04/09/2026
Thank you to everyone for your generous response to my message. The staff and I were very touched by them all. Hugely appreciated.
A Billys on the Road Autumn message
I thought it time to give a little update on life at Billys for any of you who are interested in reading.
I had an accident in the USA at the end of July and fractured an ankle along with a painful shoulder injury . My amazing staff have stepped up and carried Billy's through a hugely busy summer for which I am eternally grateful .
The best of this year has been
The progression of a number of our young staff especially and leading the way - Alfie Parsons - a young man who has completely transformed from a shy but wholesome guy into a young confident man who ran the whole show this week when we were short staffed with the support of Millie, Billie Mae, Cherry and Callum and out of sight kitchen guys assigned to the interminable wash up -The lovely Hannah and Joe - out of sight but essential - without them we would collapse.
Also the retention of my brilliant chefs Ami and Zoe - quite honestly the best short order chefs you could find anywhere. As I’m sure many of you have witnessed watching them cope with 600 plus customers a day over the weekends and loads of regular favourites during the week .
Long serving Chloe and Louie - back kitchen mainstays who keep the whole shebang rolling supplying the front of house chefs .
My long serving floor staff the lovely Georgia who is now four months pregnant which is very exciting and the equally lovely Ella, both are reliable, appreciated and loved.
The bonus ball goes to Fran and Leah , both who have returned following retirement and resignation in that order. Frannie tried to give it up but missed you all so much she caved in and came to me and asked to cover a few shifts so she could keep in touch and do the job she just loves . Hospitality is in her bones and I get it completely .
Our lovely Leah tried elsewhere but after couple of months came back through my door and I did not hesitate to say yes.
All the above are the mainstay of Billys, from 7 am through the day the staff are there to serve you and make sure you are looked after .
I am writing this as we have had a few bad reviews (lots of great ones ) regarding slow service or things not quite right . Some have I feel been unfair to individuals and this upsets me . Any complaints I would be happy to deal with in person rather than use social media to shame an individual .
Sometimes things go wrong , sometimes staff are sick or can’t get in and that causes a backlog and for that I apologise . We serve over 2000 customers a week on the hoof, it’s fast and furious but my staff do their utmost to make every experience the best, sometimes we fall short for which I apologise . In the past I would have had a bigger pool of staff to call on to cover shifts. But ...
Hospitality generally is in trouble , this government’s tax raid has been crippling and after 50 years in this Trade I have never been so concerned . Hiring youngsters for a Saturday job is now a minefield and it upsets me greatly that it’s just not possible to take on extra staff . I’ve hired hundreds of great kids over the years and hopefully given many a leg up to prosper and work hard for a bright future but, now I have to exercise caution which is a great shame and makes me sad and angry that I’m shackled by what I feel is unfair taxation plus the guaranteed hours legislation coming in that makes it detrimental to giving our youth a chance to work.
Often customers feel Billys looks a bit tired and I appreciate that sentiment. It is not always possible to spend a lot of money updating parts of this old building without the surety we will get our lease extended, which I hope we will find out about soon.
Thank you for reading and we all look forward as always to welcoming you all here at Billy's.🫶🍳
