Restaurant Road Trip: B & J’s Family Diner

PARSONS W.Va. (WBOY) — This week on Restaurant Road Trip, we’re headed to B & J’s Family Diner in Parsons for some small-town American classics.

Once called the Depot Diner, Billie and Jeff Pennington renamed the restaurant after they took ownership of it in 2022. Billie has been working in restaurants her whole life and actually got her start at the very same Depot Diner back when she was 14.

“I didn’t have my driver’s license or anything so my mother had to drive me to work,” Billie said.

Now, B and J’s is a family affair. Billie manages the restaurant, Jeff jumps in to wash dishes and do maintenance, their son recently helped open up the ice cream bar and their daughter Jacie has been working as a server for the past three years as she’s made her way through high school.

“Sometimes we do fight, but at the end of the day I will always love working for her,” Jacie said.

The homey feel is in the food at B & J’s with hardy, American meals all over the menu.

12 News reporter Jefferson Pan tried their cherry Pie À La Mode. Fun fact: “À La Mode” comes from the French and means “in the fashion,” which is fitting because pie and ice cream never go out of fashion.

Billie said that the bestseller is the meatloaf. Other favorites include the country-fried steak, steak hoagies, blueberry pancakes, and cheeseburgers.

B & J’s can be found at 166 Main Street in Parsons and is open every day from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

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