ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
Billy's Blue Duck BBQ has been a Liberal fixture for nearly 20 years and soon, it will have another honor to add to its résumé.
“America’s Best Restaurants” recently announced Billy's Blue Duck BBQ is again on its list of best restaurants, and there will also be a crew coming to film an episode for its social media channels.
However, as owner Bill Hill tells it, the restaurant’s beginnings began far before that.
“I always like telling this story, but Billy’s Blue Duck BBQ began with a literal little blue rubber duck – I'd purchased one at a past Duck Race Festival that's put on by the Chamber of Commerce every year, and it ended up winning the grand prize,” Hill recalled with a chuckle. “With that prize money, I bought a barbecue smoker, began to cook for family and friends, and then decided to open up Billy’s Blue Duck BBQ in 2007, so we've been open for 17 years now. We've done so well, we've had to expand throughout the years, and after taking over the old bowling alley, we had enough space for the restaurant, a banquet hall, and we kept the bowling lanes.”
Hill said it is a good feeling for the restaurant to be recognized.
“In 2017, we got honored for being the best barbecue joint in Kansas by Best Things Kansas. Then, in 2018, we got recognized as one of the top 100 restaurants in the U.S., and then in 2019 and 2023, we got back on that list,” Hill said. “Late in 2023 is when we got the call and were notified about being on the list – I'm not sure where we are on that list, exactly, but we're on it again. From there, they'd called and talked to my son, Kelly, and we got our certificate in the mail, and they'd talked to us some more about the restaurant to find out more about us. They're also coming out here next week to film a show for their social media about us, and they'd gotten in touch with us about doing that part of everything about eight months ago. I'm not 100 percent sure of all the logistics of the filming and what all will be happening that day, so it'll be a surprise for everyone as far as how all of that will work out. It makes us really proud being honored like this because we all work really hard every day, and we're always wanting to be here for the community, and it's even more neat how they're coming out here and filming us and doing all of that. Everyone who works here works hard and does their best every day, and we're really proud to be part of such a good community, and this honor just goes to show how hard work pays off because you never know who all is watching.”
Hill said being on the list for multiple years is also a great feeling.
“Back when we first opened up in the Village Plaza area, we were at the top of the Where the Locals Eat list for roughly five years straight, and there were some other honors we picked up along the way. The first time we got recognized by 'America's Best Restaurants' in 2017, that was really great because the day we got the letter telling us we'd be getting recognized was actually my daughter's birthday, which is May 11, so that made us feel really special,” Hill recalled. “And like I said earlier, we were on the list again in 2019 and 2023, and it makes us feel really good knowing these publications are noticing what we're doing. I travel pretty frequently and if I stop at a restaurant that also happens to have an 'America's Best Restaurants' plaque, I always get a grin knowing it's not just us, it's in other places throughout the country, and I sometimes even get to talk with the owner(s). I also have a place near Phoenix and there was one time I was out there and a gentleman saw my Billy's Blue Duck BBQ hat and said 'I heard about that place in a magazine! I need to go to Liberal and try it out!' It just makes us all really proud of all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes, and it makes us feel really good being recognized for all of that, especially since we're in the middle of the U.S. and in an area that's not quite as known as other parts of the state.”
With this most recent recognition, Hill said there are no plans to slow down.
“When you get recognized like this, you always want to keep doing well and do better and better. We're definitely not planning on slowing down anytime soon, we're always adding new menu items and doing new specials, so we don't want to just be static,” Hill said. “I'm hoping being on the show will open us up to some new ventures and opportunities and ideas so we can keep doing what we're doing. It's a great pat on the back for everyone who works here, and it really is an inspiration because to get recognized like this once is amazing, and it's even harder to keep it up and get recognized as many times as we have throughout the years. I compare it to winning a Super Bowl or World Series – it's awesome when you can win it once, and it's amazing when you can come back and win multiple times and keep going and going. Friendliness and tradition are certainly part of why I think we're so successful, and those are two big factors that make people go to places they enjoy again and again. Food quality is also another big factor, and so is the personnel. A company is a company, but it's the people who work for that company that make it successful, and that goes for literally every company everywhere. We've had great people work at Billy's Blue Duck BBQ throughout the years, and the food's remained pretty outstanding. People like going into a place where the staff knows your name and knows what you like, and we do that here. Especially in a smaller city like Liberal, it's like a big family, and everyone enjoys coming in and eating and bowling here.”
Hill added there is also quite a bit of excitement for the “America’s Best Restaurants” crew to visit Liberal.
“We're really excited to have that crew here and talk to them, but there's also quite a lot we're playing by ear because they haven't fully told us how everything will go, and I think that's because they want to make sure they film us in as normal a setting as possible,” Hill said. “We don't want to be acting, per se, and we don't want to change how we operate, we want to be filmed as just going about a regular service day. We're really excited they're coming, but we also want to make sure we're portrayed as accurately as possible.”
Overall, Hill said, there are a lot of good things going on at Billy’s.
“We want to continue being part of the community with various events like our Yellow Brick Road Car Show coming up May 17 and 18, and that always brings in a bunch of people, which is great for Liberal,” Hill said. “We're going to keep working hard and improving every day so everyone who comes to Billy's has a great time and a good experience. We don't just work the regular operating hours, we're constantly working before and after work and thinking about what needs to be done, so it's a constant 24/7 cycle of thinking about what we can do. We want to represent not only Billy's, but also Liberal and all the other surrounding communities we get patrons from – Elkhart, Hugoton, Meade, Kismet, Plains, etc. We want to be a spot that brings people to Liberal and help them have a good experience.”
