Wednesday, March 13, 2002
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Wednesday, March 13, 2002 |
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Ted hits a home run with Fayette opening By JOHN
THOMPSON
Sporting a grin from ear to ear, Atlanta's most famous billionaire, Ted Turner, came to Peachtree City last week to open his latest business venture. Ted's Montana Grill is now open for business at The Avenue shopping center. The restaurant features 25 different bison burgers, along with the more traditional hamburgers and blue plate specials. Turner has started the restaurant chain in collaboration with Longhorn Steaks founder George McKerrow. The always quotable Turner wants to bring his love of bison to the rest of the nation. "I started with three bison in Montana, and now I've got 30,000," he said. Bison meat is much lower in fat than regular ground beef, and Turner emphasized the health benefits of eating foods lower in fat. Asked what he knows about running a restaurant, Turner shot back with his usual style. "Well, I've been eating for 63 years, so I know a little something about food," he said. At Thursday's pre-opening gala, Turner and McKerrow mixed with some of Fayette County's movers and shakers. Peachtree City Mayor Steve Brown, along with Councilman Annie McMenamin, sampled the bison cuisine and pronounced it a winner. "We appreciate fine dining in Peachtree City," said Brown. McKerrow emphasized that all food was prepared fresh every day and said Peachtree City was chosen as the first Atlanta location for the chain because "people eat out a lot down here." When it came time to cut the ribbon, Turner took a humorous shot at Peachtree City. "We have to tell everybody we're beside Starbuck's because we have such a dinky little sign because of your sign ordinance," he said. Brown said he believes in a short while people will be saying that Starbuck's is in front of Ted's. Ted's Montana Grill is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner.
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