Hannah Style
news@thesmokymountaintimes.com
Downtown Bryson City is bustling with visitors, and this year seems particularly busy, with everyone stir crazy from quarantine. Walking through downtown, you’ll experience many senses, but nothing beats the smells of the local restaurants and food truck’s unique cuisine wafting down the streets.
When restaurants were closing down their indoor seating and switching to take-out only, food trucks were in high demand, with their walk up, outdoor service, but don’t let that fool you. These street vendors were still impacted by COVID- 19 shutdowns.
Jeremiah Chatham, owner of the Rice Wagon food truck, that is now permanently located behind Mountain Layers Brewing Company, says it was hard to say how much his business was actually affected, but hopes to make up for it with the busy season ahead.
“It’s difficult to say exactly how much our business was affected. With the shutdowns in the beginning of 2020, we were closed for three months,” he said. “I think a lot of people discovered Bryson City during the pandemic because it was like their own little hideaway and now everyone you see is carrying around a real estate magazine looking to make their stay permanent.”
With more people coming into town, whether to visit or stay, Chatham thinks this will benefit local businesses in the busy seasons ahead.
The Rice Wagon has mostly Hawaiian dishes and of their most famous is the kalua pork and garlic chicken served with white rice and macaroni salad.
Preston Manning, owner of Big Laurel Food Truck said that fortunately he didn’t have to close but that his business was greatly impacted last spring.
“March, April, May and June were really slow, because people just weren’t going out and there weren't a lot of visitors in town. When July hit, the tourists started coming back,” Manning said.
Big Laurel Foods can be found a couple days a week in front of Bryson City Outdoors and at the Farmer’s Market on Saturdays. One of their most famous options is the brisket.
“The hardest thing has been finding people to work, since it’s only a few days a week,” Manning said.
The Red Chef Food Truck started because of the pandemic when owner Janna Hyatt and her husband were laid off at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino during the shutdown.
“We were laid off during the pandemic and after things started reopening, my department was combined with another department and I was let go. I had been at the casino for 18 years. I had to get another job and opening a food truck had always been a dream of mine so my husband and I decided to go for it,” Hyatt said.
She said although the pandemic had a very negative impact on most people, it forced her to get out of her comfort zone and made her dream of owning a food truck a reality.
“It’s been a wonderful experience and blessing,” Hyatt said.
The Red Chef provides a lot of classic foods with a twist, like the “Red Head,” a meatloaf sandwich on Texas toast with a Japanese mayo. Hyatt said that her family loves to cook and try new spins on traditional foods.
“It’s a family run business, we currently don’t have any employees. It’s just us and my husband and I both have a passion for cooking and always have. He’s worked in many restaurants and my mom owned several restaurants when I was growing up in West Virginia,” Hyatt said.
The Red Chef operates several times a week in front of Bryson City Outdoors, The Unplugged Pub, and Cornerstone Cafe.
High Test Deli was originally a take-out only restaurant when it first started and then they added a dining room. According to owner Barry Tetrault, they went back to the original business model when COVID 19 hit and only did take-out again.
“When we first started High Test Deli, it was only take-out and then we eventually added indoor seating so with the pandemic we just closed off the inside and only did walk up or call in service. For now we plan to keep it that way but we will eventually open the dining room back up. It all depends on if we have enough staff,” Tetrault said.
Tetrault has been in touch with the health department throughout the whole pandemic, making sure his staff had COVID tests and proper masks and safety gear at all times.
“I talk with the health department frequently and make sure everything is safe. I was never required to shut down due to the pandemic but we now close on Sundays and Mondays because of lack of staff,” he said.
It’s difficult to tell just how long it will take things to get back to normal after 2020, but local businesses seem to be doing okay judging with lines lining down the street at most. Looks like this summer season will mark the beginning of the economic comeback in Bryson City.