Lucy’s Chinese Food to open in bedroom community

Photo courtesy Lucy’s Chinese Food

Signage at Lucy’s Chinese Food’s Ozark restaurant points customers to the company’s plans in Rogersville.

Lucy’s Chinese Food is expanding eastward.

The 40-year-old restaurant chain is working to open a Rogersville eatery on April 1, said John Gregoroski, who owns the company with his brother, Tom. The new restaurant would join two operating in Springfield and one in Ozark.

John Gregoroski said recently announced residential projects, including the $100 million Logan Estates Community, in Rogersville are marking expansion efforts in the city that had long been quiet when it comes to new development.

“There’s a lot of growth that’s just in the last year or two,” he said. “There’s an opportunity there.”

Lucy’s Chinese Food is taking on roughly 2,000 square feet at 319 S. Main St., Ste. T. Visible from U.S. Highway 60, the space is in the same building with Rogersville Pharmacy and shares a parking lot with Dollar General and Apple Market, among others. Gregoroski declined to disclose the company’s investment or lease terms with Apple Market, though he noted the company signed a five-year lease for the former home of Red Rock Coffee Co.

The restaurant offers cashew chicken, stir fry, lo main and other Chinese dishes, according to its website. Gregoroski said Lucy’s Chinese Food — named after his mother, who opened the first restaurant with his father in 1980 — is designed to offer a family-friendly restaurant experience.

“We’ve seen families grow up in our restaurants. Now, they’re bringing their kids in,” he said. “For me, that’s really fun to see.”

Lucy’s Chinese Food plans to hire five to eight employees for the Rogersville restaurant, Gregoroski said, noting he and his brother would be active in its operations.

The Gregoroski brothers in 2015 moved a central Springfield restaurant at 518 E. Central St. near Drury University to Ozark, according to Springfield Business Journal archives.