RIVERSIDE, Ohio -- Hundreds of excited customers spent the night outside waiting for the grand re-opening of a local Bob Evans Restaurant.

The restaurant is located at the intersection of Woodman Drive and Linden Avenue in Riverside.

The new restaurant opened its doors at 6 a.m. Wednesday and replaced an older store that was torn down just four months ago, back on May 7.

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Hundreds of customers said they'd waited for hours to get in. That's because the restaurant chain decided to give the first 25 people in line gift certificates worth $200 for their time and dedication. The next 25 people in line received $100 gift cards and the people in spots 51 to 100 manged to snag a $50 gift certificate.

Some customers arrived as couples, getting in line early Tuesday morning and waiting almost 24 hours. Pat and Dave Malas of Centerville showed up at 9 a.m. Tuesday. They love Bob Evans and Pat Malas said she didn't care if some people looked at them a little funny. She said "Well, I'm going to be eating a lot of meals for free, they can say I'm crazy if they want to."

Bob Evans workers handed out wristbands to ensure there would be no line jumping and avoid any fights or frustration. Pat Malas said she ended up with the #1 wristband and her husband got #5. They ended up with #400 worth of gift cards.

A band played and the Riverside mayor helped cut the ribbon to officially open the store at 6 a.m. Wednesday. There were way more than a hundred people in line at that point. Store officials say those that didn't get a gift card still had a chance to win. Every customer that comes in the first day is allowed to open an egg that may have a gift certificate inside ranging in value from $5 to $50.

Bob Evans officials said with the economy and budgets tight, they wanted to reward loyal customers for waiting the four months it took them to build a new store on the site.

They also said with the competitive restaurant industry, it didn't hurt them to try to generate a little buzz for this particular store and all the stores in their chain.

Restaurant officials said they will give out $12,000 dollars worth of cards and freebies in all.