Waitresses Become Business Owners

In her 11 years waitressing at the restaurant most recently dubbed Parkside Cafe and Catering, Joy Bader has worked for a handful of owners, including her father and great uncle.

When the most recent owner decided he no longer wanted to run what was previously known as Country Sampler, Bader was at a crossroads.

"We didn't want to go through another owner," Bader said of herself and fellow waitress Judy Newcomb.

So, the waitresses took the plunge, bought and remodeled the 92-seat eatery in September and renamed it Parkside Cafe and Catering.

A collaborative business venture, Newcomb said her husband chipped in $5,000, she added $3,00 and Bader contributed several thousand to take the helm of, and spruce up the restaurant, which is tucked into the Babylon Business Campus at 935 Horsham Road.

"This was all paisley wallpaper," Newcomb, of Horsham, said, gesturing to the front section of the restaurant's walls. "It was like 20 years of wallpaper we had to strip."

Other upgrades were made to the restrooms, Newcomb said.

For the warmer months, Newcomb said umbrellas will be added to five of the outdoor tables. The outside seating sections work well for catering, Newcomb said, adding that soon after she and Bader took over, Parkside hosted a beef and beer benefit. 

Besides aesthetic upgrades, Newcomb said she and Bader rolled out a new menu featuring pulled pork sandwiches, homemade burgers, all-day breakfast and homemade soups. 

Regular Nancy Kleeman of Maple Glen said she's been coming to Parkside for so many years that she can not recall how long it's been since her first visit.

"Your grandmother was still here," Kleeman said to Bader. 

Regardless of who was working then and now, Kleeman said she was hooked after that first meal. Her favorites?

"Everything that's fattening," she said. "I'm not fussy."

And, although Bader and Newcomb said they love their decision to become owners, going from pouring coffee and serving food to running the business took some wrangling.

"(The previous owner) had been asking us for a while if we wanted to take over," said Newcomb, who admitted being "apprehensive" because of having two kids in college. 

For Bader, who has three young children, the breakfast and lunch gig works perfectly because she's home from work in time for the kids to arrive back from school. 

Bader, who attended college to be a veterinary technician, said she worked as a bartender and waitress at Ruby Tuesday's during college. She started working for her dad during his stint as owner and decided to stay on.

"I realized I made more doing this than as a vet tech," Bader said. 

Together with the eatery's half dozen employees, Bader and Newcomb continue waiting tables now, even as owners. The only difference, Bader said, is the addition of the "book end."

"It worked out really well," Bader said of taking over ownership of the restaurant. "I feel stupid that I worried so much."