Savannah, Ga. — Paula Deen and the Poarch Band of Creek Indians plan to open Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen at OWA, an entertainment destination in Foley, Ala. OWA, located minutes from Coastal Alabama’s beaches, spans 520 acres and includes a 21-ride amusement park, an indoor arcade, a 150-room Marriott TownePlace Suites, 16 outdoor Sports Fields, 65,000-square-foot indoor event center, and 168,000 square feet of retail and dining opportunities.
“OWA has continued to build upon its vision of creating an authentic southern resort by sourcing top notch shopping, dining and entertainment experiences,” says Greg Rawls, director of business development for Creek Indian Enterprises/OWA.
OWA is one of the diverse business holdings of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, Alabama’s only federally recognized Tribe. Poarch’s chairwoman and CEO, Stephanie Bryan, says: “It is exciting that one of the South’s most famous restaurateurs is now part of the OWA experience and I know that our visitors will really enjoy getting to actually taste her special food that they have seen in cookbooks and on TV.”
The Foley restaurant is the latest announcement in a rapidly growing expansion of the Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen brand, which also has locations in Pigeon Forge, Tenn.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Fairview, Texas; and San Antonio.
The restaurant will be accompanied by a retail store featuring items that have been hand-selected by Paula Deen. Many of her favorite products will only be found in the retail store inside of Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen restaurants.
Phoenix Hospitality & Entertainment and its subsidiary, PD Restaurants, LLC, bring more than 150 years of collective experience in the restaurant, hospitality and entertainment worlds to this project in Foley, Ala.
Paula Deen has sold over 11 million copies of her 18 cookbooks. The Lady & Sons, the Savannah, Ga., restaurant Paula founded with her sons, Jamie and Bobby Deen, remains one of the country’s most popular regional restaurants. During the last couple of years, Deen has opened five new restaurants, including Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen in Pigeon Forge, Tenn.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Fairview, Texas; San Antonio; and Paula Deen’s Creek House in Savannah, Ga. Paula Deen Ventures is headquartered in Savannah, Ga., with offices in New York and Tennessee. For more information, visit www.PaulaDeen.com.
OWA has become known as a world-class entertainment destination owned and operated by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. The name OWA, which translates to “big water” in the Muscogee Creek language, was inspired by the 14-acre lake at the center of this unique development. OWA has the feel of a small Southern town that evolved through time with distinct districts, such as Downtown OWA and “The Park at OWA,” its amusement park. For more information, visit www.VisitOWA.com.
SOURCE: OWA