You're gonna need a bigger bib: 'Jaws'-themed restaurant opens July 10 in Ocala

You can enjoy a Triple Megalodon Old Fashioned Burger while immersed in “Jaws” movie memorabilia and watching circling sharks on a 12-foot-by-6-foot digital aquarium screen at Jaws Jumbo Burgers, which opens Monday, July 10, on Southwest College Road across from the Paddock Mall.

The Triple Megalodon is one of the eatery’s signature burgers, with three freshly ground sirloin beef patties and double bacon and cheese.

“Food (at Jaws Jumbo Burgers) is made to order, the way God intended,” quipped co-owner Darryl Gaddis.

Gaddis said his eatery serves food made “like when you were a kid” from ingredients like real butter and “ball tip sirloin steak,” which is ground freshly on site.

“We’re ‘boomers,’ ” Yolanda Gaddis joked.

The “Jaws”-themed eatery brand − which takes cash only − is the labor of love for husband and wife team Yolanda and Darryl Gaddis, who recently marked their 47th wedding anniversary and 46 years of working together in the food service industry.

The Gaddises first met while both were working at a hospital. They eventually decided to open a sandwich shop called Paradise Subs in the Detroit area (Farmingham Hills, to be exact.) After attempts with other offerings, they settled on burgers, which sold, well, like hotcakes.

They decided in 1985 to adopt a motif based on "Jaws," the blockbuster 1975 movie. Decorations in the Ocala eatery include movie posters, toys and a standout 10-foot-long shark effigy.

Darryl Gaddis said the eatery’s burgers have picked up a “cult following” over the years at the couple’s first location in their native Detroit area, and then in 2017 on the outskirts of Nashville.

When the couple recently wanted to move to warmer climes they set their sights on Orlando but were discouraged by what were described as very high rents.

Ocala offered reasonable commercial rentals, and finding employees was “no problem here,” Darryl Gaddis said.

The restaurant will occupy about 2,700 square feet and has 10 inside dining tables. Call ahead service also is available.

Yolanda handles customer service and bakes cookies, including large soft baked chocolate chip and butter cookies, while Darryl and returning employee − and now part owner − Paul Porter will work the grill.

Porter met the couple about 20 years ago when their restaurant was a “hole in the wall,” and he worked in the Michigan location for at least 10 years. He is flying in July 7 to join the team again.

“We're putting the band back together,” Porter wrote in an email, citing a line from the “Blues Brothers” movie.

“He (Darryl Gaddis) offered me a piece of the pie when he owed me nothing. I love them as much as I love my own parents.

“We've had nothing more than a handshake of a contract all these years, and they've lived up to every part,” Porter wrote, in part.

Darryl and Yolanda Gaddis and employee Mekayla Drayton were busy this week making preparations for the big opening, and Darryl Gaddis made some final adjustments to the programming on the digital aquarium, where hammerhead sharks and other marine life swirled.

Drayton called the eatery a “fun environment.”

What's on the menu?

The menu focus is freshly ground sirloin burgers (ground turkey also is available) and selections include the “Classic Jaws Single,” the trademarked “Jaws Double (patty) Frenzee” and the “Jaws Triple (patty) Megalodon” with bacon and cheese.

Also on the menu: chicken tenders, fish and chips, old fashioned milkshakes and malts and fresh squeezed lemonade.

The couple reports some of the unique “Jaws”  memorabilia was donated by dedicated customers who have visited the Gaddises’ previous locations.

Darryl Gaddis indicated he would like to someday franchise the Jaws Jumbo Burger brand.

Dennis Workman, distributor sales representative with Ben E. Keith Company Foodservice Distributors, which provides food supplies for the Gaddises’ Ocala restaurant, said “not many” operators go the same “level” as the Gaddises, with fresh sirloin grinding on site rather than pre-made patty burgers.

“They even drove to Tallahassee to get an occupational license,” he explained.

Meanwhile, Porter stated that any burger aficiondo will find a hit in the Jaws burger.

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“Today they call them smash burgers. When we all were growing up, they were just called hamburgers… we're not hiding it under expensive, exotic ingredients. No avocado or truffle here, just honest ground beef on a bun. Try it plain, just meat and bread, you'll love it. Or with cheese. Or with bacon. Or with both. Or with everything. You can't go wrong when you order a JAWS jumbo burger,” he wrote, in part.

Jaws Jumbo Burgers, 3131 SW College Road, Ocala; open Mon.-Sat., 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; (352) 304-5080; call ahead for pickup; cash only

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Jaws Jumbo Burgers opens July 10 in Ocala. Bring a bib, not a boat.