Local StoriesDecember 9, 2021

Life & Work with Ronald LeBlanc

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ronald LeBlanc. Them and their team share their story with us below:

Ron LeBlanc studied at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park NY. Since graduating in 1987, he has worked in hotels, catering halls, corporate dining, and restaurants. In 2004, he made the decision to start a catering business and opened a small sandwich shop in NJ. He catered weddings and other events on the weekends, and offered a great menu of burgers, sandwiches and salads M-Sat at the TC Sandwich Shoppe. In 2007, he expanded and bought a larger building and changed the name to TC Stone House Eatery.

He also expanded his menu to include fresh seafood platters. Located next to the Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, he had the privilege to serve our military for lunch and dinner. He had an amazing following and ran a successful business there for 12 years. In 2019, he started to look into moving to East Tennessee. This was Ron’s favorite vacation spot and the lure of the south was calling! Plus, he is a huge Vols fan and his daughter attends UT Knoxville. He found a restaurant for sale in Sevierville called Halle’s Kitchen. He sold TC Stone House Eatery, and began the process of opening a new restaurant in Sevierville.

He opened the doors to Little Mountain Eatery on November 1, 2019. The menu was reminiscent of his Stone House menu with some new additions, like Pizza. Starting in the fall, Ron expected the business to start off slow, but was pleasantly surprised to see how welcoming the area was to a new business. The former owner of Halle’s Kitchen, Sheila Hansen, helped get the word out on social media and was very supportive. All seemed to be going great and then in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

This was a frightening time to be a new business. But again, the community continued to support Little Mountain Eatery and we got through the height of the pandemic. We continue to grow and new customers, both from the area and tourists visiting the area, find us with the help of some awesome reviews from our customers. We pride ourselves on delicious food and great customer service.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The biggest struggle we had was the Covid-19 pandemic. Keeping our staff and customers safe was a top priority. We followed the advice of the health department and the CDC. We offered curbside pick-up. We closed our indoor dining area during the height of the pandemic. We added more picnic tables outside. We got through it and were able to stay open and keep our employees.

Over the past two years, we’ve had employees come and go. It’s difficult to find and keep great employees, but we have found some wonderful young adults that work well together and help make our business what it is. They put their heart into it. We have built a great team.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
What sets us apart from other restaurants. Ron has over 30 years of experience in the food business. He has developed his menu serving people from all over the country. We offer nice portions that are affordable in a tourist area. Of course, you can’t please all people, all the time.

We are human. But we are really proud of the great reviews we’ve received from our customers. And returning customers! That is the best compliment of all.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
People can support our business by eating here, referring your friends, and giving us a review on sites like Trip Advisor or social media. We appreciate that so much.

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