WAYCROSS, Ga. -- A new "synergy restaurant" is up and
running in Waycross, Georgia. It's a combination Red Lobster/Olive
Garden and was built specifically for smaller markets.
The restaurant is owned by Darden Restaurants and is the fourth of its kind. The company's late owner, Bill Darden, opened his first restaurant in Waycross back in the 1930s -- The Green Frog.
The 8,700 square-foot restaurant will add 200 new jobs to the local economy. Residents are excited about the opening.
"Obviously that's gonna make a big impact on a lot of families here that have been unemployed or struggling with one half of the family not working, said Sonya Renee-Clark, who grew up in Waycross.
"It's created a lot of job opportunities around here."
Restuarant goer Kimberly Stephens agrees.
"This is a huge addition to our local economy and it'll give us a chance, some of us ladies, a chance to have the night off."
The restaurant opened at 10 A.M. Monday morning with a ribbon cutting ceremony by Bill Darden's wife, Mary, and their three sons.
The first Synergy Red Lobster/Olive Garden opened in Palm Coast, FL earlier this month.
First Coast News