A local restauranteur celebrated 15 years in business in December with his restaurant Scott's Downtown located on Bradford Street in Downtown Gainesville.
“We are just so appreciative for everybody over the last 15 years that have helped make Scott’s what it is,” Owner of Scott’s Downtown, Scott Dixon said. “You come here and we call you by name and you think of this as your place or that's your table. All of those things are very special to us.”
Scott’s Downtown is a casual fine-dining restaurant with a full bar and event space. Dixon first opened up his restaurant on Dec. 10, 2007, at its first location on Main Street. Five years later in 2012, he made the move to relocate to a bigger space on Bradford Street.
“I was kind of looking for a place where we could continue to have events Downtown,” Dixson said, “So, we built out the restaurant, built a separate bar and lounge here and then the loft upstairs, which is our 10,000 square foot event space.”
Dixon began his restaurant journey at the age of 14 as a busboy at a barbeque restaurant in Atlanta. He said he has worked in every position in the restaurant industry from working the dishwasher to a server.
According to Dixon, it took everything and nothing less as a small business owner to keep his restaurant running, especially during the pandemic.
“I can literally tell you, it has taken everything that I've had. Every cent that I've had, every ounce of energy that I've had, just about every hour of every day that I've had over the last three years to still be here to celebrate this 15-year anniversary,” he said.
To celebrate his 15 years, Dixon will celebrate with his team after the holidays– the busiest time of year for them. He will host a dinner party for his staff in January.
Dixon said the best part about owning Scott’s is the fact that a lot of his guests come to celebrate important life cycle events.
“Whether it's a birthday, an anniversary or a rehearsal dinner, we're kind of that family table and that place to celebrate and we are trusted by these people and our people, our guests with a great responsibility to help celebrate all of these lifecycle events,” he said.
Scott’s Downtown is open Tuesday through Saturday from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. For more information visit scottsdowntown.com.
