Pal’s Restaurants a Tradition of Fast Food

In the town of Kingsport, Tennessee, nestled in the Southern Appalachian Mountains; there is a true fast food treasure. Pal’s is a truly American fast food institution. The creator of these small, and very popular, restaurants is a man named Fred “Pal” Barger. The idea first came to him in 1952 while still in the Air Force stationed in Texas. Later, in 1955, Pal was attending a National Restaurant convention in Chicago when he was overheard discussing his idea for a restaurant by 2 gentlemen that were working on the same idea. The men turned out to be Ray Kroc and Fred Turner; their restaurant would be the first McDonalds!

Opening the first Pal’s in 1956, and it is still open, he has expanded in the region to 20 locations. Pal’s has always been obsessive with excellent customer service. Pal’s has been so customer focused that they have opened The Business Excellence Institute in April of 2001 to provide other companies with the same focus on quality and service that have become a standard at Pal’s. Also in March of 2002 Pal’s was presented the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in Washington DC from President George W. Bush.

If the service is impressive wait until you sample the food! The menu includes hotdogs, hamburgers, ham and chicken sandwiches along with their frenchie fries. I have sampled hot dogs all up and down the eastern United States and there are none that can compare to Pal’s. Other fans are hooked on a Pal’s original, the Sauce Burger. The Sauce Burger is basically an all beef patty topped with Pal’s special sauce, which is ketchup-based and mildly spicy.

As a true southern restaurant Pal’s offers the traditional “Sweet Tea”, along with milk shakes and the normal fountain drinks. In recent years Pal’s has added breakfast items to their menu. As with the other items, the breakfast offerings have been widely accepted.

Breakfast is served from 6:00 AM to 10:00AM Monday through Saturday and 7:00 AM to 11:00 AM on Sunday.