SULPHUR SPRINGS -- During a pandemic, with many small businesses closing their doors for good, many would not expect a new business to thrive. Leroy's Cafe in Sulphur Springs, however, has beat those gloomy expectations.
The Hibler Avenue cafe owners, Jesse Bullard and wife Beverly, opened Leroy's doors on Dec. 1, 2019, with the hope of making money, feeding their family and becoming a long-term and successful business.
They named the cafe after Jesse's late brother, Leroy. They chose Sulphur Springs because the opportunity arose when Bill Austin listed the one-time Cowboy Cafe for sale. They bought the adjacent building in late 2021.
What is the secret to Leroy's Cafe success?
Jesse said that 90 percent of good cooking starts with fresh food prepared with a love for cooking. After preparation comes focus, he said. He explained how a large order would require some thought before putting any food on the grill. He starts with the longest item to prepare and then sorts foods taking the shortest time. That way, all foods served at one table come out hot and fresh at the same time.
"He [Jesse] won me over by his cooking," Beverly said. "He makes most all his side dishes from fresh ingredients, from scratch. They just taste better that way."
Unlike many closed-door businesses, Jesse and Beverly have weathered the pandemic storm and not only kept Leroy's front door swinging open but recently added another door to their success. They finished connecting an adjacent building with a mid-building walkway during the recent holiday with family construction assistance. Two years after first opening Leroy's Cafe door, their holiday project has doubled the Cafe's square footage to an 80-person capacity.
Beverly said they had to expand Leroy's capacity to better serve more patrons, mainly during weekend days. "We started with just the two of us and now have six employees," she said. "I never imagined we would get this far."
While Jesse has more than 15 years of restaurant experience, Beverly had zero experience in December 2019. She was working in home construction, her family's business at the time.
Jesse Bullard began his restaurant experience in Northwest Arkansas, clearing off tables as a high school teen at 15 years old. Now, 15 years later, he and his wife of two years have had to expand the cafe's capacity to accommodate their higher volume of patrons. Their door-open hours are daily from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. The restaurant is closed every Monday and Tuesday.
She said they have the area's town folks to thank for supporting Leroy's during these hard times.
"The town's people welcomed us here. We are very grateful," she said.
In their case, Jesse and Beverly's childhood friendship in a way led them into the long-term relationship that provided them the opportunity to invest in Leroy's Cafe. They both said the opportunity to purchase the cafe building came suddenly, that neither would have taken advantage of the business opportunity without them becoming a couple, that their talents together complement their business adventure.
They were both ready for a change after joining hands in marriage. Jesse had returned from working in the restaurant business across California while Beverly decided to give up after eight years her Brush Strokes by Bev house-painting business with a seven-member crew. She had worked in her family's construction company since high school, never bussed a table or envisioned herself serving plates of food to a room full of 40 hungry people, she said.
As with most restaurants, the servers can make or break a place even if the food is prepared to perfection. The word from Leroy's Cafe patrons is that Beverly's outgoing, friendly and upbeat personality keeps many coming back for more delicious hot plates of classic meals. Jesse cooks burgers made from fresh ground beef, homemade biscuits and gravy, along with scratch-made side dishes cooked to perfection. Catfish dinners appear often on their daily special menu written by Beverly on her whiteboard.
The married couple has two children at home, a boy and a girl. Beverly recently announced that she is with child and is due in August 2022. Their extended family members living across Northwest Arkansas number around 75 folks, she said. They said that without help from their family, they could not have completed the two building connection project so soon or so well.
Beverly said that her sister Kalecia Page had recently purchased the building adjacent and to the north of and in line with Leroy's Cafe and she is moving her Lovin' You Salon from Bentonville in February after 18 years of cutting and styling hair.
Speacial to the Eagle Observer/LARRY BURGE
Leroy's Cafe recently extended to a building on its right to double its capacity to 80 people. The building to the right of the
cafe is to become Kalecia Page's Lovin' You Salon this February.