LILESVILLE- You can spot Pa’s Country Kitchen by the towering silo and the ancient, broken down Ford truck sitting at the front of the property as you’re coming down ‘74 from Lilesville towards Wadesboro. The humongous chicken standing guard out front greets customers as they walk in to the restaurant.
The owner of Pa’s Country Kitchen, Timothy McCoy, grew up in Monroe, NC and currently lives in Mt. Gilead. He discovered his love of a cooking at a young age. “I learned how to cook from my mom and grandmother. My first thing that I cooked was scrambled eggs and I was so little that I had to push a chair up to the stove to stand on to cook,” said McCoy.
McCoy has come a long way since then and has been in the restaurant business, in one form or another, for 42 years. “I started when I was 12. I was a curb hop at Midway BBQ in Monroe. From there, I went to the ice cream shop and from there into the kitchen,” said McCoy.
It wasn’t long before McCoy would own his own place. “The first restaurant I opened in Monroe was a dine and dance tavern. It had a restaurant, night club and bar, under one roof, separated into different rooms,” said McCoy.
McCoy’s next restaurant was in Beaufort County, South Carolina. “After I closed the first restaurant, I moved to the beach and opened up one there,” said McCoy. When McCoy’s youngest daughter was about to have a baby, he decided to close the restaurant and moved back up to North Carolina. It was then that he opened up the Harvest Diner in Norwood
“I closed the Harvest Diner at the end of 2018 to move over here. I didn’t want to be in that shopping center any more and this spot came available. I liked it, so I moved.” He has been at his current location ever since and the restaurant will celebrate its first anniversary Feb. 1.
What is it about the business that keeps McCoy coming back? “The biggest thing I like about cooking is that I like to prepare something and watch someone enjoy it. That’s always been a thing for me, even before I had my own restaurant. Just being able to cook something people like and enjoy eating,” said McCoy. “More than anything else, I love cooking breakfast. Growing up, and in my adult life, I’ve always enjoyed eating breakfast for dinner,” McCoy added.
People seem to enjoy eating his burgers the most. “I sell a ton of hamburgers. I’ve been making my hamburgers from this one recipe for 30 some years now and it’s always been a top seller. You won’t find another one that taste like it anywhere,” said McCoy.
McCoy’s chicken and dumplings get their fair share of compliments as well. “On Thursdays, I have chicken and dumplings. I have a lot of folks tell me they haven’t had chicken and dumplings that good since their grandmother made them.”
The future is looking pretty bright for Pa’s Country Kitchen. “I plain to have a Cruise In this summer. I’ve talked to some bike clubs and they’re interested in coming in on a Thursday evening once a month. I’m also trying to set up some cars shows and there’s some other events I’m working on. I’d like to open at least one more restaurant eventually, I’m not sure where yet.”
“This is my fourth restaurant. Just love this business. No matter what I go out and do different, I always come back to it,” said McCoy
