New Wendy’s plans to open Dec. 1
Adrienne Hopeck, general manager of the new Clinton Wendy’s, stands behind the counter below the menu boards of the restaurant on South Charles G. Seivers Boulevard. (photo:G. Chambers Williams III )
Delays in getting a refrigerator delivered had forced the postponement of the opening from early November, but the store is now just about ready to go, she said.
A total of 37 staff positions have been filled, but Hopeck said she still needs some day-shift workers for the new restaurant. It’s on the south side of town at 400 S. Charles G. Seivers Blvd., about a 15-minute drive from the current Clinton Wendy’s, just off Interstate 75 at Exit 122.
There are tables and booths inside the restaurant that can seat up to 42 guests, and tables outside that can accommodate up to 20 more, she said.
The store will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week, with breakfast service from 6:30 to 10:30 a.m., Hopeck said.
It’s on the former site of the Clinton Christian Church, catercorner across the intersection from the McDonald’s restaurant just south of the Lewallen Bridge.
For Hopeck, the new Wendy’s is a family affair. While she is general manager, her mother, Cindy Muse, is the assistant manager, and her husband, Korey Hopeck, is the kitchen manager, she said.
All three live in Jellico, and will be driving to work each day from there, she said.
Cindy Muse is a former assistant manager at the Jellico Wendy’s, and she began taking her daughter there when Adrienne was little.
“I started working at the Jellico store when I was 17, and now I’m 24 and managing my own store,” Adrienne Hopeck said.
The new restaurant has some features not usually seen in a Wendy’s, including a few tables that have USB ports where customers can plug in their smartphones for recharging. There is also a hand-washing sink in the hallway outside the restrooms, so people don’t have to go into a restroom to wash their hands. Free Wi-Fi service is available.
There are three automated ordering stations at the front of the restaurant, but customers who don’t want to use those can still order food at the counter, Hopeck said.
There is a full-service drive-through window, as well.
Owner JAE Restaurant Group obtained a building permit from the city of Clinton in June for the $750,000 structure. Based in Pompano Beach, Florida, JAE owns 36 Wendy’s locations in the Knoxville area and six in Chattanooga.
The company bought the church building and its 1.3-acre lot in October 2020. A crew took the church building down in less than a day.