HELENA — Many businesses close their doors on Christmas day, but Shellie's Country Cafe welcomes all, and it is their busiest day of the year.
Shellie's opened 16 years ago, and they have been open every Christmas.
"There's a lot of people that don't have a place to go or family here in town...We do dishes, and we'll pour extra coffee," said co-owner of Shellie's, Shellie Mitchell.
Her daughter and other co-owner of Shellie's, Aimee Hoff, replied, "It's a lot easier to just have us do it."
Those dining have a multitude of reasons for choosing Shellie's, but it is their 24/7 policy that appeals to most.
"We called a couple of different places trying to see what we could do or what was available, but Shellie's picked up right away, so we came here," said diner Cooper Rochin.
All of Shellie's staff work on Christmas, but they stagger the shifts so staff can spend time with their families. For staff members Shayna Martin and Cameron Ashford, serving others on Christmas is a rewarding experience.
Martin said, "I love giving them love and they give love in return."
"Honestly, it's another one of the great things we get to tell people when they ask us if we're going to be open for the night or on Christmas day. We are pleased to say, 'yes we are, you can come and get food anytime.' there's nothing that's an inconvenience to us," Ashford continued.
Shellie's has more than their regulars in mind when seating customers on Christmas.
Hoff said, "The firefighters, the nurses, the doctors that are always on call or having to work along with us, so we like to be there to support them as well."
Their most popular menu item on Christmas day is the prime rib dinner, which comes with mushrooms, potato, a vegetable of choice, dinner rolls, and soup or salad.
Shellie's will be open 24/7, including on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.
