A fixture of Midtown Mobile’s dining scene is about to get a makeover aimed at taming one of the neighborhood’s most persistent traffic headaches.
The Foosackly’s on Airport Boulevard, directly across from Public Safety Memorial Park, will close after Friday night for a redesign that owner Will Fusaiotti says is meant to keep its busy drive-thru line from spilling out into the roadway.
“We get plenty of complaints, phone calls, people honking horns,” Fusaiotti said.
Overflow from the restaurant’s drive-thru routinely backs up into Airport Boulevard, slowing traffic and creating the potential for accidents along the heavily traveled stretch.
The Midtown “Foo” will reopen as a drive-thru-only location with an added drive-thru lane, employees taking orders outside, and a repositioned drive-thru window. Fusaiotti estimates roughly 700 to 800 cars move through the lane on a typical day.
“It’s been a fortunate problem to have, but we’ve outgrown this location,” Fusaiotti said. “We’re going to remodel, fix the parking lot, and hopefully keep cars off Airport Blvd.”
The Midtown restaurant opened in 2003 as Foosackly’s first stand-alone location. The renovation is expected to take at least two months, and the store’s roughly 25 employees will be shifted to other Foosackly’s locations in the area while work is underway.