HOME-GROWN ENTREPRENUERS: `MOM' YORK'S DUMPLING RECIPE GROWS INTO 33 RESTAURANTS

When David York was a buyer at Macy's in New York, he had a ritual.

After every trip home to his native Sikeston, he would return to Big Apple country with an ample supply of his mother's Missouri-made apple dumplings.

"We served them at small parties," said York. "It got to the point that when people found out I was going home, they would prepare orders for me. I found myself with requests for 200 to 300 apple dumplings."

This prompted York to think that "maybe everyone would like his mother's cooking."

His mother -- Helen York -- had been cooking apple dumplings and other foods for a number of years in her florist, gift and catering business at Sikeston.

David York was right. People do like Mrs. York's cooking.

Today, she's still the cook in charge of apple and chicken dumplings, although it's at more than 30 stores in nine states.

David York left the city lights and returned to Sikeston where he opened a restaurant -- the first H.R.H (His Royal Highness) Dumplin's -- on Dec. 3, 1987.

"It was a small restaurant," said York, who is now president of the 33-restaurant chain of H.R.H Dumplin's. "The first store had 16 chairs. People stood in line to eat. At that time we offered desserts only -- the apple dumplings, pies, cakes, some homemade bread."

So it started.

"We found a larger space at Sikeston," said York. "It seated 150 people. We added other items to the menu -- chicken and dumplings, chicken and tuna sandwiches, ham-and-cheese sandwiches."

The core of the operation is still "Mom York."

"She did the cooking and food preparations," said David York. "That was six years ago, and things just ballooned from there."

The first franchise operation was at Kentucky Oaks Mall in Paducah. The second was at Clarksville, Tenn.

"We have 33 stores open now," said David York, who operates two restaurants at Nashville, and the one at Clarksville.

"We have a total of five company-owned stores," he said. A sister, Kathleen York Johnson, operates the H.R.H Dumplin's restaurant in the outlet mall in Sikeston and another sister, Susie York Kennedy, has the original store in downtown Sikeston.

All other stores, including the restaurant at Cape Girardeau, are franchise operations.

The Cape Girardeau Dumplin's is located at Lorimont Place, 280 S. Mount Auburn Rd., and is owned by John and Lisa Johnston.

H.R.H Dumplin's restaurants are located in nine states -- Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky and Tennessee.

York moved H.R.H Dumplin's headquarters to Nashville in 1991.

"Nashville seemed like a good geographic location," he said. "It puts us within close proximity to most of our outlets and gives us access to plenty of food supplies."

The company reached its goal of 30 outlets by the end of 1993. York believes that in the future, H.R.H Dumplin's will be found throughout the nation.

"I don't think there is any place in the country that can't handle a Dumplin's if it has the right population and demographics," he said.

Helen ("Mom") York is still involved in the operation.

"I help open most new stores," she said. "I like to lend a helping hand, and spend the first few days in the new restaurants.

"I never dreamed that the operation would go this far."

"The Dumplin's operation is a simple one compared to many restaurant chains," said David York. "There's no frying involved, only baking. And, most of the operations are open for lunch only, although some are now going to lunch and dinner."

According to York, the biggest factor in the growth and success of the firm's franchises is the ease with which they can be started.

"The equipment packages are much less expensive than many types of restaurants," he said. "The heaviest piece of equipment we have is the convection oven."

The franchising package requires that new owners attend 10 days of classroom, cooking and training sessions in Nashville.

York is president of the company, Kathleen Johnson is vice president and Susie Kennedy is secretary.

Selecting a name for the restaurant posed the only problem of opening the first outlet, noted York.

"Dumplings is a generic name and there are some other companies that include it in their name. We couldn't use just the word, `dumplings,'" he said. "But, we wanted the name `Dumplin's.'"

Early on, a logo had been designed,of a dumpling with a crown on top. "So, we devised a fictional story of a king nicknamed His Royal Highness Dumplin's because of his fondness for dumplings," said York. "Thus, the name, H.R.H. Dumplin's."