Andrew and Rachel Adams took their time before stepping into a restaurant. The idea kept coming up, but the math had to work beyond food costs and rent. It had to work on a calendar. Biscuit Belly finally gave them a model that fit how they live in Hoover, with daytime hours and a playbook that rewards showing up in the community, getting to know regulars and using catering to reach beyond the four walls.

“I had talked about restaurants for years. Rachel had always said no, just because of the time commitment,” Andrew said. “We really love to travel and do different things, so that was always her hiccup in the road, the time commitment. When Biscuit Belly came up, they reached out to our hospitality group that we’re a part of to see if they would be interested in franchising. They brought it to us.”

A Daytime Model That Made Ownership Sustainable

For Andrew and Rachel, Biscuit Belly’s hours solved the one problem that kept pushing restaurant ownership to the back burner. The restaurant runs early, then it clears. That meant they could be hands-on during the rush and still have their evenings. Before they signed, they went to the corporate stores to see it for themselves. They tried the food, watched how the operation ran and made sure the experience felt consistent from location to location.

“The hours were a huge plus, 7 to 2 during the week and 7 to 3 on the weekends, and still have nights available and a little bit better hours to travel with,” Andrew said. “That was a huge selling point for us with work-life balance. We checked out all the corporate stores at the time, made sure it was a really consistent product and something that we could get behind, fell in love with it, and decided it was the perfect match.”

Why Brock’s Gap Made Sense

With the brand decision made, the next priority was selecting the right pocket of Hoover, Alabama. The Adamses landed at The Village at Brock’s Gap, a newer shopping center in a fast-growing area where rooftops, schools and daily routines create a strong breakfast and brunch daypart. It also offered a steady stream of community moments, from school drop-offs to local catering needs, where a morning brand can become part of someone’s week.

“Hoover is continuing to grow. There are new shopping centers coming up, and this is one of the newer ones,” Rachel said. “People are just learning where we’re at. There are a lot of houses around here, too. It’s been really good to see people come in after they drop their kids off for school. It’s definitely continuing to grow, and we’re excited about what’s to come.”

Building Awareness the Old-Fashioned Way

Newer developments can mean a slower start, especially when a restaurant is tucked back from the road and customers do not immediately realize it is there. Early on, the Adamses leaned into community outreach and treated it as part of the weekly routine, not a one-time opening push.

“Just informing people in the community that we’re back here and that this exists behind the shopping center that’s close to the road,” Rachel said. “We spent the first year getting out, taking samples out and catering, talking about catering, just to get awareness out.”

That same outreach mindset carried into their catering strategy. Rather than waiting for new guests to discover the restaurant on their own, they used catering to introduce Biscuit Belly to groups across the Birmingham metro area, including customers who might not typically make the drive to Hoover for breakfast.

“We continue to want to see the brand grow, and obviously our store as well,” Andrew said. “Catering has really helped us get our name out to parts of Birmingham that don’t necessarily come to Hoover a whole lot, but still, like downtown. We had a couple caterings this morning. There’s 150 people total that had Biscuit Belly this morning that didn’t even come in the restaurant.”

A Menu That Feels Familiar, Then Surprises You

Breakfast is a crowded category, and the Adamses see the menu as one reason Biscuit Belly can stand out. Andrew describes the concept as approachable, but still different enough that customers can find a favorite and keep exploring.

“For the brand, it’s a southern menu with a twist,” Andrew said. “People can still get that down-home cooking, biscuits and gravy, but they still get to try something different. Something they would not have thought about, some flavors they probably wouldn’t have put together.”

Support That Shows Up in Real Time

As first-time restaurant owners, the Adamses point to franchisor support as a stabilizer, especially when the learning curve is steep. Rachel said marketing has helped them stay visible and keep customers engaged.

“Marketing, for sure, coming up with new ideas and new ways to gain new customers and keep existing customers,” Rachel said. “They run a lot of fun campaigns and things that grab your attention.”

Training has also been hands-on, with support before opening and continued updates as new items and limited-time offers roll out.

“We went to Kentucky and had manager-owner training there. They came down to our store and helped get us ready, our staff ready,” Rachel said. “There’s a great training program in place that continues to update as new menu items come out, and LTO items, they help support us.”

Andrew also pointed to accessibility as a practical advantage. When a question comes up in the middle of a busy week, being able to reach someone quickly matters.

“All of the corporate employees have been readily available,” he said. “If we need to pick up the phone, call, text, email, everyone gets back to us really quickly.”

Becoming Part of the Weekly Routine

For the Adamses, the long-term win is not novelty. It is repeat business and word of mouth, built through the kind of consistent experience that turns a first visit into a habit. Rachel said she sees that momentum in the guests who return on the same days each week, then bring someone new.

“We get people that come in every single week. We have different groups that come in on Tuesdays and Thursdays,” she said. “We see a lot of the same faces, and it’s nice to see new people and also see those familiar faces bringing new people.”

To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly.

Andrew and Rachel Adams took their time before stepping into a restaurant. The idea kept coming up, but the math had to work beyond food costs and rent. It had to work on a calendar. Biscuit Belly finally gave them a model that fit how they live in Hoover, with daytime hours and a playbook that rewards showing up in the community, getting to know regulars and using catering to reach beyond the four walls.

“I had talked about restaurants for years. Rachel had always said no, just because of the time commitment,” Andrew said. “We really love to travel and do different things, so that was always her hiccup in the road, the time commitment. When Biscuit Belly came up, they reached out to our hospitality group that we’re a part of to see if they would be interested in franchising. They brought it to us.”

A Daytime Model That Made Ownership Sustainable

For Andrew and Rachel, Biscuit Belly’s hours solved the one problem that kept pushing restaurant ownership to the back burner. The restaurant runs early, then it clears. That meant they could be hands-on during the rush and still have their evenings. Before they signed, they went to the corporate stores to see it for themselves. They tried the food, watched how the operation ran and made sure the experience felt consistent from location to location.

“The hours were a huge plus, 7 to 2 during the week and 7 to 3 on the weekends, and still have nights available and a little bit better hours to travel with,” Andrew said. “That was a huge selling point for us with work-life balance. We checked out all the corporate stores at the time, made sure it was a really consistent product and something that we could get behind, fell in love with it, and decided it was the perfect match.”

Why Brock’s Gap Made Sense

With the brand decision made, the next priority was selecting the right pocket of Hoover, Alabama. The Adamses landed at The Village at Brock’s Gap, a newer shopping center in a fast-growing area where rooftops, schools and daily routines create a strong breakfast and brunch daypart. It also offered a steady stream of community moments, from school drop-offs to local catering needs, where a morning brand can become part of someone’s week.

“Hoover is continuing to grow. There are new shopping centers coming up, and this is one of the newer ones,” Rachel said. “People are just learning where we’re at. There are a lot of houses around here, too. It’s been really good to see people come in after they drop their kids off for school. It’s definitely continuing to grow, and we’re excited about what’s to come.”

Building Awareness the Old-Fashioned Way

Newer developments can mean a slower start, especially when a restaurant is tucked back from the road and customers do not immediately realize it is there. Early on, the Adamses leaned into community outreach and treated it as part of the weekly routine, not a one-time opening push.

“Just informing people in the community that we’re back here and that this exists behind the shopping center that’s close to the road,” Rachel said. “We spent the first year getting out, taking samples out and catering, talking about catering, just to get awareness out.”

That same outreach mindset carried into their catering strategy. Rather than waiting for new guests to discover the restaurant on their own, they used catering to introduce Biscuit Belly to groups across the Birmingham metro area, including customers who might not typically make the drive to Hoover for breakfast.

“We continue to want to see the brand grow, and obviously our store as well,” Andrew said. “Catering has really helped us get our name out to parts of Birmingham that don’t necessarily come to Hoover a whole lot, but still, like downtown. We had a couple caterings this morning. There’s 150 people total that had Biscuit Belly this morning that didn’t even come in the restaurant.”

A Menu That Feels Familiar, Then Surprises You

Breakfast is a crowded category, and the Adamses see the menu as one reason Biscuit Belly can stand out. Andrew describes the concept as approachable, but still different enough that customers can find a favorite and keep exploring.

“For the brand, it’s a southern menu with a twist,” Andrew said. “People can still get that down-home cooking, biscuits and gravy, but they still get to try something different. Something they would not have thought about, some flavors they probably wouldn’t have put together.”

Support That Shows Up in Real Time

As first-time restaurant owners, the Adamses point to franchisor support as a stabilizer, especially when the learning curve is steep. Rachel said marketing has helped them stay visible and keep customers engaged.

“Marketing, for sure, coming up with new ideas and new ways to gain new customers and keep existing customers,” Rachel said. “They run a lot of fun campaigns and things that grab your attention.”

Training has also been hands-on, with support before opening and continued updates as new items and limited-time offers roll out.

“We went to Kentucky and had manager-owner training there. They came down to our store and helped get us ready, our staff ready,” Rachel said. “There’s a great training program in place that continues to update as new menu items come out, and LTO items, they help support us.”

Andrew also pointed to accessibility as a practical advantage. When a question comes up in the middle of a busy week, being able to reach someone quickly matters.

“All of the corporate employees have been readily available,” he said. “If we need to pick up the phone, call, text, email, everyone gets back to us really quickly.”

Becoming Part of the Weekly Routine

For the Adamses, the long-term win is not novelty. It is repeat business and word of mouth, built through the kind of consistent experience that turns a first visit into a habit. Rachel said she sees that momentum in the guests who return on the same days each week, then bring someone new.

“We get people that come in every single week. We have different groups that come in on Tuesdays and Thursdays,” she said. “We see a lot of the same faces, and it’s nice to see new people and also see those familiar faces bringing new people.”

To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly.

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Chris Irby

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