Food, food and still more food
With promise of more to come, restaurants seats dominate Kilgore
By LESTER MURRAY news2@kilgorenewsherald.com

With some 30 restaurants in town – offering seating for more than 3,000 diners – and still more eateries on the way, someone has to ask: Where are all those hungry mouths coming from?

Kilgore has a range of restaurants seating anywhere from 20 to 360 patrons, fast food to not-so-fast food and a variety from burgers and fries, Mexican to Italian and everywhere in between.

Mike Coston, president of the Kilgore Chamber of Commerce said he feels Kilgore is definitely has not reached its potential when it comes to dining facilities in Kilgore. “When you have major corporations such as Chili’s and Domino’s Pizza building in Kilgore it is just not a fluke,” said Coston. “These corporation spend a lot of time and money to determine if the market is right.”

Coston said with all of these restaurants in Kilgore and most of them doing well, it means not only are the people of Kilgore utilizing them but also people outside the community.

“We have lots of people working in Kilgore that don’t live here,” said Coston. “Not to mention the students at Kilgore College contributing, especially during the lunch hours.”

With the enormous variety of food now in Kilgore, Coston said, locals are not as quick to drive to Longview or Tyler to have dinner. “There is enough of a variety here with quality to support our restaurants and I feel there is still room to grow in this area in Kilgore,” said Coston.

Coston – whose mission is to build tourism – said the number of restaurants in Kilgore feeds other areas of commerce as well. “With people coming to eat in Kilgore they might also do some shopping as well as purchasing gasoline,” said Coston. Coston said he looks forward to the addition in the downtown area of Pietro’s Italian restaurant scheduled to open on Kilgore Street next month. Several sources also indicate a Domino’s Pizza will soon locate at the corner of E. Main Street and Hwy. 259.

He believes the growing number of restaurants actually feed off each other.

“One day I might want burger and the next chicken, but by having the quantity and variety Kilgore has, I am able to stay right here in Kilgore for any type of dining experience,” said Coston.

Dan and Bette McKay own McKay’s restaurant.

We feel fortunate since we started the business nine years ago,” said Dan. “We offer foods that are not in competition with a lot of other restaurants.”

Dan said McKay’s has always offered a good selection and food as good as anybody can get. “We offer a fine selection of steaks and shrimp with a buffet that offers multiple choices,” said Dan. “Our business has doubled since we took over and I feel it is because of what we have to offer.”

McKay said he has customers coming from Gladewater, Overton and

lot of the surrounding communities besides Kilgore. “Even though Kilgore is locked in, businesses are still pulling customers from all around the area as we are,” said Dan. “I think new restaurants coming in are good, it shows a sign of growth in the area.”