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Week 5: Friday, May 22

Posted: May 22 2020

Business 1

Large portions and the best lunch in town, as ranked by the Best of the Bakken awards! This establishment was established in 2012 and is co-owned by two locals, born and raised in Williston. 

Their favorite thing about their work is experimenting with different flavors and menu items, something they can do since they are an independent restaurant and not part of a franchise program. They love getting feedback and hearing good things from their customers. 

Something they would like people to know about the business? “You have to be passionate and a little crazy to succeed in the restaurant business. It’s a grind and some of the most labor intensive work out there for small margins.”

They noted how much they appreciate people around the community asking how they are doing and rooting for them to make it through the current health situation with its impact on small businesses. They appreciate the small town efforts to keep the small business community alive and unique in Williston. 

We asked them what the weirdest thing about their business is. They told us it is definitely the owners!


Business 2

This Main Street staple is 100 years old this year! It has only been owned by two families over the course of its history (two generations each). It has two locations. The original location was built after World War I and the second location after World War II. The owner’s favorite thing about the business is the history of the establishment, the employees, and maintaining a historical building. 

We asked what the owner appreciates most about Williston and the reply was “The community support. There are an insane amount of people who come for our drive up concessions to show their support while we are closed.”

Some more clues if you haven’t figured it out yet! The owner is an avid mountain biker and has completed the 50 mile Maah Daah Hey trail race last year. And a cool fact about the original building: in the 1920s, the screen would raise and lower so that the stage could be used for boxing matches!