Busy Bee owner Larry Sloter, left, and son of the restaurant’s founders, John Williamson, swap stories of floods, dances and breakfast at the Busy Bee’s 75th-anniversary party in 2019. (File Photo)

MARIETTA — The Busy Bee Restaurant, which has been in business for 80 years, is going on the market.

“The family and I have decided to take our business operations in a different direction,” owner Larry Sloter said. “My sons said that food service isn’t in our long term plans.”

The restaurant at 226 Gilman Ave. will be on the market starting next week.

Sloter began the purchase of the Busy Bee in the latter part of 2015, finalizing the sale in January 2016. He said he’s proud of how the restaurant has been run in those eight years.

“We’ve been able to maintain the history and legacy but also add onto it. Now it’s time for another family to come in and continue that legacy,” he said.

Changes include remodeling some of the inside space and adding patio seating.

“That was the best decision we ever made, to add that patio. It’s multi-use and has room to grow,” Sloter said,

Sloter said he wants to find a buyer who is committed to keeping the restaurant’s traditions while leaving room to grow such as possibly adding evening hours. However, he doesn’t want to see any major changes.

“It would be foolish to purchase a business and change it. It’s a profitable business and an award-winning business. We’ve won The Marietta Times (Readers’ Choice) Best Breakfast eight years in a row now,” he said.

Sloter said the restaurant has exceeded his expectations since being the owner.

“We’ve been featured in different travel programs from Cleveland to Columbus to Pittsburgh. We’ve been on blogs and TikToks,” he said.

“We have no plans of closing right now. We will remain open as this goes on. It will be a months-long process as we look for a buyer,” he said.

Sloter is also selling the planned home of Derailed Distillery at 109 Maple St.

“The original plan was to open a bar and restaurant with craft spirits,” he said. “But now we want to open a full-service distillery with a tasting room. We decided to sell that property, along with 114, 116 and 118 Maple St.,” he said.

Kristen Hainkel can be reached at khainkel@newsandsentinel.com