A delicious destination for many Branson residents and visitors has expanded to a second local location.
Billy Gail’s opened a new restaurant in the Branson Mill on Gretna Road on Tuesday, June 21. The restaurant is close to the size of the original Branson location, at 5291 State Hwy 265, and carries all of the same specialities, including the 14-inch pancake.
The popularity of the first location, which usually led to long wait times for customers, was a main reason for the second Branson location.
“It’s just so popular at the other location, being so close to Silver Dollar City, we wanted to create a second location to take pressure off that one,” General Manager Tyler Murphy told Branson Tri-Lakes News. “We also wanted a place for the locals because if you’re local, you don’t really go [to the first location.] It’s because it’s such a big tourist attraction. We’ll do a few later hours to help the locals have a chance to experience us.”
This is the third location overall for the restaurant, having opened a location in Ozark, near James River Church off Highway 65.
Murphy said he and the staff love to see the faces of first-time guests to the restaurant when they bring out some of the signature items, like the 14-inch pancake or the pork tenderloin sandwich, where the tenderloin is as big as the plate.
“We send the pancakes home in pizza boxes,” Murphy said. “At the first location, we use a pizza riser to put the pancakes on. It’s just a staple of what we do. It’s become great word of mouth marketing for us because people will tell each other ‘you’ve got to see this.’”
Murphy said he enjoys their restaurant being a destination location for tourists.
“Any time you’re in the restaurant business there’s a pressure to make sure you create a good experience for your guests,” Murphy said. “[Billy Gail’s] brings a little added pressure because it’s already made a name for itself, so there’s a little extra weight, but we love to rise to the occasion for our customers.”
Bonnie Schreckengast was the new location’s first customer.
“Every time I try to go to the other location I have to wait and wait or we can’t get in,” she said. “When I heard about this location I said I was going to be first in line!”
The new Billy Gail’s location is open Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday 7 a.m. to 8 p.m..
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