It’s not uncommon for wastewater contractors to branch out into a variety of services in order to diversify and generate more revenue streams. A good case in point is Allen Drain Service.
But owner Bernie Noble has taken that philosophy a step further. He broadened his menu of services to include a family restaurant in Kent, Ohio. Noble and a friend bought the Brimfield Family Restaurant in 2015 after the friend — also his accountant — suggested it would be a good investment.
“I’m always thinking about new ways to make money,” Noble says. “Restaurants can be a tough business to make money in, but the way I figure it, I get people coming and going — I feed people, then I handle their waste. So far, it has turned out to be a pretty good buy.”
Noble concedes he initially was lukewarm about the investment. But after taking a look at the building, which included the restaurant plus a barbershop and an apartment, he and his friend made the owner an offer.
“We figured that revenue from the barbershop and the apartment would cover everything,” he says. “I wasn’t sure what the restaurant would generate, but once we got things squared away, it turned out to be a better deal than I expected.”
Noble isn’t involved in the restaurant’s day-to-day operations; that’s left to “excellent managers,” he says.
“I just show up every once in a while and eat there. That’s about the extent of my involvement,” Noble says.
Where does Noble get his entrepreneurial spirit? He credits his hard-working parents, who instilled in him a strong work ethic.
“I just love to stay busy,” he says.
Read more about Allen Drain Service in the July 2025 issue of Cleaner magazine.
