This was our first time there. The vibe was fun, but interesting. Mixed, you could say. It's cabin-esque theme was oddly accented with a juke box playing 50s music, like Bobby Darin and Elvis. Don't get me wrong I love me some 50s. My dad used to take me to 50s diners all the time when I was little. I was just expecting the music to fit the theme, like George Jones or Johnny Cash since it was a little country themed. It not a big deal to probably 99% of the people but this was the first thing that caught my attention since music is important to me.
When I say "a little" country- themed, I guess I do mean to say "a little." It was more bear themed. There was black bear everything, all over the place. Black Bear cups, black bear napkins, black bear ketchup, black bear hot sauces, black bear black bear. I almost forgot the name of the place. ;)
Another fun, but odd addition was the balloon lady that walked around and made balloon animals and what-not for the kids while they wait. She had a pin on her shirt that said "I work for tips". Thank goodness we had cash (we never have cash). That would have been more awkward than it already was. It was fun and cute, but I felt a little cornered. I was trying to eat my salad, but trying to be polite and watch and engage my girl in the moment of balloon fun, since she's really shy and is scared of anyone that casts a shadow. Yes, we could have said no, but....who can say no to a cute balloon lady?
The restaurant was full, but the noise level was low.
All of the staff was friendly. Our waitress, Shelly was a gem. Very kind and listened carefully. The food came quick. I had meatloaf. With green beans and onion rings. The meatloaf was delicious! However, I am very picky about the temperature of my food. It could have been warmer. I worry about temperature sometimes, but I was so hungry I didn't care to send it back. It was still good. The beans were like southern style, slow cooked for a while with bacon. They were very salty. I only took a couple bites, but the flavor was good. My husband ate my onion rings, but I did have one bite. He said they were good and I can say they're probably one of the best I've had. Crispy and hot and the onion didn't slide out of the batter. You know how you take a bite of a piping hot ring and the onion slides out and slaps your chin with hot oil? Yeah. We avoided the 3rd degree burns and months of speech therapy, so that made it enjoyable.
My husband had the chicken fried steak with brown gravy. He really liked it and said he'd get it again. His came with fries and he also liked them. Our meals came with salads and a corn bread muffin. The salad was one of the coldest, crispiest ones I've had. I had ranch and my husband had balsamic vinaigrette. The ranch was really good and he liked the balsamic vinaigrette. When she brought out the salads and cornbread muffins, they were humongous portions. I would have been fine with the salad...or 1/3 of it. I couldn't believe the portions. Then when dinner came my eyes popped out of my head. These were satellite dishes filled with food. I was wondering where the engine hoist was to carry the plates over, but she managed to bring it all in one shot without machinery. I was already full from salad but still managed to eat most of my dinner. Even though we were full I ordered a scoop of Huckleberry ice cream. My hubs got the apple cobbler to go. By a "scoop" of ice cream they meant a softball sized portion. It was ok. I wouldn't get it again. It was good, but I wasn't sure what I was expecting, but it was somehow not what I was expecting. Maybe a deeper Huckleberry flavor? I'm not sure. It was only $1.99 and don't regret trying it. My husband loved his cobbler and would get it agian.
We enjoyed our experience. Our girl got herself a VERY pricey flower balloon (fyi bring small bills incase she comes to the table). Great staff, good location. Overall cleanliness was good. Nothing gross caught my eye nor did I feel dirty. Weeeell, except the menus. The menus were cute, but kinda yucky. It was printed on news paper, but you can't wipe them down like laminated menues. Diners sometimes smell like syrup and the tables are sticky, but not this time. We'll be back. I can wait to try it again! read more