KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL) — For more than 50 years, Pratt’s BBQ, Catering & Honey Glazed Hams has served the Kingsport community, but on Father’s Day the restaurant served its last brunch.
On Sunday, the restaurant was filled with families enjoying a buffet of Southern dishes, like brisket, all eager to have one last meal at Pratt’s.
“We’re kind of celebrating my dad today,” said Jonathan Pratt, son of owner Tom Pratt. “But (also) our last day of activity after 54 years.”
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Pratt announced in late May that the restaurant would close permanently after Father’s Day brunch. He said the city showed up on their last day.
“We need a little more time to turn things around,” Pratt said. “Everyone looks around and takes it in.”
Customers like Harvey Randolph made the restaurant a regular. Randolph has been there several days a week for the past two years. He said it was more than just a place to eat.
“Pratt’s has always been part of our heritage here,” Randolph said. “I got to know the people here, the waitresses, Karen, the manager, Tom, and they’re like family.”
Randolph said Pratt’s holds two great memories for him, the honey-glazed ham and the statue in front of the restaurant named “Big John.”
“I remember the Indian from when I was a preteen,” Randolph said. “And we used to come here to get ham for Christmas or Thanksgiving.”
Randolph said the last day of work felt like a special goodbye.
“To me, it’s like our community coming together and saying goodbye to an old friend and wishing the people who work here a better future,” he said.
For Pratt, the last day felt like a homecoming.
“What’s really interesting is people meeting and introducing themselves to me,” Pratt said. “And the stories that come with it, like, ‘Hey, my grandmother waited tables here,’ or ‘My dad was a cook here and we used to come in.'”
Although the restaurant is no longer operational, Pratt said this is not the last time the community will taste the restaurant’s ham.
“We’re going to try to continue this through another channel that I can’t talk about right now,” Pratt said. “But I hope you eat Pratt hams for years to come.”
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