Erica Park is getting set to graduate from the business program at College of the North Atlantic and she’s not leaving finding a job to chance.
For the past six years all she has wanted to do was open a restaurant, said Park, who is getting set to open Chippers’ Diner in the former Taste of Jamaica location on Broadway in Corner Brook.
Park, 29, has enjoyed cooking since she started out doing so with her mom as a little girl.
“I decided that’s one of the things that makes me happy,” she said. “When you make a big meal and all your family is there and you’re all together it just makes everybody happy.
“So, I kind of wanted to do a restaurant where people around town could come to the diner and they could feel like a part of our family.”
To her the central location offered by the space is a great one.
Besides traditional offerings, Chippers’ will feature true diner style food, burgers, hot dogs, fries, clubhouse sandwiches and daily specials like shepherd’s pie and meatloaf and mashed potatoes.
Being able to move into the Taste of Jamaica location is a really a bonus in that the setup is there and it just needs a few cosmetic changes. She was also able to the purchase all the equipment — from stoves to dishes — from Taste of Jamaica.
She’s getting some help in the venture from her fiancé, A.J. Brake, who’ll be sharing his kitchen knowledge and helping with the menu and IT needs.
Park launched a Kickstarter campaign about a month ago to raise some money for the venture, but said it was more about getting her plan out there than it was the money.
She’s already got her financing in place and whatever the Kickstarter brings in will go to some of the extra things she’d like to do.
She’s aiming to open around the middle of April.
