Nathan Glenn, the creative culinary force behind Basil’s Renaissance, began his cooking adventures at the age of 9 when the cook didn’t show up at one of his parents’ restaurants. “They tied an apron around my neck, and I did it,” he said.
Since then, the Jackson native who is now 45 has spent his years honing his culinary skills and creating a string of successful restaurants in the Jackson metro area, including his most recent venture, Basil’s in Renaissance that opened in 2019.
Basil’s is a pizza joint and sandwich shop hybrid that also has locations in downtown Jackson and Fondren.
Glenn opened the first Basil’s in Fondren in 2004, and the restaurant chain features a wide variety of menu items, such as the Fondren pizza with roasted garlic, spinach, caramelized onions and Roma tomatoes, or the Elvis sandwich with peanut butter, bananas and roasted peanuts served on focaccia bread.
The pairing of peanut butter and bananas on focaccia bread might seem odd at first but the results are splendid and meld together as nothing short of a culinary masterpiece.
The skill in producing such a pairing comes from Glenn’s years of experience.
"The Elvis sandwich was inspired of course after Elvis’ favorite sandwich, which was peanut butter, mayo and bananas on Wonder Bread,” Glenn said.
“We decided to make a few changes: peanut butter, roasted peanuts and bananas on our house-made focaccia bread. Our focaccia bread was developed at Basil's. We wanted something fresh and new. Around 20 years ago, we were one of the first restaurants in Jackson to serve a panini."
Glenn said he has been baking his own bread since he was 9 years old, and he continued cooking throughout his high school years, working in various restaurants and learning as much about the business as possible, including experimenting with different cooking techniques.
Glenn recalled early learning experiences with cooking, including roasting an entire hog over a grill for 15 hours and helping an Asian family with a Chinese takeout place, setting them on the path to get their serve-safe certificate when he was just 17.
Glenn said he also has friends and colleagues who own Mexican restaurants where he has helped them cook with employees who did not speak English — and he speaks no Spanish.
“Those wild experiences with exposure to different types of food have been pretty cool and a great learning experience,” Glenn said.
After honing his cooking skills through such experiences, Glenn said he decided to open his first restaurant in 2003 when he opened Rooster’s in Fondren.
Glenn’s father had founded Rooster’s in 1984 with the first Rooster’s in downtown Jackson at Roach and Capital streets.
His father also co-owned and operated Rooster’s 2 on U.S. 51 in Ridgeland in the 1990s.
Glenn said he chose to open a Rooster’s rather than go to culinary school because he believed it was a better investment for him at the age of 24. Also, opening the restaurant allowed him to continue cooking.
Jason Spellings, a South Jackson native and close friend of Glenn, praised Glenn’s hard work and dedication to his craft.
“I’ve been friends with Nathan for over 30 years. His success has been achieved through a lot of hard work,” Spellings said. “It’s fantastic to see how far he’s come, and I’m really proud of him.”
Spellings has eaten at all of Glenn’s restaurants, and Basil’s is his personal favorite.
“Nathan was the first to bring paninis to Jackson. My favorite item there is the No. 4, which is ham and salami,” he said. “The chicken sandwich at Rooster’s is awesome, too.”
Even after putting in hard work and time, Glenn said chefs can still fall short.
“The love of cooking comes from being in the kitchen,” Glenn said. “Most chefs don’t make a lot of money, as it is a hard business to be in. It is really sad. Most people lose everything.”
Glenn said he enjoys cooking and creating a brand, and he has created several brands including The Feathered Cow brand in 2014.
He also was one of the owners and the general manager of the old-school auditorium in Fondren, which is now known as Duling Hall.
In total Glenn has opened four Basil’s locations, five Rooster’s locations and two Feathered Cow locations.
“I’ve got around 11 or 12 restaurants under my belt if you count Duling Hall,” Glenn said.
After opening The Feathered Cow, Glenn ended up selling the brand to a group that bought the license for it in 2017.
Glenn still operates his original Rooster’s in Fondren because he said he loves the area, but he also loves the Madison and Ridgeland area, which is why he said the Renaissance was the perfect location for another Basil’s.
“We knew people wanted some fresh food since they were tired of eating everything frozen,” Glenn said. “So, we brought in a sandwich shop and pizza house hybrid and the people came on in and ate with us.”
Glenn said that throughout his years as a restaurateur, his favorite dish to make is the Stupid Burger a highlight of the menu at the Feathered Cow.
He said the burger got its name because it is “stupid good.”
The Stupid Burger starts with fresh ground chuck patties that are cooked to order, dressed with lettuce, tomatoes, grilled onions, garlic mayonnaise, applewood smoked bacon and Monterey Jack cheese, all piled onto a bun made from freshly baked bread from scratch.
Glenn said that while the burger is simple in concept, it is the components that a lot of people find appealing.
“If you ever want to get into the restaurant business, you need to put around five, maybe even 10 years in with someone and work with a place that knows how to make money and take care of their employees,” Glenn said.
Michael Tate Webb, a Fondren resident, works in Ridgeland at the Scott Black Allstate Agency. Webb has tried all of Glenn’s restaurants, and enjoyed himself at each one.
“What I like about Basil’s is that their sandwiches have that concept where they are ready-made, but you can really taste the fresh ingredients,” Webb said. The way they do it where you can get the food fresh and ready in a timely manner is pretty impressive.”
Webb doesn’t personally know Glenn, but he’s friends with several people who are acquainted with him, and he’s heard nothing but good about him.
“Everyone that I know who knows Nathan has spoken very highly of him,” Webb said. “He represents Jackson very well and makes a conscious effort to make sure his restaurants are in a good location, and that people keep coming back.”
-One cup of mayonnaise
-Two ounces of roasted garlic
-One teaspoon of Worcestershire Sauce
-1/8 teaspoon of black pepper
-Blend ingredients, let chill. Serve on anything from sandwiches to burgers. The recipe originated at The Feathered Cow, and it’s transitioned to some sandwiches at Basil’s.
-Take a clove of garlic, and keep it in the peel.
-Slice around an eighth of an inch off the top of the bulb.
-Drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil on top of it so it soaks into the exposed garlic.
-Wrap in foil, and put it in the oven at 350 degrees for around 45 minutes.
-After it comes out and cools for around 20 minutes, squeeze the roasted garlic out of the bulb and crush it.
