INSIGHT Magazine April 2016 | Page 12

Restaurant Updates “We test the market, see what customers like, what they want to see in a coffee shop atmosphere,” said Sparks. “When we decide to go outfit a building we’ll know what they want, so we don’t make mistakes and have to change up the design for the shop.” “It’s just to contain the growth, and not grow too fast and get in over our heads,” said Sparks. Cooter Brown’s Rib Shack If you ask anyone why they love Cooter Brown’s barbecue, they’re probably going to say the sauce. Cooter Brown’s has sold their dry rub and sauce in bottles at the restaurant for some time now, with a second small inventory kept at Edward’s Grocery in Jacksonville, but now they’re opening a manufacturing facility in Gadsden where they’ll be bottling more than ever before, with the goal of distribution in local grocery stores throughout Northeast Alabama. Sparks says a permanent coffee shop location is still a ways off, as she plans to continue making small, focused steps t