Johnny Ray’s BBQ Chelsea celebrates 10 years

Miranda Carter’s mother was a single parent of three, and Carter grew up working. 

When she was 12 years old, the family moved to Pelham from Ft. Walton Beach, Fla. Not two years after the move, Carter found a job. At 14, she started work at Johnny Ray’s BBQ in Pelham, where she would stay for five years. 

Then, she took a bold leap.

“I opened this restaurant with my brothers when I was 19,” Carter said of her Johnny Ray’s BBQ in Chelsea.

A life of hard work had given Carter the confidence to approach Johnny Ray himself and make the case that she was worthy of running one of his franchises. He watched as she came in after her classes at UAB to work her shifts and agreed, lending Carter and her 17- and 15-year-old brothers Jeremy and Alex the money to start off. 

“I told him I could do it,” Carter said. “I have so much experience. I told him I was learning more at his restaurant than I was in school.”

Johnny Ray’s in Chelsea opened 10 years ago this month, and in the last decade she’s done nothing but prove she was worthy of the opportunity. Under her direction, Johnny Ray’s evolved from a 12-table nook to a sprawling staple of the Chelsea restaurant scene. Fashionable decorations line the walls, offering a rustic complement to the slow-cooked flavors from the kitchen.

She’s added to the menu and expanded her reach. Two of her top-selling items, the Country Fried Steak and Catfish, are outside the franchise’s traditional barbecue fare. The Peanut Butter Pie is also of her own design, and the restaurant offers fresh specials each day like the Tuscan Caesar Salad with Sliced Beef.

Five years ago she added a mobile catering portion of the business, and three years ago she brought in a new attraction — Yogurt Your Way. The frozen yogurt business’ brightly colored walls and candy selection glow in the back corner of her restaurant.  

Most recently, the restaurant began offering breakfast to drivers on the U.S. 280 corridor. The menu includes traditional fare like bacon and eggs, ham and French toast made-to-order in the Johnny Ray’s kitchen. One of the less traditional items is the BBQ Bowl, her brother Jeremy’s creation.

“I don’t think there’s anything on the menu that’s not in that bowl,” Carter said.

But outside its walls, Carter has carved her own niche in Chelsea. She’s a member of numerous organizations in the area including local chambers of commerce, Civitan and Kiwanis Clubs and the Arc of Shelby County. She is also a founding member of the Chelsea Business Alliance, a new organization working hand in hand with the City of Chelsea to bolster current businesses and attract new ones.

“While I can, I want to get as much accomplished as possible,” Carter said. 

And she has her reasons.

Four years ago, Carter’s youngest brother, Alex, passed away. His untimely death serves as a reminder to her and her brother that the time is now. 

“A lot of what I do to push myself forward and stay motivated is because of Alex,” Carter said. 

But the loss of a brother isn’t the only thing driving her. Carter has a perceptive 7-year-old daughter, and one of the most important things Carter feels she can do is set a good example.

“My mom was a single parent with three kids,” she said. “We worried all the time. I don’t want my daughter to learn to worry from an early age. I hope, for her, it will never be like that. I want to give her and her friends the motivation to do anything.”