Biscuit Myths:

I get so tired of the comments-- you can't imagine the things I hear!

I went to a yard sale in Candler Park today. I drove up in my Biscuit car, wearing a T-shirt with the Biscuit logo on it. Suddenly I was surrounded by people telling me that they used to eat at the Biscuit, but now they hate it. I asked them why they hated it-- here are the reasons I was given:

• They don't make their own biscuits anymore- they just reheat frozen biscuit "pucks". (I assured them that this wasn't true, and invited them to stop by the Bakery any morning at 5am and watch the biscuit makers as they mix the dough).


• The frozen biscuits are cooked days in advance and reheated each day. (Again, there's no such thing as a frozen biscuit at our stores. All uneaten biscuits are either thrown into the garbage, or turned into dog treats that we freely give out to anyone walking a dog past our restaurant. The trays containing raw biscuits are date stamped, and trashed if they aren't cooked within 24 hours.)


• Ever since the Flying Biscuit "sold out" to Raving Brands, the biscuits keep getting smaller and smaller. (We have one biscuit cutter at each store. The one at Candler Park is 15 years old. Every biscuit has been cut the same exact size since 1992. Some rise higher than others, but that's what happens when you make a handmade item each day. They won't always be exactly the same every day. If you don't like your biscuit, or if you think it's smaller than it was at your last vist- send it back, we'll give you a larger one. If you want cookie cutter biscuits that are always the same size, go to Mrs. Winners and eat the frozen "pucks" that you so detest.)


• Now that the Biscuit is a corporation, the employees have to wear uniforms. (When I started working at the Biscuit, the servers were allowed to wear whatever they chose. After seeing my fill of asscracks and cleavage, I instituted a dress code and it was simple: all employees are required to wear a Flying Biscuit Shirt. I don't think that was too restrictive. I believe that the employees should be identifiable. We have a variety of shirts to chose from, and if they don't like the shirts that we sell, they can bring their own shirts in and I will have a FB logo imprinted on it for free.)


• The original owner of the Biscuit sold out. (Delia Champion is the hardest working person I know. Even though she sold her restaurant to Raving Brands, she is still actively involved in the restaurant. She works an average of 17 hours a day training the new staff, testing recipes, cooking the food and personally answering all customer service issues.)


• The "Biscuit Attitude" will be lost in the franchise stores-- it won't be the same. (The servers, Managers, and cook staff for the first franchise store in Buckead began training at the Candler Park store 5 months prior to their opening. Half of the Candler Park staff have done a shift or two at the new store to help with the transition. The "Biscuit Attitude" is obvious in the Buckhead store, as it will be in any future store.)


• I don't support franchises, or any corporate run business. (Really? You don't go to Kroger, Publix or Whole Food? You never eat at Wendy's or McDonalds? You don't buy Charmin? Kleenex? Band-Aids? Never been to Ruth Chris or Red Lobster? Get over yourself and your idealistic attitude.)

OK-- I'll step off of my soapbox now... it just irks me that so many people hate to see someone succeed. Delia's success has become a personal affront to so many people and I don't understand. Given the opportunity, I'm sure that everyone of the nay-sayers would do the same thing. The Biscuit is her baby-- she's taken care of it through it's infancy-- and now it's graduated. She's a doting mother and she will probably never let go-- but that's what makes it a success.

So, I've learned my lesson-- I'll have to be a little more discreet when I go to yard sales in Candler Park!