This hole in the wall Louisville restaurant named after a shark marks 15 years in business
The lore behind one of Louisville's favorite hole in the wall restaurants begins with a gift.
Chase Mucerino's dad heard his son and business partner, Adam Burress, were opening a restaurant and thought they could use a statement piece to hang up. He offered a life-size shark made out of fiber glass, a decorative, grayish item reminiscent of stuffed species born for basements.
When the shark measuring about 10 feet didn’t fit through the door, Mucerino and Burress got a bite of inspiration.
“Let's just hang it on the door and call it Hammerheads,” Burress, 39, told the Courier Journal.
That off-the-cuff decision became a signature part of this divvy restaurant plopped in the middle of the Germantown neighborhood.
“Many eyes have seen that shark and many pictures have been taken in front of it over the years,” Burress said. “It's still fun to watch all those people line up and just take pictures.”
When Hammerheads opened on Dec. 10, 2010, Mucerino and Burress had recently left their gigs working under acclaimed chef Anthony Lamas at Seviche.
“I knew I wanted to do my own thing, but we didn't know exactly what we were going to do,” Burress, who was in his early 20s at the time, said. “I picked basically the only mature friend that I had at the time to go into business with me.”
The duo wanted to create a low key barbecue spot and found a fitting underground place at 921 Swan St., surrounded by houses. Within two weeks, Burress said he made back whatever “minimal investment” he put toward the business.
“It was right out of the gate,” Burress said. “The first five years we were there, it was just lines out the door.”
Hammerheads is known for menu items like fried mac and cheese balls, smoked chicken wings, lamb ribs, elk burgers, and sliders with pulled pork or roasted duck.
Hammerheads, 921 Swan St., is known for seasonal margaritas, barbecue and smoked items like smoked chicken wings and a roasted duck slider.
After seeing success over the next decade, Burress and Mucerino sold their other restaurants, including Game, 2295 Lexington Road, and the now-closed Migo. But they couldn’t let go of Hammerheads.
"We just couldn't get rid of this place," Burress said. "It's just, it's been in my life for a long time and it's just a very special place."
The place is special to others, including a group of regulars who have met at Hammerheads every Wednesday for six years. And the place with seasonal margaritas, several French fry options, and a dedicated lager made by Atrium Brewing, still fills up moments after the doors open at 5 p.m.
Hammerheads can count on another special occasion in December, when it will mark 15 years in business.
We featured Hammerheads in the latest installment of our series, "Best Thing I Ate This Week." You can follow along by visiting Instagram.com/courierjournal.
Reach food and dining reporter Amanda Hancock at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: This hole in the wall Louisville restaurant named after a shark marks 15 years in business
