Merry Christmas and welcome to this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, as we’re in Bentonville talking to Kevin Girkins, owner of the super-popular Archie’s Sandwichery, but first?!?!

FOOD NEWS!!

• We learned yesterday that a popular spot will be closing its doors at the start of the New Year.


• Desi Fusion has announced when they’ll close their Ft. Smith food truck and open their brick and mortar in Springdale!


• Potbelly Sandwich Works opens in Springdale, and owner Tiffany Montgomery talks about building two restaurants at once!


• PJ’s Coffee has started construction in Rogers.


• Few tickets remain for Sunday night’s restaurant takeover by Super-chef Marcus Samuelsson. We’ll tell you what he’s making!


• This week’s Flavor’s Flashback is one of my favorite Mike Engleman Home Pro Tip’s of the Week of all time and it comes from Darwin Beyer at Meiji in Fayetteville.

Kevin Girkins got in the restaurant business initially because his dad caught him red-handed doing something illegal. Seriously. It’s a funny story.

He’s from Austin and moved to Northwest Arkansas to help build and run a popular franchise in Bentonville. It took a fortuitous turn at his next stop which gave him the confidence to start his own spot, which is what he eventually did with Archie’s.

Why a sandwich shop in Bentonville? Kevin will tell you why. Also, where did the name Archie’s come from? There’s a portrait on the wall at Archie’s that’ll explain it. We talk with Archie’s owner/operator Kevin Girkins next, here on the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast.