505 U.S. Hwy. 70, Mason ★ 901.294.2028
Brothers Joe Claybon, left, and Larry Claybon enjoy a meal, beer and laughs at Gus's Fried Chicken.
Though there's a location right around the corner from his hotel in Memphis, when Joe Claybon comes home, he drives all the way to Mason to eat at the original Gus's Fried Chicken. "The food's good," he says. "It's their own recipe and nobody can imitate it. Nobody can cook chicken like they can." Now living in Nashville, Claybon was born and raised in Mason. It's a cold, but sunny, afternoon in February and he and his brother Larry are sitting in a booth, watching television as they socialize with other men in the restaurant while they eat some of the world-famous fried chicken and drink beer. "Every time I come home, I come to Gus's," he says in between bites. "It's original and down-home, really reminds me of the days when it was like Mama's home cooking … and you know there's nothing like Mama's home cooking, right?"
What has become a world-famous eatery and promoted through shows on Food Network had humble beginnings in a blue house across the highway from the restaurant. "It was in the '50s somewhere, when he started cooking chicken," says Ann Bonner. Bonner runs the Mason location and is married to Terry, one of the restaurant's co-owners. The restaurant, originally called Maggie's Short Orders, was started by Napoleon "Na" Vanderbilt, grandfather to Terry Bonner and his siblings, Taurse, Renee and
Tonya. All four now own the business. "Na was in the kitchen making some spicy chicken, just for him to eat, and that's how he came up with it." The history of the restaurant, hanging near the counter, suggests that the recipe was so well-liked that, even in the Jim Crow South, whites lined up at his back door for a sack of chicken and encouraged him to open a restaurant. A carpenter, he is said to have built the restaurant himself and opened it in 1973. Ten years later, both Na and his wife died, leaving the business to his son. Gus's officially opened in 1984. Fast-forward three decades and you'll find that Gus's has become synonymous with delicious chicken. The restaurant was named for a nickname Vernon was given by members of the community. "They used to call him 'Gus Bully' in the Continued on page 32 ▸ Discover Tipton County 2014 31