Our spotlight on business this month is the Root Beer stand and owner Matt Hopkins. Matt along with his wife Stacy have opened the Root Beer stand this year and we are excited to have them as part of our small town businesses.
The love of food was Matt’s motivation for purchasing the Root Beer stand. He has retained the Classic Drive-in atmosphere and is serving up some of the finest chow this side of the Ol’ Miss. The business was originally opened by the Meese family back in 1956, Larry and Margaret Bruick took over after the Meese family decided to sell. It was an A&W franchise in the beginning but when the Barkers took it over they dropped the franchise.
The Root Beer stand is best known for its fresh made Root Beer and Coney dogs. We were able to tour the inside of the Root Beer stand and saw the huge stainless steel vats where they make the root beer base fresh weekly. Customers keep coming back to the Root Beer Stand because of the fast service and good food. Matt is able to employ many teenagers and give them their first taste of a job close to home. One funny anecdote about the business is that he calls his kitchen crew “The Death Squad” and the thing that he is most proud of during his first season at the helm is that they are still open. (If you know Matt’s sense of humor- you can hear him saying this).
When a customer walks into the business they can expect to feel heat in that back kitchen area. When they are turning our Coney dogs on Tuesday- the place gets might hot.
The thing that makes them unique is the delicious Coney dog sauce along with the old fashioned car hop service.
When we asked Matt what a little know secret about his business was- he replied “It wouldn’t be a secret if I told you and that’ll be 25 cents please.”
To improve your experience know exactly what you want when you push that button to order, the staff can hear it in the kitchen and they can start your order while you are still placing it. That helps them to push the orders out quickly.
The nostalgic look and the quality food at low prices this makes Antwerp’s Root Beer stand a fun destination for the whole family and a “must stop, see and taste” on any family trip.