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Date: 3/2/2022
CHICOPEE – Owner and Chef Kevin Sahagian of Captain Jack’s Roadside Shack developed his brand of seafood cuisine into an Easthampton staple over the last 11 years. Now, Sahagian is set to expand Captain Jack’s seafood medley into a new location at the Center Park in Chicopee.
Captain Jack’s represents a creation of Sahagian’s own design. After working as a chef at several Boston eateries, Sahagian expressed interest in returning to the Western Massachusetts area to develop his own restaurant space. “I just like the lifestyle out here, I wanted to come back out and open a restaurant with affordable, approachable food done in higher-quality restaurant techniques,” said Sahagian.
Sahagian moved to Easthampton and gradually built up the currency to buy the restaurant’s current 102 Northampton St. location, which used to exist as a used car lot building. He and his team transformed the space into an old-fashioned shack, utilizing the new restaurant as a platform for fresh, local seafood, according to Sahagian.
“We serve all fresh food and make everything from scratch,” said Sahagian.
The owner and chef infused his culinary experience into the fabric of Captain Jack’s menu. He stressed that the key to making great seafood relies upon gathering great sources of regional fish, with Sahagian utilizing his Boston connections. “When I worked in Boston, I became familiar with a lot of the piers and the people who get certain items in…We do very little to it, but we just get good product,” said Sahagian.
Chicopee Expansion
Captain Jack’s Roadside Shack incorporated a food truck over the past two years as their Easthampton location underwent construction. With construction complete, Sahagian set his sights on transforming the food truck into a platform for expansion.
Sahagian said his interest in Chicopee started when he learned about the city’s opening for Request for Quotation (RFQ) submissions for the newly developed Center Park in Chicopee Center. The restaurant owner shared that he gathered research on different food truck entities by conducting a visit to Austin, TX for preparation.
“I’d like to bring that kind of atmosphere and style to Chicopee,” said Sahagian.
Sahagian views several similarities between Chicopee and Easthampton. He believes that Chicopee is set for an economic breakout similar to what Easthampton endured over the past few decades, offering opportunities for young entrepreneurs to establish unique, new business entities.
“Chicopee is really about to take off with a growth of young entrepreneurs going there. Easthampton was the same way 20 years ago…Chicopee seems to be right in the beginning of that phase and it’s exciting to see this city really take off,” said Sahagian.
The owner continued to describe Chicopee’s appeal as a city at the start of a new chapter. “It’s a neat city that’s in the midst of big change. I am glad to be apart of it,” said Sahagian.
Mayor John Vieau also expressed excitement about Captain Jack’s expansion into the developing Chicopee Center. “There is a lot of potential. We are trying to showcase what our downtown is, that small-town energy is what I want to see developed,” said Vieau.
Looking forward, Sahagian expressed his hopes to have the new location open and running by the summer after building up the site and performing proper maintenance.
Readers can learn more about Captain Jack’s Roadside Shack at https://www.facebook.com/Captain-Jacks-Roadside-Shack-107858715951385/.