Ernest Ellis, owner of Richmond's first J.R. Crickets (Photo by Jay Paul)
The original J.R. Crickets, which opened in 1982 in midtown Atlanta, might be the restaurant equivalent of The Great Equalizer. At this casual sports bar, I witnessed the following queue: A pregnant woman managing impending labor, a recent release with taser bites on his collarbone, and a suit-jacketed swarm buzzing among throngs of rowdy Falcons fans — all there for Lemon Pepper, Dirty Bird or Sanchez-flavored Buffalo wings. Some of J.R.’s iconic white boxes were crammed with all three flavors. I knew I’d stumbled onto something extraordinary.
Sound the air horn, because Richmond now has its own J.R. Crickets, No. 13 in a chain so beloved that Donald Glover shouted out his order, “lemon pepper wet” wings, on FX’s “Atlanta.” The Richmond franchise, at 1509 Chamberlayne Ave., boasts a location just as storied: It was once Glenn’s, a neighborhood spot that served from 1937 until it was sold in 2006. Glenn’s high-backed, red booths remain, left intact by new owner Ernest Ellis.
“It’s a great building,” Ellis says. “It’s the passing of the torch. I frequented Glenn’s back in the day. Bartenders had orders up before their regulars, some in their 70s, even sat down. I want to re-create that but draw from the entire city, not just North Side.”
Ellis bagged groceries for the Laburnum Avenue Ukrop’s in high school, where he says he learned the value of customer service. After graduating college, he lived in Atlanta for 12 years, falling for Cricket’s combination of authentic Buffalo-style wings (founder Paul Juliano hails from Buffalo, New York), TVs and draft beer.
After a career in finance, Ellis sprang on the former Glenn’s when it became available this year. His is the only J.R. Crickets outside of Georgia. In the back of the lounge, away from the craft beer taps and flat screens, sits Glenn’s once-lighted sign and an empty wall Ellis wants to fill with memories — photos of folks unwinding over the nearly seven decades Glenn’s was open. All that’s missing, for now, are the pics. Ellis hopes his customers will supply those. He’s bringing the chicken.
