BECKLEY, W.Va. — A popular and longstanding drive-in restaurant in Beckley is closing its doors after nearly 80 years in business.
The King Tut Drive-In on North Eisenhower Drive has been owned and operated by the McKay family since 1955. It was previously owned by Tutweiler family who opened it up in the early 1940s.
The last day for the King Tut Drive-In is Tuesday. Current owner David McKay said it was a tough decision but they could see the writing on the wall for many months now.
“We ran out of people, we ran out of food, and we’re running out of energy mostly,” McKay said.
McKay said the restaurant hadn’t been making any real money in a few years and they struggled to get people to work and stay on.
“Lately, it’s just been getting tougher and tougher, and we couldn’t get enough people to keep it running properly,” said McKay. “We decided it’s time to throw in the towel.”
David and Michelle McKay took over the business from David’s father in 2004. They said a neighboring business would be buying the land that the restaurant sits on. McKay said he tried to find people to buy the restaurant, but it turned out to be more valuable to sell the land anyways.
King Tut Drive-In’s last day in business was originally going to be on Tuesday, Sept. 5, but McKay said they couldn’t last much longer. Some of their workers have been dealing with medical issues, which had forced them to adjust their hours, and ultimately close down the business.
“The staff is exhausted,” McKay said.
Ever since announcing the closure earlier in August, people from all over the state, and even the country have been making one final stop to the drive-in before the Beckley restaurant is closed for good. McKay said they’ve had visitors from Louisiana, Virginia, Georgia and Michigan.
The restaurant is occupied by plenty of cool pieces of memorabilia, including pictures and signs. McKay said they plan on having a yard sale for anyone who may be interested in owning a pice of King Tut history.
As for what’s next for McKay, now that the King Tut is no more, he said, “I’m gonna find a drink with an umbrella in it and some sand between my toes.”
WJLS Reporter Keith Thompson contributed to this story.