On March 4, 2026, the owners of 1885 Grill closed their St. Elmo restaurant, effective immediately. It had been the flagship since 2013. In a statement reported by Chattanoogan.com, owners Miguel and Leslie Morales said every host, cook, server and bartender had been offered a job at either the company's Ooltewah location or a new restaurant they were opening in downtown Chickamauga, Georgia.
The Ooltewah location had been the spinoff. It opened in 2019, six years after the original. Now it's the only 1885 Grill left on the Tennessee side of the line, and it's on a short stretch of Bradmore Lane where Chattanooga restaurants have been opening their second locations since 2017.
The Spinoff That Became the Flagship
The owners' statement cited ongoing building maintenance, the lack of a city- and state-mandated in-ground grease trap, and changes to parking costs. It also said that when they offered to buy the building or pay for the upgrades themselves, those offers were declined. Mr. Morales said the company "looks forward to its continued presence in Ooltewah."
The 1885 Grill still open in Hamilton County is at 9469 Bradmore Lane, Suite 101. According to 1885 Grill's Ooltewah page, the hours are:
- Monday: 4 to 9 p.m.
- Tuesday through Thursday: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
- Friday and Saturday: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Sunday: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The restaurant's homepage still lists St. Elmo as a location, so if someone forwards you an old link, the Ooltewah address is the one that's open.
One Short Street, Two Second Locations and a Newcomer
1885 Grill wasn't the first restaurant to make this move on Bradmore Lane. Il Primo, the Italian restaurant whose original is at 1100 Hixson Pike in Riverview, announced its second location here in 2016 and planned to open it in June 2017. Il Primo's site lists the Ooltewah location at 9436 Bradmore Lane, serving dinner Monday through Saturday from 5 to 9 p.m.
A few doors down at 9431 Bradmore Lane, Cambridge Café & Bakery is a new venture rather than a second location. Owner Susan Pesterfield announced it in February 2026 with Ham 'N Goodys baked goods on the menu, plus light breakfasts, lunches and suppers. Ham 'N Goodys now lists the café in its location directory alongside its other shops.
Here's how the Bradmore Lane cluster lines up:
| Restaurant | Where it started | Ooltewah address | Arrived in Ooltewah |
|---|---|---|---|
| Il Primo | 1100 Hixson Pike, Riverview | 9436 Bradmore Lane | Planned for June 2017 |
| 1885 Grill | St. Elmo, founded 2013, closed March 2026 | 9469 Bradmore Lane, Suite 101 | 2019 |
| Cambridge Café & Bakery | New venture serving Ham 'N Goodys baked goods | 9431 Bradmore Lane | Announced February 2026 |
Il Primo has been at its address for nearly a decade, and 1885 Grill's Ooltewah location is still open after the original closed. Each one made it a little easier for the next restaurant owner to look east.
St. Elmo Keeps Sending Its Classics Out Here
The connection between St. Elmo and Ooltewah goes beyond 1885 Grill. Mr. T's Pizza & Ice Cream has been in historic St. Elmo since 1989, when its original owner, Tyler, known as "Mr. T," started it. Father and son Eddy and Jackson Hilger opened the second location at 8890 Old Lee Highway on April 23, 2026. Chattanoogan.com reported that opening day included a free large pizza and shirt for the first 250 customers, 10 percent of the next day's sales going to the Austin Hatcher Foundation, and a free scoop of ice cream for each customer on the third day.
"We just really want to be generous and are so excited to be a part of the Ooltewah community," Jackson Hilger told Chattanoogan.com.
The Mr. T's website lists both locations for ordering and marks Ooltewah as now open. Hours on Old Lee Highway run from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday.
So two longtime St. Elmo names have opened second locations in Ooltewah, in 2019 and 2026, and one of them is now only open in Ooltewah.
Hunter Road Is the Next Cluster
The next restaurants following this pattern are headed a couple of miles away, to Hunter Road near I-75.
Mike's Tavern opened off Highway 153 in Hixson in 2019. Its second location is at 5024 Hunter Road. In a July 24 interview with the Chattanooga Times Free Press, Kane Weathers, operations manager of owner JPM Restaurants, said, "We've had a lot of people ask us to come out here." He described the Ooltewah space as about 4,300 square feet, seating 180, with a patio opening through a retractable garage-style door.
According to that same Times Free Press story, the menu will match Hixson's:
- The Tavern Burger, the No. 1 seller, at $13.50
- Fish and chips with housemade remoulade
- Brisket nachos and salmon
- Onion rings, which Weathers said customers call the best in the city
- A $34 rib-eye at the top of the menu
- Saturday and Sunday brunch, brought over from Hixson
The Times Free Press said in July that the restaurant was expected to open in October. NOOGAtoday's October 22 restaurant roundup still listed it as coming soon, with a "Fall 2026" target. Mike's Tavern's own website still lists only the Hixson address, so check there before planning brunch.
Across the street at 5053 Hunter Road, on the former Krystal site, the Times Free Press reported on October 17 that work had begun on Culver's. It will be the chain's second Chattanooga-area location, serving ButterBurgers, frozen custard and Wisconsin cheese curds, and NOOGAtoday puts the expected opening at February 2027. That date is an estimate.
Weathers also told the Times Free Press why his group chose Ooltewah, pointing to "the explosive growth of the Ooltewah area in recent years." The same story pointed to Il Primo and 1885 Grill as other Chattanooga restaurants that had done well bringing their concepts to Ooltewah.
The Same Move From Other Directions
Not every new arrival comes from Chattanooga's own restaurant scene, but several of them are making the same bet:
- Baby Hughy's opened at 8210 Apison Pike by early July 2026, serving pizza, burgers, subs, sandwiches and beer with dine-in, pickup, delivery and catering. Its other locations are in Tunnel Hill and Rock Spring, Georgia.
- 7 Brew opened a drive-through coffee stand at 9039 Lee Highway, next to the Ooltewah Starbucks on the former Kleen-A-Matic site, and was serving customers by October 2025.
Baby Hughy's came up from North Georgia rather than out from the city, but it's another established local business choosing Ooltewah as its next address.
Planning a Week Around the Second Locations
With most of these restaurants a short drive apart, the hours matter more than the distance:
- Sunday mornings: 1885 Grill opens at 10 a.m. Mr. T's opens at 11:30 a.m.
- Monday lunch: 1885 Grill doesn't open until 4 p.m. on Mondays. Mr. T's opens at 10:30 a.m.
- Weeknight dinner: Il Primo serves Monday through Saturday from 5 to 9 p.m. on Bradmore Lane.
- Late Friday or Saturday: 1885 Grill and Mr. T's both stay open until 10 p.m.
Once Mike's Tavern opens on Hunter Road, the Saturday and Sunday brunch it promised in July will add another weekend option on the I-75 side of town.
Our family has watched Ooltewah grow for a long time, and we pay attention to the places that get people out of the house, including whichever restaurant becomes the next one to put a second location here. If you're thinking about what that growth means for a home you own in Ooltewah, Don Ledford Group is glad to talk it through with you. Start the conversation with an instant home valuation.
