Satchel's Pizza

Coordinates: 29°40′26″N 82°18′07″W / 29.673952°N 82.301869°W / 29.673952; -82.301869
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Satchel's Pizza
Company typePrivate
IndustryRestaurant
FoundedGainesville, Florida (2003)
Key people
Satchel Raye, founder and owner
Number of employees
47
Websitewww.satchelspizza.com

Satchel's Pizza is a restaurant in Gainesville, Florida. It was opened on March 7, 2003 by Satchel Raye.[1]

Satchel's has become very well known in Gainesville, and can have wait times of over an hour on the weekends.[2] It is common for Gainesville residents to see bumper stickers from Satchel's when driving around town.[3]

History[edit]

Satchel's was opened on March 7, 2003 by Satchel Raye, the founder and owner of the restaurant.

Restaurant fire[edit]

On February 28, 2012, the restaurant caught fire.[4] It reopened on June 14 of the same year.[5][6] During the downtime, Satchel Raye used Indiegogo to raise funds for its 47 employees. Nearly 700 people made contributions in a 16-day period, providing a total of $37,696 to the restaurant.[7]

Gift shop fire[edit]

On December 5, 2016, the restaurant's outdoor seating area and gift shop, known as Lightnin' Salvage, caught fire and was destroyed. The restaurant itself was unharmed and remained open.[8] In November 2017, Raye announced plans to reopen Lightnin' Salvage as a two-story building.[9]

The gift shop and live music venue reopened on December 5, 2017.[10] A grand reopening event was later held on June 1, 2018.[11][12]

Expansion[edit]

In 2018, a new outdoor playground was built by University of Florida architecture students.[11]

In February 2020, Raye announced that he would be opening a second location named Satch² in a downtown food park.[13] The new location was officially opened on July 20, 2020.[14] It was later sold off to a new owner and renamed SquareHouse Pizza in June 2023.[15]

In May 2022, the University of Florida's new food provider Chartwells proposed the creation of a Satchel's Pizza location on campus during their contract negotiations.[16]

Community involvement[edit]

Satchel's Pizza has periodically organized fundraisers for local and national charities, including a $4,000 donation to Girls on the Run.[17]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "About — Satchel's Pizza". Satchel's Pizza. Retrieved 2020-12-13.
  2. ^ Herbert, Michael (November 17, 2009). "Satchel's owner passionate about pizza, art". The Independent Florida Alligator. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  3. ^ "Satchel's, Get the Bumper Sticker". Smoking Fork. August 24, 2011. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  4. ^ Swirko, Cindy (February 28, 2012). "Kitchen fire could close Satchel's for six weeks". The Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  5. ^ Clark, Anthony (June 13, 2012). "4 months after a fire, Satchel's is back cooking". The Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  6. ^ "Satchel's Pizza Sets Reopen Date". WCJB TV-20. June 1, 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-10-29. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  7. ^ "Satchel's Pizza Employee Relief Fund". Indiegogo. Archived from the original on April 23, 2012. Retrieved 2017-04-14.
  8. ^ Staff (December 6, 2016). "Roaring fire erupts at Satchel's, destroys outdoor seating, gift shop". The Independent Florida Alligator. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  9. ^ "Satchel's Pizza's "Lightnin' Salvage" close to reopening".
  10. ^ "Satchel's Pizza Facebook post (December 6, 2017)".
  11. ^ a b "UF students design, build new playground at Satchel's Pizza".
  12. ^ "Lightnin Salvage Enterprises Grand Re-opening this weekend".
  13. ^ "Be there or be square: Satchel's Pizza to open second location".
  14. ^ "Satchel's Pizza opens second location today".
  15. ^ "Satch Squared gets new owner and new name".
  16. ^ "UF to hire new food provider".
  17. ^ "Satch² hosts long-awaited grand opening".

29°40′26″N 82°18′07″W / 29.673952°N 82.301869°W / 29.673952; -82.301869