End of an era: New owners take over Pearly's restaurant

Sep. 3—ALBANY — Carl Young has a name for the culture that's developed around Pearly's Famous Country Cooking restaurant, which has stood as a beacon calling out to locals in the heart of Albany and to visitors alike for more than 30 years, promising and providing the best home-cooking in southwest Georgia.

"We've hired some doozies of employees over the years, and we've made it clear that if they weren't willing to do three things — be dependable, have a good attitude and develop a good work ethic — working here is not for them," Young, the husband of Tracy Young and son-in-law of the mastermind and namesake of Pearly's, the legendary Pearly Gates, said. "We tell them we want them to have a brain enema, to forget all the stuff they've done at places where they worked before. Because that doesn't work here.

"You have to be willing to adapt to 'Pearlinesian' to make a go here."

Gates, who recently marked 60 years in the food industry, all in the same building at 814 N. Slappey Blvd., his daughter and son in law, and their staff have certainly made a go of Pearly's, one of the most successful eateries in the region. That's why southwest Georgia diners have decried the recent sale of the restaurant, many lamenting on social media and in public end-of-an-era-type comments that typically surround such transactions.

"I had lots of thrills and made lots of friends in that building," Gates, who took over a Burger Chef franchise at the Slappey location in 1962, saw it through a decade as a Hardee's franchise and eventually bought into daughter Tracy's concept of a locally-owned restaurant that served, as Pearly's slogan puts it, "real food that's fast."

"I'm not a bragger, but I'm proud of what we did at Pearly's. There's nothing like it in Albany."

A large number of the customers who made Pearly's a regular breakfast or lunch stop over the past three decades-plus came by the Manor House Pub in Albany this week to pay their respects and reminisce with Gates, his family, his employees and his friends on the last day that the family opened and closed the restaurant. A group headed by principles Matt and Jim Fuller, Austin Newman and Shawn Walters purchased Pearly's and "took up where they left off" on Thursday.

"This is such a humbling experience to be a part of this (celebration)," Tracy Young said. "It was very emotional for me; I got up this morning (on the last day of the family's ownership), and my heart just sank. I guess it's like my friend B.J. Fletcher told me earlier: 'After 38 years, they finally made me general manager, and now I'm out of a job.'

"But, seriously, it's been an honor to work with the amazing employees we have had at Pearly's over the years and to serve our loyal customers. I guess the thing that my dad taught me that has meant the most over the time I've been here is that 'Service, service, service ... quality service is what matters.'"

Gates said the 10 years he ran the Hardee's franchise on North Slappey were "the worst 10 years I had." Asked to explain, he said he didn't exactly see eye-to-eye with the company's management.

"They wanted me to do things one way — their way — and that just didn't sit with me," he said. "They sent their corporate folks down here to talk with me, and when they left they knew exactly where I stood. They also found out that I don't take no sh—."

Gates laughed as he remembered the time he was arrested at the Hardee's restaurant.

"There was a local cop then who would pull people over in the mornings and block my drive-thru line," he said. "It would slow things down to a crawl, and people who were on their way to work were in a hurry. I went out and nicely asked the cop if he would do his business away from our drive-thru so that our customers could get through, and he ended up taking me to the station."

When Tracy Young came up with the logo and concept that would become Pearly's in 1991, no one was quite prepared for what was about to happen.

"Tracy was going to school in Americus to study nursing, but her dad told her one day if she came and worked for him, she could make more money than she ever would as a nurse," Carl Young said. "She said there were three things she didn't want: to wear a polyester uniform, to work nights and to ever have to deal with a Soft-Serv machine.

"She convinced Pearly that the restaurant would work better as a breakfast/lunch venue and then close at night. He was so mad with the Hardee's folks and frustrated with the franchise concept, he said, 'Let's give it a try.'"

Tracy's concept for Pearly's, while not new, was unique in execution. Combining the best parts of the burger franchises and the then-new concept of serving breakfast items all day, as well as pulling together family recipes for entrees, vegetables and desserts, the Pearly's crew set up shop and was an instant hit. They followed through on the promise to get their real food to customers fast, and soon the little restaurant on Slappey became the place to be.

Regulars would typically set up shop at larger tables and work on solving all the world's problems while downing a hot breakfast — featuring Pearly's impossible-to-match biscuits — or sipping cups of coffee. Albany City Attorney Nathan Davis was one of those regulars.

"I haven't been there as often since COVID, but a bunch of us always enjoyed getting together and discussing the day's issues at Pearly's," Davis said. "Watching the way they served their customers was amazing.

"You always hate to see the 'end of an era,' but I think with the successful businessmen who are taking over Pearly's, it should continue to have the same success."

Indeed, one of the new owners of Pearly's, Walters, who owns and manages the Albany Loco's franchise, said the formula established by Gates and the Youngs is unmatched in restaurants he's been in.

"The work they do is insane," Walters said. "That restaurant is a beast, and it works because of the way their employees work. People have said they're worried we want to 'change' Pearly's. We'd be foolish to do that."

The new ownership group has agreed to keep the Youngs on for up to six months for training purposes and to pass along as many of their concepts as possible to new general manager Chris Kendrick.

Carl Young said he's happy to stay on to keep the "Pearlinesian" culture alive.

"I had always thought the best way to take Pearly's into the future was to franchise it," he said. "This place, with its size, has outkicked its coverage. It's maxed out. Tracy and I are both happy to stay on to help the new owners with the transition, but what happens in the future is now up to them.

"I just encourage them to keep in mind the things my dad taught me: Always undersell and overdeliver, make sure you keep your customers happy and make sure you take care of your employees. If you do those things, at some point you're going to be happy."

You couldn't say the Youngs are particularly happy about leaving behind a business that's been a part of their lives for decades. But they're not exactly washing their hands of Pearly's.

"It's kind of bittersweet," Tracy Young said. "It will be different, but I'm glad we have the opportunity to maintain my dad's name and his legacy."

As for Pearly himself? He's asked for — and received — permission to sit in his familiar wheelchair and wave at customers as they pick up their food at the drive-thru. Some things are even slower to change.