Smalls Sliders has Grand Opening in Willis

WILLIS, TX -- It may have been a cloudy and drizzly Saturday on January 4th, but it was all Sun and Fun at the Grand Opening of the first Texas opening of Small Sliders, a relatively new hamburger chain based out of Atlanta, Georgia. Smalls, backed at the corporate level by former NFL quarterback Drew Brees, is mostly concentrated with stores in Louisiana, and the Gulf Coast, but is making in-roads to Arkansas, Georgia, South Carolina, Missouri, as well as with west ventures being planned. The Can Drops, or dropping a can, their code for opening a new restaurant, was delayed a bit due to the Texas Department of Transportation’s placement of a street light at the location of the restaurant at 806 W. Montgomery Street, in Willis, just east of Interstate 45. The restaurant had their soft opening on December 27th.

The Willis location is owned by Katy-based Preston Cunningham, an accomplished entrepreneur with extensive experience in retail development. Preston has a strong connection to the Smalls Sliders brand, and this opening marks part of his second franchise agreement with the company. Since the opening of the restaurant, the demand has been tremendous, causing delays on W. Montgomery, which is located across the street from the Willis HEB. According to Cunningham, he has plans to open a new Smalls location in Conroe on SH 105, west of I-45.

“We had a great soft opening,” said David Higgins, part of the Willis Smalls Sliders ownership group. “We had our challenges, but the City of Willis was great in helping us get open.”

Higgins also said that the reception has been overwhelmingly positive not only with the concept of the restaurant, but also with the food.

“I just want to thank the community for being patient with our opening,” said Preston Cunningham, the Willis franchise owner and operator. “This community has a unique charm and a welcoming spirit that makes it the perfect home for our first Texas Can.”

The franchise commemorated the opening by handing out Smorange™ slides slippers to patrons, along with Smalls Sliders stickers, and beach balls. The restaurant chain is still young, and the concept of having a restaurant made of used cargo containers saves on cost, along with construction of all the internals in a factory and shipping them out to sites, to have them dropped into place by cranes.

“This is my second time here, and I love it,” said Stephanie Espinoza, who brought her family to the grand opening. “The sliders and fries are great. I was expecting regular cheese, but Smalls has a lot of flavor and they have some spice in their queso, so to me it’s much better.”

Espinoza also noted that many of her colleagues at the Willis ISD Transportation Department are excited to have Smalls Sliders in such close proximity to their warehouse, offering a new option for lunch time rotations.

Local Man-About-Montgomery County, Nathan Arrazate, tried a slider from Smalls, and interviewed patrons for his Facebook page, touting that Willis ISD students worked at the new location. He was also present at one of the Smalls Sliders promotional visits involving the company’s CanVan back in the fall in Willis that handed out sliders and fries.

“I'm gonna have to talk with Jesus after eating,” said Azzrate, taking a bite of a small savory slider, cheesying up his white beard. “Forgive me ‘cause I know what I’m eating. Smalls Sliders, sinfully delicious.”

The menu is not complicated. Basically, it’s just Smalls Sliders, Waffle Fries (w/Signature Seasoning), Grilled Cheese, Smauce (their proprietary sauce), and Queso (for the fries). You can upgrade with their Biggie Smalls (Double-Meat and Cheese), Bacon, and Smalls Way Fries (Smauce and Queso covered). Local pricing is comparable to Whataburger according to company sources.

“The excitement of bringing Smalls Sliders to Texas is something I’m proud to be part of, and there’s no better place to start than Willis,” said Cunningham. “The response from locals has been outstanding, and I’m eager to create even more special moments with others in the community.”

Smalls Sliders has a well stacked leadership team each having decades of restaurant experience to the table. The company is headed by Brandon Landry, and led by industry veteran, CEO Maria Rivera, CEO.

For more information: smallssliders.com