Consumer Stories

Business Lunch Review: Fat Man’s Café

Editor’s Note: Wes Hennings never met a meal he walked away from and is an opinionated eater! Each Thursday he shares the results of a business lunch he’s had with a colleague as a way to advise our business community on the good, bad, and tasty across the CSRA. He doesn’t let ABD or the restaurant know where he is going and his opinions are his own. He grades the restaurants he visits on a 1-5 scale with “5” being outstanding. We call this our “Real Business Lunch Review”. Food

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Jan Johnson

Hometown girl makes good

Name: Jan Johnson Company/Title: Senior Vice President, Marsh McLennan Agency Years Served: Entire career in insurance Contact info: Office: 706-836-8811 Email: jan.johnson@marshMMA.com Jan Johnson grew up in North Augusta and has been in the area all her life but she has learned to travel outside those boundaries for a job she loves. She has worked her way up to Senior Vice President of the Marsh McLennan Agency. Johnson was working for J. Smith Lanier, at the time the largest privately owned agency, when they decided to sell to Marsh McLennan

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Awards

Employees earn a prestigious award for Queensborough

Most companies think of themselves as great places to work, but Queensborough National Bank & Trust has actual proof of it. The bank recently earned the Great Place to Work Certification, an award based on employee feedback. “We are thrilled to receive this designation and hope it will help us recruit and retain talent in today’s competitive environment,” said Sheryl Reed, Queensborough’s Vice President of Human Resources. Great Place to Work bases its certification on employee surveys and a short questionnaire. According to its report, 89 percent of Queensborough employees

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Consumer Stories

Unexpected catastrophe temporarily closes pet business

STORY UPDATE: Cinna, the dog missing after the car crash was found last night. Cinna will be going to a local animal hospital to be checked out in the morning. As a business owner, you anticipate normal wear and tear to your property. But there was no way the owners of Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming in National Hills could anticipate what happened at their business over the weekend. Early Sunday morning, a person drove a car into the store located in front of The Fresh Market at 2701 Washington

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B2B Stories

Simon says: Georgia ranked first or eighth or 22nd best for business. Who’s right?

Area Development Magazine ranked Georgia as the No. 1 state for business for the eighth consecutive year in October 2021. They polled 50 private consulting firms and Georgia received top scores for the cost of doing business, government cooperation, and labor market competitiveness. CNBC, however, said Virginia was the top state for business with Georgia coming in at eighth. CNBC uses 85 metrics across 10 categories of competitiveness, including access to capital, education, and technology and innovation. When economists study choices we prefer to see revealed preferences rather than surveys

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Consumer Stories

New seafood restaurant opens in Augusta

To celebrate its grand opening on Friday, Rockin’ Crab Seafood & Bar offered a 50 percent discount on all food and alcohol. So many people showed up that day, that the line extended into the parking lot, according to General Manager, Maranda Stokes. The new restaurant is located in front of Kroger and next to Chicken Salad Chick at 2807 Washington Road in Augusta. Rockin’ Crab, which is a franchise, serves a variety of dishes, including crab, shrimp, fish, and chicken wings, as well as seafood boils. “People have complimented

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B2B Stories

Music sets the tone for up-and-coming North Augusta business

Kevin Isham is an HVAC tech by day but he is a musician at heart who plays guitar, drums, the harmonica, and banjo. His main goal as a music lover is to provide a venue for listening to good music and that led to Julio’s Cantina in his backyard. He and his wife, Heather, have hosted about 15 small concerts in their backyard. They don’t have a fancy stage, but their backyard draws a crowd of 30 or 40 folks who appreciate live music. The neighbors don’t seem to mind

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Consumer Stories

McAlister’s Deli opens new Augusta location

Covid was particularly hard on the restaurant industry. To stay afloat, many were forced to innovate, and that was certainly the case with McAlister’s Deli, according to Kristen Stancill. Stancill, Vice President of DMAC, LLC, the local franchisee, was in Augusta Friday for the grand opening of a new McAlister’s location at 3602 Exchange Lane off Walton Way Extension. “We rolled out a new app right before Covid hit,” she said. “We invested a lot in the technology part of the company.” The app allows customers to place orders for

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Consumer Stories

Restaurateurs launch new Mexican restaurant concept in Evans

For many years, Abimael Lagunes dreamed of opening his own restaurant that serves authentic Mexican dishes. Last month, that dream came true when he and his business partner, Roller Velasquez, launched Senor Mezcal Mexican Kitchen & Cantina. Located at 4534 Washington Road, Suite 9 about a block past the Evans Walmart, Senor Mezcal offers a variety of Mexican favorites, including tacos and burritos. But diners can also find unique dishes that are popular in Mexico, such as costa shrimp tacos and al pastor, which refers to grilled, shaved pork. “We

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