Brian Wells
History Through Burgers

Sophia (left) and her mother Julie McCullah take a moment to talk and drink coffee together while working to get the restaurant ready to open. The two frequently find moments to talk and laugh together, even during the busy parts of the day.
After three employees at G&E Burgers in Williamsburg finish turning about 30 pounds of ground beef into fresh patties, they retreat into the dining room to eat a breakfast made of bacon, tomatoes, french fries and other items they had in the kitchen – a morning tradition.
In one booth, Sophia McCullah sits with a coworker, sipping coffee and discussing the upcoming elections. In another, Elizabeth Higginbotham shares fries and a sausage patty with her young daughter. Kool and the Gang's "Get Down On It" plays throughout the building. Just as they finish eating and clearing their tables, the restaurant opens for the day.
Moments later, Ralph Childress enters the restaurant, leans his cane against the wall, takes a seat in a booth and orders a cup of coffee.
"This restaurant was built when I got my driver's license," he says.
In the 1960s, when the drive-in restaurant was first opened by sisters-in-law Geraldine Buhl and Emeline Alder, it was one of two stops on what Childress called "The Loop," a route Williamsburg kids would drive around the city. "It was just a good stopping place," he says.
When the restaurant came up for sale in 1999, it was purchased by Wesley Chapman, Geraldine's grandson and Emeline's great nephew, and his wife, Julie McCullah.
While the couple owned the restaurant, another woman ran it, Julie says. But after her husband died in an accident in 2005, Julie took over. Not only did she need the income, but it helped in her healing.
"It's kind of comforting knowing that this belonged to his family, and that I'm still here and involved in it," she says. "It's definitely been something that helped me through it. It kept me busy, it gave me something to focus on."
When Julie's daughter, Sophia, was three or four years old, she began coming with her mother to work. Sophia, now 18, began picking up shifts as a waitress and cook when she was 16.
"People have watched her grow up here," Julie says.
Sophia has several other jobs and is taking business classes at University of the Cumberlands. While it may be a problem for many, working with family isn't an issue for Sophia and her mother.
"It's challenging sometimes but we get along well," Sophie says. "We have respect for each other."
Julie says Sophia didn't initially seem to have an interest in the restaurant. But as she's grown up, that's changed, Julie says. While there are no concrete plans, Sophia says taking over the business down the road has always been an option.
"It just depends on what she wants to do with it, and when she's ready to let go of it, where I'm at," Sophia says.
Since opening, the lots where customers would park and order to have their food served to them by bellhops have been replaced by a patio and a dining room. The menu now includes items such as frog legs, chicken wings and alcohol. But the restaurant is still known mainly for its fresh-pressed patties, Julie says.
“Burgers are our thing,” she says.