By Anna Yoder | Columnist

I know I am not the first and most assuredly I will not be the last person to write about Eugene Thomas, the affable and successful Northside businessman and owner of a Northside staple, Quik-It Chicken.

There is so much to write about Eugene Thomas, I quite frankly did not know where to start. Like all good stories, I figured I would start at the beginning. Eugene’s story began in 1984, with a full-service grocery store he opened in his neighborhood of Manchester. Eugene called his store “Manchester Market” and described it as a “mom and pop deli with fresh meats.”

Eugene learned the grocery business and how to butcher meat from the previous owner of the store. Unbeknownst to him at the time, Eugene’s skill of butchering would serve him well in the future.

In 1986, Eugene moved his store to Federal Street where he branded the original Quik-It. At that time, Quik-It was a convenience store deli with a “grocery store concept minus the fresh meats.” In 1988, Eugene discovered “pressure-fried chicken” from Neil Thompson, the inventor of the “pulse purge fryers” used to cook the chicken and the creator of the special seasoned breading used to prepare the chicken.

When Eugene offered this same tasty chicken in his Federal Street store coated with the unique breading, the Quik-It CHICKEN brand was born. To this day, Eugene uses the same seasoned breading as in 1988! (I asked for the secret breading recipe but he would not share its ingredients with me. Can’t blame a girl for trying…)

Check out the May issue of The Northside Chronicle for the full story.