Duffy’s Sports Grill, the homegrown restaurant chain expanding throughout the state, is opening its first new Palm Beach County location in six years: At a prime intersection west of Boca Raton.
By the end of the month, Duffy’s will take over the TGI Friday’s restaurant at the northwest corner of 441 and Glades Road, said Jason Emmett, Duffy’s president.
The eatery marks the Lake Worth chain’s 35th restaurant. It also ends a 10-year search for a west Boca Raton location, Emmett said.
Although Duffy’s already has a restaurant in central Boca Raton, on St. Andrews Boulevard, Emmett sees west Boca as a different market. It’s surrounded by housing communities, including country club communities, but it doesn’t have a lot of restaurants.
“It’s dense with lots of housing and lots of Duffy’s customers,” Emmett said.
Emmett likened the spot to the chain’s location west of Boynton Beach, at Jog Road and Boynton Beach Boulevard. That store is the company’s best performer, with customers ranging from older diners to families, he said.
TGI Friday’s is expected to close by around May 21. At that point, Duffy’s will commence with its signature interior renovations, including adding more than 100 televisions, plenty of memorabilia and lots of green paint.
Plans are to open the space as a Duffy’s by early September.
This restaurant marks the chain’s 14th Palm Beach County location. Over time, Emmett sees the county’s western housing growth as an opportunity for new Duffy’s restaurants. But not right away.
In the meantime, the chain continues to grow throughout the state, opening a Sarasota location on March 10. That date is the birthday of Jason’s father, Duffy’s patriarch Paul Emmett, who died two years ago in February from cancer. He was 62.
By Alexandra Clough for MYPALMBEACHPOST | MAY 12, 2017
