Over the weekend, two "The Big Biscuit" restaurants in the Kansas City area unexpectedly shut down, catching staff off guard. This abrupt closure in Independence and Blue Springs, Missouri, has resulted in about 60 employees losing their jobs.
After being fired on Sunday, workers got together on Monday afternoon to show their support for each other. A lot of workers wrote on social media about the sudden shutdowns.
At first, the staff said the closures came from the company's main office because the restaurant's owner, Dan Gerson, had died.
A spokesperson for The Big Biscuit told KMBC that Gerson's family chose to close both locations.
The Gerson family owns and runs the Blue Springs and Independence restaurants independently. They are not corporate or franchised sites, the company said. They also believe that their family's decision to close the restaurants must have been difficult for them.
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The Big Biscuit Restaurant was a family to its employees
Silvia Sarmiento, one of the long-time Big Biscuit employees, said in an interview that they were a family. She did feel cared for and did not expect something like this to happen to us.
"I always felt like Dan cared about his employees," Sarmiento added.
Workers at the Independence Big Biscuit said things began to change after the death of owner Dan Gerson in late September. It is said that both the restaurants in Independence and Blue Springs are independently owned and were taken over by his family.
Marquee Larette, another former Big Biscuit in Independence staff, stated they have been loyal employees through thick and thin. She emphasized that they deserve more than this.
Sarmiento and Lerette both worked for many years at the Independence restaurant.
They said an audit was done every 90 days after Gerson's family took over. After a short time, the restaurant's devices were turned off.
Sarmiento said they thought that even though they would not have the same name, they would still have a job and be fine. She emphasized that they expected to have dinner for Thanksgiving, but now they have no dinner or job.
Luke Gerson felt terrible
Meanwhile, Luke Gerson felt terrible about his former employees, hoping they all get re-hired.
He said negotiations to sell the restaurants are still ongoing, and there is no set date for when they might reopen.
In a statement Monday, Big Biscuit President Chad Offerdahl said, "Like many others in the community, we are saddened by the death of Dan Gerson, founder of The Big Biscuit brand. Our thoughts are with his family, who owns the Blue Springs and Independence locations, and with Gerson's workers. We are working hard with the Gerson family to find ways to get those two shops back open."
Dan Gerson worked as a commodities trader at the Chicago Board of Trade for 18 years. In 2000, he opened The Big Biscuit restaurant in Independence, Missouri. After the first one, Gerson quickly opened a second restaurant in Blue Springs, Missouri.
He was kind and helpful, was on the boards of several groups, and always found ways to help people.
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