Her husband’s restaurant is coming to Charlotte. Is Slutty Vegan next?

With Pinky Cole’s Slutty Vegan eyeing the Charlotte market, the community-oriented food chain run by her husband, Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks, has big plans for Charlotte, too.

Derrick Hayes came from humble beginnings, starting in a Shell gas station with “broken fryer and grill, that wasn’t halfway decent,” Hayes said.

Fast forward to now, and Hayes, recently named a Forbes 1000 Entrepreneur, is now the owner of a world-renowned cheesesteak brand reaching beyond Georgia for the first time. He plans a “really big announcement for September.” And his dedication to his father’s memory and commitment to building communities have set Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks apart as more than just a restaurant chain.

Slutty Vegan — plans for Charlotte

Cole, who owns Slutty Vegan, told Charlotte Five about plans to open a restaurant in Charlotte last year. Hayes backed that up — even hinting to CharlotteFive that a Slutty Vegan location could be in the works soon. “Who knows? If a spot goes vacant next door to me, she might be next door.”

While the thought of Slutty Vegan setting up shop next to Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks excites our taste buds, no official announcement has been made — yet.

“So, we don’t have a date, but what I will tell you is — she coming. She will be there,” Hayes said.

While Slutty Vegan, with locations in Georgia, New York and Texas, is taking its time getting a spot in Charlotte, Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks’ expansion is more immediate: This winter.

Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks — almost to Charlotte

Hayes said, “Nobody has ever taken a cheesesteak, authentic cheesesteak, outside of the tri-state and was able to do the things that I’ve done.”

“There is not a bigger brand that connects to the culture and different communities the way I do,” Hayes added.

During the height of the COVID pandemic in 2020, the restaurant’s sales went up. “We were able to make 2 million more dollars that year,” Hayes said. “We’ve been 100% — year over year. So the business is just getting stronger.”

Big Dave’s now has locations in Atlanta, Doraville, Forest Park and another coming to Lawrenceville, Georgia. Hayes said Charlotte was the chosen city for its first out-of-state location because of its vibe.

“I decided to choose Charlotte because we did a food truck pop up. And the people, the energy — like, it just felt right. It was one of our biggest pop ups we’ve ever done with the food truck. So I always said, you know, I wanted our first location out-of-state to go to the, you know, the best best location that we did a pop up at. And Charlotte was one of them,” Hayes said.

‘Oh y’all thought Big Dave’s was just Atlanta staple?’

About the location: Big Dave’s commitment to selecting strategic locations that benefit both the brand and the community led executives to choose the University City Boulevard location in Town Center Plaza.

Hayes, along with President and Chief Revenue Officer Jessie Bray, worked closely with their real estate agent to scout and identify high-traffic areas that would enable them to build the brand.

“Oh y’all thought Big Dave’s was just Atlanta staple? .. Charlotte, we on our way,” Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks wrote in an Instagram post.

About the impact: Hayes’ passion for community-building and connecting with youth has played a pivotal role in the brand’s quick rise to success.

“I think that coming up in a rough place like Philadelphia, I’m able to connect with the youth a little differently than a lot of other CEOs,” Hayes said.

As for the business’ fast growth and popularity, Hayes said, “people got to see what we were representing. You know, you got a restaurant on one hand. But, I’ve donated $20,000 to a school in Atlanta for their safe spaces for a hub, so that they can have a place to go when school lets out if they don’t have anywhere to go.”

Hayes added that while Big Dave’s has also “fed over 1,000 families in Atlanta when COVID happened,” he partnered with his wife and Slutty Vegan for a life insurance initiative with Prudential to provide 25,000 life insurance policies for Black men who make an income of $30,000 or less.

“We also do a lot of things in the community that helps out. We know that whatever location that we choose, we want people to feel good about where we’re at. And we want to feel good about the people, and we indulge ourselves and engage with each other. So it works out everywhere we go — all the communities love us everywhere we’re at,” Hayes said.

Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks

Location: 8548 University City Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28213 (coming this winter)

Menu

Cuisine: American, sandwiches

Instagram: @bigdavescheesesteaks

This story was originally published August 3, 2023 at 6:00 AM.

Mari Pressley

The Charlotte Observer

Freelancer Mari Pressley was an intern on the Charlotte Observer’s Service Desk and CharlotteFive. She studies mass communication with a concentration in journalism, while minoring in writing and photography. Her previous experience includes interning for Credit Karma’s Editorial team and serving as Managing Editor at Winthrop University’s school newspaper, The Johnsonian.