As Wahoo! Grill celebrates its 20th anniversary in Decatur, owner Pamela Ledbetter believes its growth and ultimate success is as organic as the lush foliage found in and around the restaurant.
Wahoo! Grill is a unicorn in the restaurant industry. For two decades, the same person has owned and operated it in the original location on West College Avenue.
That outcome was not the result of metrics and careful calculations, Ledbetter said, but rather a series of fortunate events mixed with a desire to provide a joyful dining experience for all who enter Wahoo! Grill’s doors.
Even finding the restaurant’s location in Decatur was an organic experience, Ledbetter recalled.
“I have always wanted to promote al fresco dining and I was surprised after Partners and Indigo Grill closed and nobody opened similar concepts,” Ledbetter said. “Then I stumbled on this vanilla box in Decatur, and looked across the street just in time to see a train going by, and I thought ‘This is a sign.’”
Ledbetter’s vision was to create a seafood-centric bistro with reasonable prices. She would staff it with knowledgeable, cheerful employees, from the dishwasher to the general manager. After developing the concept for Wahoo! Grill came the hard work, raising enough money to modify the “vanilla box” into an operational restaurant.
“I cashed in my 401(k), maxed out my credit cards, and borrowed money from anyone who would give it to me,” Ledbetter said. “That was the start.”
She also wanted to provide an upscale dining experience that was still affordable for the majority of diners. Ledbetter wanted people to dine at Wahoo! Grill once a week, not just once a month, sticking to the restaurant’s motto of “where locals have a place to call home.”
Wahoo! Grill’s menu reflects that desire to be a homey dining experience. The website describes the food served at the restaurant as “eclectic” and “creative,” offering daily pasta, steak, and seafood specials with Southern twists using local and organic ingredients.
Most entrees range from $23 to $50, including a cheeseburger with truffle fries and the grilled wahoo fish with cherry tomato and lady pea ragu, sauteed spinach, and salsa verde.
Ledbetter said any shifts in the menu and the restaurant’s expansion into other service areas since its opening in 2004 have come from customer feedback.
“People were asking, ‘Where are the steaks?’ and ‘Where is the curated wine list?’ and so we made those changes,” she said. “I’m not saying that we want to be all things to all people, but I really feel that customers will be able to find something they want on our menu.”
The evolution to becoming an event destination for weddings and other large gatherings also evolved without calculation by Ledbetter. People admiring the outdoor garden area started requesting the space to host their special occasions.
“People started asking me if they could use the space to get married, which I felt was a big honor,” Ledbetter said.
The garden patio and outdoor spaces behind the restaurant can accommodate a sit-down, plated meal for up to 30 people and a buffet-style event for up to 200 people. Each year, Ledbetter books between 350 to 500 events at Wahoo! Grill.
One of Ledbetter’s points of pride over the last 20 years is her loyal employees. Event manager Sydni Parker has been employed for more than 10 years at Wahoo! Grill, as has sous chef Jose Valeriano.
“I am always looking for employees who are kind, have fun and have respect for each other and our customers,” she said. “They have to have passion for what they do.”
This loyalty and passion for their work are why Ledbetter feels a great deal of satisfaction that she did not lay off any employees during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. So many local restaurants weren’t as lucky, forced to reduce staff or close altogether.
To commemorate Wahoo! Grill’s 20th anniversary, the restaurant will host a celebration on Sept. 22, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., featuring a low country boil and live music. The menu will include fresh shrimp, crawfish, smoked sausage, new potatoes, corn, and cheddar-jalapeño cornbread with thyme-sorghum butter.
The $49.99 price tag includes the meal, two drink tickets for alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages, and two special desserts from pastry chef Helen Gonzalez-Flamenco. The price for children ages 4 to 12 years old is $19.99.
People wishing to attend the party must register in advance to secure a seat, and as they say in the business, “tickets are going fast.”
1042 West College Avenue, Decatur. Open Tuesday – Thursday, 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Reservations highly encouraged. Check the calendar for special events. Visit the restaurant’s market and wine shop, Wahoo! Wine & Provisions, two doors down.