Rising Stars: Meet Boyd Lee Whitehead II of Chattanooga

Today we’d like to introduce you to Boyd Lee Whitehead II.

Hi Boyd Lee, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My wife and I grew up in Dade County just across the Teneessee line in Georgia. We are high school sweethearts and have been together since we were 14. I started working in a restaurant when I was in HIgh School, Chili’s on Brainerd Rd. I enjoyed it, I love people and love food. I worked other jobs but cooking was my passion. I have worked in several restaurants along with my wife until we got married and started a family. We have two kids, Trey and Hailee (25 and 27). Some of the places I worked just to name a few were, Logan’s Road House, Mount Vernon, Acropolis, Mountain City Club and Canyon Grill. The grill (hickory wood) I actually have now was what I cooked on at Canyon Grill. My wife also worked at Canyon Grill as the front of house manager. She now works at Cigna and has been there for 25 years. When she is done there she makes her way over to The Upper Bank to help out. At Canyon Grill I worked under Lawton Haygood who is also the owner of Boathouse Rotissere and Raw Bar, Side Tracks and Sugar’s Ribs. I learned a lot from Lawton and I consider him a great mentor and friend. After several years of working for family owned restaurants and absorbing as much as I could from each of them I worked my way from line cook to Chef. I left the restaurant scene to become a Director over food service at UTC and was there for 18 years. I wanted to soak up all the time I could with my kids and wife and working 9-5 seemed to be the best option. I coached several different sports that my son played. Kids left and went off to college and my wife and I stumbled across the old Riverside Catfish House on 41 for sale. We had a couple of investors, friends that believed in our vision and here we are. We also continue to serve the catfish on the menu in honor of the catfish house. There is an article in the Dade County Sentinel about us. Check it out: The Upper Bank Breathes New Life into the Old Catfish House.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The Catfish House was an old building. When we bought it we almost completely gutted it and had to start all over which put us in a financial bind but with the support of the community, family and friends we are making it. Word of mouth goes a long way.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
A lot of this I added on the first question but to answer what we specialize in, we have a hickory wood burning grill and most of the menu comes from the grill. It has a distinct flavor that we feel makes everything cooked on it taste unique and flavorful. Some of the items we specialize in are steak, seafood and Chicken. We also have sauteed items such as trout almondine and chicken picatta. What sets us apart from other restaurants, I would have to say that we are a family run business and want everyone to feel welcome and special. We hire within the community and make sure our staff is friendly, well trained and very knowledgeable of the menu. One of the biggest things is that if I can step away frmo the kitchen I love to go out and introduce myself and meet each of our guests.

Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
Mentors: Lawton Haygood (owner of the Boathouse Rotisserre and Raw Bar, Side Tracks, and Sugars, formerly the owner of Canyon Grill), Mount Vernon (Jeff Messenger), Acropolis (Teddy Kyriakidis)

Investors (Kelvin and Kristie Clark of Jasper, Tn. and Mike and Mashonda of Hollywood, Al)

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.theupperbank.com