’Chos Pros
HAVING FOUND SUCCESS as the first Pickleman’s franchisees, Brad Merten and Brandon Holzhueter launched a fast-casual idea of their own, Narwhal’s Crafted, a master mixologist’s version of a frozen drink emporium. They applied the same high-minded techniques to Loaded: Elevated Nachos, which opened next door to Narwhal’s location in Streets of St. Charles, a lively one-two punch that the duo plans to repeat.
How did you become partners in the restaurant business?
We both went to Parkway West and then to Mizzou. A place called Pickleman’s was opening a stone’s throw from where I was living, and I got a job there, as a delivery driver, sandwich maker, and eventually manager. My degree was in sociology, so it was like, I opened and managed Pickleman’s
