One singular sensation

HAIRE'S | Mom's secret recipe coats the sole menu item -- shrimp

The youngest of 10 children, Finnie Haire learned his way around the kitchen early.

A visionary, Haire was never afraid to act on impulse. With his mother, Frankie's, special recipe, he's opened Haire's Gulf Shrimp, a takeout establishment at 8112 S. Vincennes with one item -- shrimp.

There is only one way to cook this succulent tasting product -- fresh. Haire cuts, cleans and then batters the shrimp he buys daily. Then comes the marinating process, where he applies his secret formula. After a deep frying, it's ready to go.

"The recipe is 95 percent my mother's," Haire said. "As a tribute to her, I brought it back. It's light and tasty; most people never had that."

Customers can buy three sizes: $17 jumbo/large shrimp; $15.50 shrimp dinner (large), $8 (small); $7 bomb bag (snack pack).

Always self-sufficient, Haire has help from his grandson but does the majority of the work himself.

Converting a pizza parlor, Haire brought in two deep fryers, a stove and two refrigerators and freezers when he opened last November. A few shootings around the area in April slowed things down. With warmer weather, volume is increasing.

Growing up on 47th Street at the edge of Hyde Park, Haire attended Phillips High School. After meeting with a Navy recruiter, he left high school and decided the armed service was a good career path and enlisted in 1960.

"I went in to build a better life," Haire said. "Based on what the recruiter told me, I felt there was an opportunity. I saw a lot of the world and had plenty of time to just think."

When his stint was over, Haire joined the Postal Service and worked his way up to foreman supervisor in the downtown office, at Harrison and Canal. Never one to waste time, at night he earned certificates from barber school and in computer programming. Summer evenings Haire played first and third base for the CTT Pacers softball team.

Upon retiring in 1992, Haire came across a friend, Barry Wright, who had a restaurant at 85th and Stony Island. When he mentioned a few improvements that could be made, Wright stated, "If you can do better, go ahead."

He did.

Haire took over and broke out Mom's recipe. That was the beginning of Haire's Gulf Shrimp in 1995. He gave away free samples for the first few months, and word of mouth spread. It was a successful operation for seven years. A disagreement with the former building's owner ended with its 2002 closing.

Now 68 -- going on 30 -- Haire is back and ready to go.

"I had a lot of support from my [70-relative] extended family," Haire said. "There are only three [of the 10 children] left. I wanted to keep the family heritage going and leave something for them."

Linda Greene, a friend from the 1980s, is a sworn believer in Haire's formula.

"I've been around the world [30 years in the Air Force Reserve] and I've never tasted shrimp like Finnie's," Greene said. "Everybody [in the neighborhood] was sad when they closed."

Driving down Vincennes Avenue three months ago, Greene saw the purple awning and pulled over. It had been more than five years since they last saw each other. The old friends embraced and minutes later Haire's loyal customer was taking home a bag his product.

"The quality of Finnie's shrimp doesn't compare with anybody else's," Greene said. "What's unique is when I wake up I can put it in the oven for a few minutes and the same crispiness is still there just like when you bought it. The seasoning and batter is what's different. Finnie takes pride in what he does and you can taste it in the food."

Thursday night at the post office, a group of 25-30 people put together an order that costs between $500 and $600 and get a bushel of shrimp.

"Everyone knows Thursday is shrimp night and they all look forward to it," Greene said.

Seth Schwartz is a locally based free-lance writer.