For John Lazar and his family, it's been a dream to have two restaurants available inside of their store, Tiger Mart, again since 2020.
That dream is now a reality.
'We did our soft opening about two months ago,' John said. 'We beefed up our hours, we beefed up our menu a little bit and now we're here today.'
Being able to mix it up was important to them to be able to meet the needs of their customers.
'Nobody craves the same thing every single day,' he said. 'You want to have some type of variety, and it's something for the town.'
That's also why the restaurant bears its name— Bearcat Burgers.
His father, Lazar Lazar, is proud to see the progress their company has made after they 'invested [their] life here.'
'It's unbelievable,' he said. 'We waited for 20 years for this.'
John's wife, Shmuni, loves being part of the Tiger Mart family in multiple ways.
'It's something beautiful,' she said. 'We bring everyone together, especially with the Pilot Point Bearcats. It's something I feel [is] thoughtful, meaningful for the community here. I'm excited to share that. ... I feel that love and connection with everyone, so we're bringing more to the community, serving food.'
Jeff Christie, whose business is just north of Tiger Mart, said the trick has been holding in to be able to grow with the growth coming to the city.
'The biggest thing is it just takes time,' he said. 'To really put everything together, you've got to have the support,' he said. 'Now the support's here, the people are here and now we can all make the improvements that we all dreamed of years ago. It's just the process.'
He enjoyed seeing the support from the Pilot Point Chamber of Commerce members and the Tiger Mart customers for the ribbon cutting ceremony.
Chamber President Jimerson Adkins spoke of his gratitude for the investment the Lazar family has made in Pilot Point.
'They're supporting local, they're involved in the community, and the name says it all—Bearcat Burgers,' he said. 'You can't go wrong with that.'
John said he is grateful for the opportunity to continue building up the business.
'It's a blessing,' he said. 'What do they say, something like 90% of businesses fail within the first year. Going 20 years strong, this is a testament to God blessing us and how hard we're working here, and we have some pretty fun and exciting stuff planned.'
