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Huckaby's Sonshine Station

After the way Greg Kristapovich raved about the burger he had at Huckaby’s Sonshine Station, which opened just 5-weeks ago, I simply had to check it out. 

We arrived around 1:00 p.m. for lunch and found the entire crew on the move. There were two empty tables, so we grabbed one and sat down. It took awhile before our order was taken, as food was pouring out of the kitchen for those who had ordered before us.  I tried not to be too impatient but I was starving and the food coming out of the kitchen looked and smelled incredible.

I ordered a root beer float, mainly because they serve only Coke products (I am a member of the Pespi Generation) and curiously root beer was not listed as a drink available on the menu. I forgot to ask about it. My husband ordered the Rasberry Tea, which he said had too much syrup in it, the owner, Tim Huckaby assured me he could fix that.

If you are expecting fast food, this is not the place to stop, because Huckaby makes everything himself, even the corn dogs are hand-dipped.

I ordered “Joey Fingers,” off the children’s menu, which came with their house-cut french fries. I had my heart set on the chicken fingers but they aren’t on the regular adult menu. I need not have worried, there was plenty of food, so much, in fact, that I brought two pieces of chicken and a hand-full of fries home with me to eat later. My meal was delicious!

Huck's Heavy Hitter

My son ordered the “Chili Burger”, which he declared to be awesome – at least until he found the lettuce and tomato on the bottom. He ended up getting filled up on the root beer float he ordered, so I brought his burger home – minus the lettuce and tomato. He’ll enjoy it tonight for a snack.

The hubby ordered “The Cowboy” with a green salad. He didn’t care for the house BBQ sauce but he’s agreed to give Huckaby’s another shot after they re-open. I had tried to talk him into trying the stuffed cheese burger advertised as a special but he wasn’t going for it.

I was excited to get to speak with the new owner, Tim Huckaby, today after our meal. Apparently, they have had more than a few things to iron out since opening. Someone drove into their building with a motorhome, leaving quite a bit of damage to the front of the building, which has to be repaired.

Crews have been hired to come in and fix the damaged walls. Unfortunately, this means they will be closing for a week, to have the damage repaired.  The work is scheduled to begin sometime the next week or two.

The owner is still working out the details and making plans for future expansion.  Customers could be treated to live music and outside dining opportunities in the near future. Mr. Huckaby is also considering adding Coney Island Hot Dogs to the menu and homemade sausage.

Be sure to stop in and don’t despair if you stop in and find them closed down, it’s only temporary. We will certainly be stopping in for another visit in the near future. Next time I’ll be sure to stop when I’m not so hungry — good food just can’t be rushed.

Huckaby's Sonshine Station

Huckaby’s Sonshine Station
20129 Highway 108
Sonora, CA
(209) 588-2984

Hours:
Monday thru Saturday
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Jeb's Waffles and Ribs

At long last the mysteriously elusive Jeb’s Waffle’s and Ribs finally opened it’s doors last Thursday. We have been awaiting this day for years now. From all accounts Jeb’s is off to a rocky start.

One reliable source informed me that they normally have three breakfast cooks — this morning though, they opened with only one. One young man hired just yesterday, didn’t bother to show up for work this morning. The other called in sick. Perhaps the economy isn’t as bad as we thought.

I had stopped in during their interview phase last month, hoping they were finally open, they had an enthusiastic turnout if applicants, with many hopeful prospects. One would think it would be relatively easy to find qualified employee’s in todays market.

When you are collecting unemployment benefits, after working hard, for many years, it’s sort of hard to go back to the daily grind of working every single day. Once those unemployment benefits start to wind down, the full impact of all the recent store closures will hit home with area residents.

New Restaurant Rhythm

After attending the near opening of Gary’s Country Deli, located in Galt, CA several months ago, we swore we’d never do that again.  We made a special trip to the valley and stopped in on their second day of business — it was painful to watch. The right hand just didn’t know what the left was doing — or not doing. It took forever to get our meal (well, just shy of 2 hours) — today was just a repeat.

Club Sandwich

It takes a time for a new business to establish routines, set down policies for staff and define job duties. Let’s just say a lot of things get overlooked in the planning stages of any new business. A restaurant is unique because there are so many little details that make up a fine well-tuned team. Working out the rhythm is no simple task. It probably doesn’t help that we showed up at just past Noon on a Tuesday, only their 6th day open.

Delay in Opening Business

Rumors have been flying for years as to why Jeb’s had not opened.  So, I took this opportunity to ask a waitress about the long delay. According to this young lady Jeb’s didn’t have enough parking area for patrons, so the City of Sonora forced them to purchase more land. The auto dealership (who now has a new paved parking lot as well) located next door provided the necessary space that allowed Jeb’s to expand their parking area.

Ordering off the Menu

Shawn claims the turkey club he devoured was one of the best he has ever had. Score one point for the home team. I helped out with the cooked-to-perfection onion rings. If you’ve had onion rings from The Rock Pub and Restaurant, in Twain Harte, and like them, you will enjoy these. They are most likely the very same brand.

Alaskan White Fish Sandwich

I ordered the Alaskan White Fish Sandwich, on a hard, crunchy sub bun that dwarfed the fish in comparison. The fish was lukewarm and very crunchy, not over-cooked crunchy but a very crusty coating, I couldn’t quite make out what it was exactly. I ate the fish, dumped the bun.

Jeb’s colorful nature strewn menu held many options — breakfast is served all day our bubbly drink server happily informed us. The one obvious omission was the absence of appetizers — no mozzarella sticks for me.

 It didn’t take much convincing for Zachary to order breakfast. He said the waffle and sausage were good, and the eggs were lacking bread — a common staple when eating eggs in our home. The menu also mentioned a “cream sauce” that came with their waffles, though the only thing we could see was a lump of butter.

Half-Waffle with Sausage and Egg Over-Medium

As for some of the other food; Jeb’s only serves seasoned french fries, mine were rather crunchy and not hot. The cook had forgotten Shawn’s onion rings and as far as I could tell that was the only item served hot to our table.

The portions were fair, the food, of course was fresh. The wait for our food was very lengthy, but it was to be expected at this stage in their development. Picky restaurateurs will want to wait to make visit, until they have all the kinks worked out.

We’ve agreed to try them out again next month and see if we have an improved dining experience. We are always on the lookout for a nice family restaurant to frequent, we haven’t written Jeb’s off just yet. Our family is hoping they can pull their act together.

If you are looking for employment, Jeb’s Waffles and Ribs just might have an opening, stop in for a gander and see.

I invite our readers to stop in and sample Jeb’s menu, then drop us a line and let us know what you ordered and how you enjoyed your meal.

Jeb’s Hill Country Cooking
729 Mono Way
Sonora, CA 95370
(209) 588-9633