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 Larry,
Jason and Julia Carpenter:
The driving force behind Iron Horse Grill
What started
as partnership between father and son has become one of the best
places to eat in Copperhill, Tennessee, the Iron Horse Grill.
Larry Carpenter
has been in the restaurant business nearly all his life. He was
Corporate Supervisor of the Red Lobster chain for 10 years and
went on to become the founding Vice President of Ryans Steakhouse
for many years. He then retired to the North Georgia Mountains
and is now part of the family owned and operated Iron Horse Grill.
His son Jason
has a food service background from working at the national chain
restaurant Applebee's.
Julia started
her career at her Grandmother's restaurant in LeRoy, New York
helping out when she was only seven years old.
Jason moved
from Greenville, SC to Blue Ridge about 6 years ago and started
working at Waffle King in Blue Ridge for his dad Larry. Julia
moved from Big Flats, NY to Blue Ridge in 2001. Jason
and Julia started dating in 2002 and she began working at the
Waffle King with him in 2003. They married in August of that year.
 In
February of 2005 Jason and Julia, along with Jason's father, Larry,
took over the management and operations of the Iron Horse Grill.
They changed the menu completely but kept the name. Since then
they eat, sleep and live Iron Horse Grill. Customers of the old
Iron Horse Grill keep coming back again and again and new customers
have discovered the great dining experience that the Carpenters
have created.
The building
in which the Iron Horse Grill is located has been there for many
decades and is part of Copperhill's history. It was originally
a house and converted into apartments. The building survived the
famous flood back in the early 90's and now not only hosts the
Iron Horse Grill but several retail businesses as well.
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