CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A beloved Clarksville restaurant is officially reopening nearly five years after closing its doors.
Chi-Town Dogs will hold its grand opening Wednesday, Aug. 12. The restaurant’s windows will open at 10:30 a.m.
Dan Johnson and his late wife, Donna, founded the Riverside Drive restaurant in the 1990s, bringing the Chicago-style hot dogs Dan grew up eating to Middle Tennessee.
The restaurant developed a loyal following over nearly three decades before closing in 2021 after Donna died of cancer.
“Donna and I were partners in everything,” Dan said in June, when NewsChannel 5 first reported on the restaurant’s planned reopening.
After her death, Dan stepped away from the restaurant and put the building up for sale. Longtime friend and neighbor Elizabeth Self later encouraged him to reopen after showing him comments from customers who missed Chi-Town Dogs.
“The comments... was just pouring in about how much they missed it — and I said, ‘We need to do this,’” Self said in June.
Dan, Self and Self’s son, Chris, have spent months preparing the restaurant to reopen, including installing new lights, adding refrigerators and restoring the space.
Self and Dan said the reopening is about more than serving Chicago-style food. They hope Chi-Town Dogs can remain a welcoming place where customers make memories and the owners can give back to the community.
“We can have Donna’s legacy live on,” Self said.
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