Daryl and Megan Jones, with help from their two daughters, run Bill and Essie’s BBQ in Marion. They currently run pop-ups and do catering but they will soon be opening up a restaurant in downtown Marion.
Bill and Essie’s BBQ offers all kinds of smoked meats options along with delicious sides. Daryl and Megan Jones who run the business currently do pop-ups and cater events but will soon be opening up a restaurant in downtown Marion.
Marion County has gained another food option in a time when counties are losing businesses. Daryl and Megan Jones are the owners of Bill and Essie’s BBQ, and they have been doing pop-ups and catering for over a year now.
The business is named Bill and Essie’s after Daryl’s parents. Daryl’s mom was nicknamed Bill and his dad was called Essie. Daryl’s dad still lives close by in Wichita.
The couple was traveling from near Kansas City to Marion County to do events, but moved back to the area (Megan grew up in Marion) last year so they could really focus on the business. They bought a building on the corner of 3rd and Main in downtown Marion and have been working on renovating it.
“We even got grant money for the construction over a year ago, but with COVID-19, it’s been hard finding workers who could do the renovations we needed. We finally got all the contractors we needed and now we are close to our goal,” said Megan.
The roof needed to be redone before they could rebuild the inside of the building. Now that the roof is almost done, they will be able to quickly get going on the inside that has already been demolished. The couple plans to have the kitchen done first so that Daryl, who does all the cooking, can work out of the kitchen for the catering side of the business as well as get started on take-out orders. The dining room will follow and then the couple can be open for indoor and patio eating along with a full bar. They hope to be up and running fully by summer, but they do not yet have a set date.
“It’s been a long process, but we are really excited and ready to serve our customers. We have a loyal base who come to our pop-ups. It will be nice to have a place they can come to regularly,” said Megan.
The couple has been serving at events and doing pop-ups about two-three times a month such as Marion Merchant events on Second Saturdays, Chingawassa Days, Pilsen’s Packrats Flea Markets and more. Their friendly smiles and interactions with Marion County residents and Daryl’s food keeps customers following them around for more.
Daryl makes all the food while Megan cheers him on, handles the logistics, the Facebook page and all the marketing. They enjoy working together as a team.
“I smoke all kinds of meat and make my own sauces. I also do smoked meatloaf. I make all kinds of sides, too,” said Daryl.
The couple can cater any event from groups of 10 up to no limit. There is a menu on their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/billandessiesbbq or you can email them BillandEssiesBBQ@gmail.com.
