, look, I think he's doing honest work.

Yeah. He likes the food. He doesn't like the service. And I'd be mad at no napkins. at a finger food place. I just went to Buffalo Wild Wings go, and they were out of napkins. A Buffalo Wild Wings.

Yeah, that's true. It's because everyone's using them all up. Yeah, you've got to have extra. You've got to be stocked. You've got to be stocked. You've got to be stocked more than you think you need to be. Yeah, I don't like not having a napkin even just like at a coffee restaurant. Like I'm like, even if a little big piece of coffee gets on my, I need a napkin.

I don't need a napkin. True. You know? That's very true. Sometimes I just want to wipe something. Hey, hey. And if you were a single mom of five kids. you would need a lot of

Mackins. You'd be equipped. Yeah. And I am. Yeah. Yeah. Not. But I am.

But I am. Sorry, this is improv. I need to stop with the Donna. Tony Townley. Nice to meet you. I'm Reba McEntty. Let's so. I'm a mom of five.

Reba McEntie? Yeah. Because I'm not Reba McIntyre. Yeah. Is it Reba McIntyre? Yeah. Yeah, that's not me. Because she has only two kids or three.

I have five. Yeah. You don't have. You don't have time for more letters. I can't be tired. Yeah. Five star review. Tony P.

Beautiex. Five stars. Wow. Super awesome chicken fingers. So good. That is a staple on my weekly menu. To be totally honest, I have found myself going there more than once a week before. And that is something I usually never do.

You know what? I'm going to be honest. I have places where I'm like, you know what? You deserve to be a two time a week place. Yeah. Alpoa loco. And especially like when I first discover them, it's like, oh, you're my new obsession for a little bit. Yeah, you have to hyper fixate.

If you have a food and you have, yeah, if you have a food you like, you got to go. You got to go back. What can I say? Their chicken recipe is great. Second to Gus's fried chicken from Memphis. Do you know that? I have to disagree strongly. Yeah.

In that, Gus's fried chicken is probably the best fried chicken. Oh, shit. But Zaxpies is not second to it. No. What is Michael? I don't know. I thought you were for sure going to say Dave's. I know, but I didn't want to take the bait.

I do love Dave's. Okay. And their sauce is, I think, the best iteration of said type of sauce. Okay. I want to try Gusses, so I don't know. Even the Austin location is great chicken. Even the Austin location is great chicken. Of Zaxby's.

Or of Gusses. But what does that mean? Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh. I see what you're saying. Even the Austin location is great chicken. but I should save that review for their page. Yeah, you should. I'm glad that he's noticing that.

Yeah. Dot, dot, dot. To finish my Saxby's review. Super great fried chicken recipe, all caps. Yeah. And you don't agree with that. I don't. And neither do I.

Besides me, it's the only great thing to come from Mississippi in the last 50 years hands down. It's from Georgia. That's actually hilarious. So by his own admission, Tony P is the only great thing to come from Mississippi. And I'm hard-pressed to disagree. We don't, he could be, I mean. He could be a delight.

He seems like a super fan and I love that. Wait, hard press to agree. I don't know, whatever. I think he's great. I think he's great too. I don't know a lot from Mississippi. I'll get behind you. Tony P. from Mississippi, it already has a good ring.

Tony P. All this makes me want to do is go find out what's up with Gus's chicken, though. Like, this doesn't make me want to go to Zach's piece. This makes me want to try Gus's fried chicken. This is so good. Yeah, you're saying it. saying it. Hey there, it's me, Michael.

And now that we're in season four, I'm adding more content to my Patreon. Not only can you hear the extended Yelp from Stranger's segment with three more reviews, and not only can you get an exclusive full episode covering an extra chain restaurant on the last day of each month, but I've added an extra chat with my guests where we discussed their go-to fast food and chain restaurants and talk about why they love them so much. I hope you'll come check it out, and you can get your first week completely full. free of charge. That's patreon.com slash fine dining podcast.

I appreciate and love you all. Back to the episode. That's part one. Yay. We've talked about Zaxby's history. Tune in next week as we tell you what we thought about our meal at Zaxby's. In the meantime, Alex, where can people get more of you online? OMG, a plug. I am everywhere at Alex, period.

Paisley, period. Stedman. I'm working on my enunciation. Can you spell Paisley and Stedman for people? Paisley, P-A-I-S-L-E-Y, period. Stedman, not like Oprah's beard, S-T-E-D-M-A-N. No-A. No-A.

No-A. No way. Actually, does he have an A&S? I don't even know. I don't know. And you can follow the show on Instagram and TikTok at Fine Dining Podcast. I'm on Blue Sky, but I don't use it. But follow me there. So my follower account goes up. And I have a Discord if you want to come chat with me, yell at me about my food opinions. Or just, I'm super accessible. Come hang out. It's fun. Post food pictures, dog pictures. I've got a cute one. I've got a cute dog. I can attest. And I've got a Patreon if you want to support and get an exclusive episode every single month, as well as the full extended Yelp from Stranger's segment and a new thing I'm doing where I'm asking my guests to tell me about their restaurant rotations, the things that they eat at regularly. That's going to be a Patreon segment that I post with each of my guests now. So join me there. Anyways, that's it for part one. We're just going to be sitting here one week waiting on our table. I will see you all next week.

Thanks for listening. Have a fine day. Add some fun now. As next time we're stuck in line. Waiting. I'm waiting. You are serves for mediocrity. See you next week.