About Babe's Chicken in Burleson

Well, howdy y’all! Let me tell you the tale of our Babe’s Chicken Dinner House in Burleson – we’ve been makin’ folks happy as a tornado in a trailer park since we opened our doors on March 14, 2005!

Now, Burleson’s got itself quite the origin story, bless its heart. Way back in 1880, when the Katy Railroad was busier than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rockin’ chairs, they laid track from Fort Worth clear down to Hillsboro and needed themselves a depot right here. Well, wouldn’t you know it – Rev. Henry C. Renfro was fixin’ to sell his land for that depot, but he struck himself a bargain sweeter than peach cobbler. As part of the deal, he got to name the place, and he chose “Burleson” to honor his old teacher, Dr. Rufus C. Burleson, who went on to become the president of Baylor University. Now that’s what I call payin’ respect where respect is due!

Come 1902, well… let’s just say things got hotter than a jalapeño’s armpit when a fire came through and burned down every last one of those wooden, false-front buildings that made up Main Street. But you know what they say – when life gives you ashes, you build it back, but better! And that’s exactly what they did, puttin’ up proper masonry buildings that could stand up to whatever Mother Nature threw their way.

Our very own building has been keepin’ busy since 1905, when it first opened as the Wilson Brothers Company. Now these fellas were jack-of-all-trades types – they sold hardware, carriages, buggies, household furnishings, and get this – even caskets! They had themselves a whole funeral parlor operation runnin’ upstairs where they’d craft those caskets right there on the top floor. Talk about one-stop shoppin’ from cradle to grave!

We’ve got plenty more stories where those came from, so don’t be bashful about askin’ your server for our Babe’s Facts while you’re workin’ on that garden-fresh salad. After all, good history goes down just as smooth as that sorghum on the table!