Toggle sidebar

LOCKED OT: Could some explain to me the difference between Peppers & McAlisters?

Status
Not open for further replies.
T

TwoDawgs

Redshirt
Aug 23, 2012
113
0
0
LOCKED OT: Could some explain to me the difference between Peppers & McAlisters?

Also, was Bulldog Deli (now Peppers) the original (McAlisters/Peppers?) Really random I know but never knew/quite understood the history. The menus seem pretty much the same
 
Last edited by a moderator:
S

SteelDawg03

Redshirt
Aug 31, 2012
145
0
16
My question is doesn't ordering a 15 pound baked potato covered in bacon and half a gallon of nacho cheese defeat the purpose of ordering a baked potato? Or is it still healthy because it is a baked potato?
 
DawgatAuburn

DawgatAuburn

All-Conference
Apr 25, 2006
11,018
1,879
113
My understanding is thus:

The original was Bulldog Deli, opened by a guy I don't know but his name was Robin something. The Deli takes off and is wildly successful. Along come some guys who want Robin to consult with them as they prepare to open a restaurant in Columbus, which they will call McAlister's. Robin consults, and lo and behold when McAlister's opens is it the exact same thing as Bulldog Deli - color scheme, menu, everything. The McAlister's group begins to expand, and I want to say the Ridgeland location was one of the next ones, then they just went all over. Robin holds no grudges against them from what I hear, though again, I have never met the man. Yes, I have a source. The source says that Robin's viewpoint was that they took on the risk of expanding and deserve the rewards that come with it. Then Robin opens Peppers in Columbus many years later, and that's about where my knowledge ends. In other words, my source and I never really talked about it any more.
 
J

johnson86-1

All-Conference
Aug 22, 2012
14,371
4,874
113
Never knew the McAlisters story. Always heard that the Bulldog Deli guy had a partner that wanted to expand and he didn't, so his partner started opening peppers, with the Bulldog Deli's owner's consent that Peppers could be exactly the same food and menu wise.
 
Digging dog

Digging dog

Sophomore
Aug 22, 2012
3,503
134
63
Robin Zant (I think this was his last name). He was a pretty good friend of one of my roommates the year I lived on the other end of Muldrow st. (Late 80's). He stopped by occasionally. Seemed like a cool guy.
 
R

Railin Jemmye

Redshirt
Oct 29, 2012
1,937
0
0
Obviously you never had the pleasure of a Big Nasty with chips and gravy, a side of chips and rotel, a Reese's slice of pie, and two sweet teas (because one just ain't enough) on a Sunday morning after a football Saturday.
 
F

fishwater99

Freshman
Jun 4, 2007
14,073
54
48
My wife worked for the Newcomb's at Mcalisters while in school at TSUN in the early 90's.
Those kids working there liked to party..
I wish she would have stayed with them, several of those first few employees are doing very well..
They are good people and take care of their employees, they did then and do now.
 
O

Optimus Prime 4

Redshirt
May 1, 2006
8,560
0
0
I was always under the impression the McAllister's guy worked at Bulldog Deli, then went and opened his own in the old gas station from the movie Heart of Dixie, or whatever it was called. But he took most of what he knew from BD to open it. I do know Tuberville actually owned the rights to McAllister's in the Carolinas I think. I have a friend who married a guy who was one of the originals, I don't know if he is a founder or not. I believe they now live in Charlotte.
 
Turd Fergusondawg

Turd Fergusondawg

Junior
Sep 7, 2007
478
355
63
Peppers = Fant's partnership with the Harvey's family

Optimus Prime 4 said:
I was always under the impression the McAllister's guy worked at Bulldog Deli, then went and opened his own in the old gas station from the movie Heart of Dixie, or whatever it was called. But he took most of what he knew from BD to open it. I do know Tuberville actually owned the rights to McAllister's in the Carolinas I think. I have a friend who married a guy who was one of the originals, I don't know if he is a founder or not. I believe they now live in Charlotte.
Click to expand...

Robin Fant is the guy's name, and he's a great guy.

I worked in the Lodge all four undergraduate years at MSU, which was 1990-94. At that time, the Lodge was in the old Sack N' Save shopping center, if anybody remembers that. Robin was good friends with the owner of the Lodge, John Hendricks, so he was in there all the time. I have hazy memories of Bulldog Deli being in that Sack N' Save center, too, but I could be misremembering. At some point Fant bought the current location that used to be Curry's in the early 80s.

Anyway, this was the period right after Robin had been approached about expanding into Oxford with the new brand, McCallister's. The version of events I got was that it was intended as a partnership. I don't know what happened after that, but the partnership fell apart, and McCallister's exploded all over. There are even several around Austin now. And yes, the menu is based on the old Bulldog Deli menu.

So years later, when Robin was ready to try expansion and partnership again, he teamed up with the family that owns Harvey's, and they opened the first Peppers in Columbus.
 
F

fishwater99

Freshman
Jun 4, 2007
14,073
54
48
Dr. Don Newcomb, a dentist from Oxford, started McAllisters. His son Peter ran it for his dad.
Now they might have gotten some ideas from the Bulldog Deli, but I am not aware of either of them working there.
 
R

RocketDawg

All-Conference
Oct 21, 2011
19,018
2,097
113
Baked potato is healthy and fine unless you're on some sort of carb restricted diet. It's when you slather it in butter, sour cream, bacon and lord knows what else that it becomes an artery-clogging bomb. And the peeling is the best part, assuming that you wash it really well. And a baked sweet potato is even better.
 
D

DAWG61

Redshirt
Feb 26, 2008
10,111
0
0
Do great guys bring a ton of their dirty dishes from their house party and have the Bulldog Deli cooks wash them?
 
G

gdogg

Redshirt
Feb 24, 2008
1,060
0
0
Here is the REAL story...

Late 1980s, Bulldog Deli is kicking *** in Starkville. Here comes big money Dr guy from Oxford and proposes a partnership where Fant controls menu and operations and Dr money guy expands/franchises, yada,yada. McCallisters becomes the new name (even Bulldog Deli changes name). Oxford, Ridgeland, and Hattiesburg open. Then, the bomb drops. Dr. tells Fant, "here is my loser son, he is gonna be President or something" Son doesnt know ****, wont do ****, etc. Fant goes along to get along until it is just to 17n unbearable. Then Fant says give me back my Deli, and I will walk, you ******** can have it. Dr knows everything he needs to know from Fant to be successful and takes the deal. McCallisters Starkville returns to what it always should be, Bulldog Deli and mcCallisters franchises 1,000 ****** locations.
They basically pushed him out once they knew his recipe for success.
This is the story I was told from someone who was close to him starting back in the Sack and Save days...and there is a lesson here.
 
Last edited:
D

DAWG61

Redshirt
Feb 26, 2008
10,111
0
0
Bulldog Deli closes at like 10 on a normal night. There's always regular clean up before the staff can clock out and leave. This takes about 45 minutes to an hour usually after 10. Robin comes in the back door unannounced to anyone and unloads a full catering van full of dirty party dishes from his large house party he had that evening into the back dishroom and then leaves. Result being the staff has to wash his extra house dishes before being allowed to leave.
 
B

BobSacamano

Freshman
Aug 23, 2012
283
54
28
Robin was in my fraternity in the early 80's. I seem to remember that he was friends with someone from Oxford who owned The Rebel Deli. While still in school, he opened The Bulldog Deli, maybe with this guy as a partner. I'm not sure about this though. It was in the old Sack and Save shopping center. After I graduated in 1983, I heard he had moved to University Drive. The first time I went to that location, I knew he was going to do well. I do remember the first time I went to a McAllister's, I thought, "Wow, this place is just like The Bulldog Deli."
 
D

Dawgzilla

Redshirt
Mar 3, 2008
5,406
0
0
All I ever knew was the original Bulldog Deli in the Sack and Save shopping center. Nothing like McAllister's today....a lot of steamed sandwiches that were spectacular on a student budget.
 
Turd Fergusondawg

Turd Fergusondawg

Junior
Sep 7, 2007
478
355
63
I never worked for the guy, but based on your story

DAWG61 said:
Bulldog Deli closes at like 10 on a normal night. There's always regular clean up before the staff can clock out and leave. This takes about 45 minutes to an hour usually after 10. Robin comes in the back door unannounced to anyone and unloads a full catering van full of dirty party dishes from his large house party he had that evening into the back dishroom and then leaves. Result being the staff has to wash his extra house dishes before being allowed to leave.
Click to expand...

I'd have to agree that's decidedly not a great guy thing to do.

Then again, were they pissed because that job was outside their job description? How dare he give them more hours? Did he not pay them?

Or that how dare their boss interfere with their scheduled night life? As an employer, I wouldn't want to deal with college kid worker entitlement.
 
C

Crazy Cotton

All-Conference
Aug 26, 2012
3,649
1,408
113
THis discussion reminds me of a joke

I heard this as a student at State back in the mid 90's, from a riding buddy of mine who was working at Bulldog deli at the time, in reference to their most popular side item.
How do you get a sorority chick to give you a BJ? Dip that thing in honey mustard.
 
D

DAWG61

Redshirt
Feb 26, 2008
10,111
0
0
Umm he brought filthy catering dishes caked on with hours old crud. Not just dinner plates and silverware but huge metal chafing dishes that had hot food sitting in them for hours. Not simple spray off and run through a dish machine. The kind you have to soak in soapy water for awhile before you can start using a metal scrubbing brush. The worst kind and it wasn't used in his restaurant or anything to do with the restaurant. They were for his large house party for himself and his friends and not just a little. A 17ing catering van full of them 10 minutes before closing time with zero heads up and zero thanks or conversation given. He simply propped open the back door because he has a key and left them all in the dishroom and then left. Looking back on it I'm surprised the dishes didn't get thrown in the dumpster. Haha I guess you'd have to see it with your own eyes to truly understood how faux pas it was/is.
 
Turd Fergusondawg

Turd Fergusondawg

Junior
Sep 7, 2007
478
355
63
I hope that you quit.

DAWG61 said:
Umm he brought filthy catering dishes caked on with hours old crud. Not just dinner plates and silverware but huge metal chafing dishes that had hot food sitting in them for hours. Not simple spray off and run through a dish machine. The kind you have to soak in soapy water for awhile before you can start using a metal scrubbing brush. The worst kind and it wasn't used in his restaurant or anything to do with the restaurant. They were for his large house party for himself and his friends and not just a little. A 17ing catering van full of them 10 minutes before closing time with zero heads up and zero thanks or conversation given. He simply propped open the back door because he has a key and left them all in the dishroom and then left. Looking back on it I'm surprised the dishes didn't get thrown in the dumpster. Haha I guess you'd have to see it with your own eyes to truly understood how faux pas it was/is.
Click to expand...

It sucks being a grunt. I worked on the the crew that relocated The Lodge's entire inventory from Sack n' Save to the current spot next to Harvey's using one uHaul and garbage bags.

I never worked for Robin, but I worked retail all through college, and I was terrible. College kids as employees generally speaking are terrible. As much as I hated getting to the store early on game days, I was usually too hung over to operate the metal poles to retrieve shirts off the wall, so it evened out.
 
The Peeper

The Peeper

Heisman
Feb 26, 2008
15,527
10,734
113
I had forgotten all about Currys (WL Curry's wasn't it?) until you brought it up, those were the best home cut french fries EVA
 
D

dickiedawg

All-Conference
Feb 22, 2008
4,273
1,089
113
Bulldog Deli/sweet peppers lets you sub soup for cheap, like $.89 I think, where mcallisters does not. Mcallisters has some better hot sandwiches, like the big nasty. Both offer chips/rotel and have $2 drinks. Peppers on 12 has coke zero, and the others do not.
 
G

GSellers

Redshirt
Nov 21, 2014
1
0
0
I opened The Rebel Deli in Sept. of 1979. I was thinking about another location in Athens at UGA and calling it the Bulldog Deli. A friend of mine from Holly Springs, Lanier Hurddle, was in Law school at Ole Miss. He had an idea of copying the Rebel Deli and opening one in Starkville. He ask if would mind him using the name if my plans for UGA fell through, (which they did). The rest is history
 
DawgatAuburn

DawgatAuburn

All-Conference
Apr 25, 2006
11,018
1,879
113
I get that this was your first post, but please don't reply to 10 month old threads. Post away on the current issues. If you need to reference a thread that old, just link it from inside your post.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom