RV ALASKA - Shari's Café & Pies: A Tribute to Jen

Today’s post is less about the trip and more about the connections we make along the road.  Our travels are not just about a check in the box next to a bucket list item, although making that little check mark (either literally or figuratively) always provides a sense of accomplishment.  No, our travels include the joy of planning, the excitement of arriving at a new-to-us destination – or an old favorite, the flavor of fresh, local foods, the incredibly scenic vistas we’ve discovered in every single state we’ve traveled to – and the often transient connections we make with people along the way.

Our kids used to poke fun at Alan and me, because we’d often strike up conversations with cashiers at grocery stores, staff members at auto repair shops and servers at restaurants.  Honestly, in today’s society which leans heavily toward self-absorption, I think we overlook so many people who make our lives easier or more enjoyable by performing services large and small.  While Alan’s and my attempts at reaching out in gratitude and with humor may have earned some teasing from Ryan and Kyra when they were younger, as adults I see them treat others with whom they cross paths with kindness and respect, so the lesson was not lost on them, no matter what they may say.

Servers in restaurants are some of our favorite people to engage.  Admittedly, this is a job that neither one of us could do well.  I know if I were serving, my guests would end up wearing their meals as opposed to eating them.   We’ve had wonderful conversations with countless servers along the way, and have learned much about the areas we’re visiting from them.  Sometimes, just a shared laugh can break the ice, and we connect with each other as regular human beings and not just as business representatives and customers.  An excellent server can make a dining experience one to remember for all the right reasons.  A server with a poor attitude or lackadaisical work ethic will make it memorable for all of the wrong ones.

You may recall that, back in June, Alan and I stopped at the Shari’s Café & Pies location in Pendleton, Oregon.   Shari’s is a regional restaurant chain in the Pacific Northwest.  It has been a favorite of ours for at least two – and possibly three – decades.  For those unfamiliar with Shari’s, it’s similar to Denny’s, Perkins or Bob Evans.  What first attracted me was that it was the only restaurant chain to offer quiche on its menu - rather unusual, at least in my experience.  Aside from the quiche, it was the pies, of course, that kept us coming back.  Alan and I were disappointed that Shari’s was only a regional chain, and every time we headed back to the Pacific Northwest, a stop at Shari’s was always added to the itinerary.  We were just about heartbroken when our experience in Pendleton turned out so poorly.  (If you missed that post and would like to read it, link HERE.)  When we started working our way east after arriving back in the States, we began checking Shari’s locations along our route.  And that’s how we met Jen at the Caldwell Boulevard location in Nampa, Idaho.                              

Date(s) – September 3rd

Total Miles Traveled to Date – 16,452

Wildlife Sightings to Date – Nada.  Zero.  Nothing.  In other words, no wildlife sightings to report.

So, our tally of wildlife sightings remains: 1 fox; 4 feral horses; 3 loons; 2 ptarmigans; 5 ospreys; 101 dalmatians eagles (including 2 fledglings); 4 seagull chicks; 16 swans (including 2 fuzzy cygnets); 9 sea lions; 33 seals; 17 sea otters; 1 river otter; 4 cow moose; 1 bull moose; 5 grizzly bears (including a sow with 2 cubs and the back end of one grizzly retreating into the brush); 8 black bears; 1 coyote; 1 snowshoe hare; 8 rabbits (including one cute little baby bunny and one very fast bunny that just managed to cross the road safely); several small herds of bison with at least 2 dozen young calves; 9 deer (2 of them bucks with their racks covered in velvet); 9 mountain goats (including 3 tiny and adorable kids); 23 bighorn sheep; 62 elk (including 7 calves that hadn’t yet lost their spots and a number of bull elk with full racks covered in velvet); several small herds of pronghorn antelope (including 2 mamas with 3 newborn fawns between them); 4 great blue herons; dozens of American white pelicans; at least a half dozen families of adult geese with goslings; and several dozen ducks (with lots of little ducklings).

Highlight(s) of the Day – I was apprehensive as I approached the Shari’s in Nampa.  The landscaping was unkempt, and the front doors were long overdue for a refinishing.  I steeled myself for another disappointment.  I didn’t know what was happening to our beloved Shari’s, but whatever it was, it wasn’t good.  And then “Jen R” welcomed us to Shari’s and the gloom and doom was immediately dispelled!  Jen’s dazzling smile and warm welcome put us at ease right away, and we found ourselves chatting with her on and off during our meal.  She was sweet, kind and had a delightful sense of humor.  Her friendly attentiveness was the highlight of our day on the road.  If there isn’t a Five Star Server Award, there ought to be, because we’d nominate Jen.  Not only was she really, really good at her job, but she was charming, too, and we were so disappointed when her shift ended toward the end of our meal.  We enjoyed our delightful, though fleeting, connection with her to the extent that we asked if she’d be willing to pose for a photo.  She cheerfully agreed, and was happy to stage it with our pie in hand.  Jen single-handedly changed our perception of Shari’s Café & Pies from painfully disappointing to unexpectedly remarkable.  As far as we’re concerned, Jen is a hero!

Pie!  Yum!  Shari’s pies have never disappointed!  My mom used to bake a scrumptious coconut cream pie, so that’s been a nostalgic favorite of mine for a long time – although blueberry and a good apple pie are near the top of my list, too.  Alan – a chocoholic if ever there was one – often chooses a slice of chocolate cream.  When dessert is delivered by one of the world’s best servers, ya gotta know it’s going to be extra good!

Day’s end found us back in Heyburn, Idaho, at the city’s Riverside RV Park.  When traveling to the Pacific Northwest, we often follow the same route.  That has led to identifying favorite campgrounds at which to layover along the way.  Riverside is one of them; in fact, we had stopped there for a quick overnight on our way out this year.  By reserving specific campsites, we know that (1) we won’t have to disconnect the trailer from the truck, allowing a quicker start to our journey the next morning and (2) we can catch a distant glimpse of the Snake River out our big back window.  It’s a straight run of only about a mile from Interstate 84 to Heyburn’s Riverside Park – and there’s a Love’s gas station right at that exit.  Perfect!

Lowlight(s) of the Day – It really pains me to report this, especially after having had such a wonderful time with Jen, that Shari’s Café & Pies has, apparently, closed all of its locations.  A number of its restaurants were closed earlier in the fall, but it was just a little over a week ago that the remaining locations – including all of those in Oregon – were shuttered.  The business was started back in 1978 in Hermiston, Oregon, by a husband and wife team; it was sold several times over the years, but remained a privately held corporation.  At one point, it was the largest full-service restaurant chain in the Pacific Northwest.  But, in recent years, the chain ran into financial difficulty, and was attempting to deal with unpaid bills, back taxes and eviction notices.  Plus, Shari’s owed the Oregon State Lottery over $900,000.  I can’t say I’m surprised.  Our experience at the Shari’s in Pendleton and the condition of the Shari’s in Nampa were red flags that indicated financial difficulties existed.  I will say that I’m incredibly disappointed.  Shari’s was such a bright spot throughout our travels in the Pacific Northwest over the years that it will be sorely missed – by both of us, for sure.  And then there’s Jen.  With little hope of reconnecting, we can only wish her well and trust that she has landed another position elsewhere.  As Alan said, she was so good that he can’t believe someone else wouldn’t scoop her up immediately.   So, a hat tip to Shari’s Café & Pies of yesteryear – we enjoyed every single bite of every single slice we ever ordered.  Thanks for the memories!

Special Message(s) – Jen, as I recall, we left a business card with you.  With luck, you held onto it and remembered to watch for this post that we promised you would come – eventually.  If you’re reading this and need a reference, please pass along the link to this post to any and all prospective employers.  Alan and I have no doubt you’ll be an excellent ambassador for any company, and any employer will be lucky to have you.  Thank you for making our day back in September – and the best of luck to you, always!       

Campground(s) – Heyburn Riverside RV Park will definitely remain on our list of favorites.  Clean and quiet with lovely sites, full hookups, friendly hosts and the fact that it’s just a short distance from I-84 make this one a no-brainer.  Rates for 2024 were $45.00 per night, with a $5.00 per night discount for seniors or those with a Good Sam membership.  I paid a combined total of $83.00 for the two nights we stayed there in June and September.

Pics(s) of the Day

Meet Jen - our Five Star, super-exceptional server!

!

Coconut Cream

Chocolate Cream

One of our favorites!

Lovely, full hookup sites at this city-run campground!

Update – Alan and I closed out our 2024 camping season with a week and a half at Northampton Beach on Great Lake Sacandaga in Central New York – the same way we began the 2024 season back in May.  Having arrived home less than three weeks ago, I’m happy to report that the travel trailer is emptied, winterized and washed, and most of the camping gear is packed away for the year.   I don’t know how Alan managed to get all the bugs off the front of the trailer, but he did.  It looks brand new!  Since we were away for part of the spring and fall and all of the summer, we are WAY behind on cutting logs and splitting wood for the winter.  I think last year was the only year we had actually used up most of the firewood we had, but we did.  That was bad timing because now we need to devote as many hours as possible to restocking our supply.  That, by the way, is the reason I’ve fallen behind in my RV ALASKA posts.  Between splitting wood and catching up on household business, it feels like there are not enough hours in the day.  I’m squeezing in posts whenever I can, but your patience is appreciated as I work my way through the completion of the series.  I’m pulling numbers together as we speak (they’re staggering!) and I’m curious to see the end results regarding the total expenses and the “cost per day” to see how this lengthy expedition compares to others.  And you may be wondering whether or not we'll plan a repeat of this trip in the future.  Stay tuned!

Up Next – As we headed back east after an extended trip to Idaho in 2021, Alan and I had planned to stop at a National Historic Site in Utah that had been on our bucket list for a while.  Plus, we had made plans to connect with Chris Mamula from Can I Retire Yet – one of my favorite blogs that you’ll find in the column at the right.  Those plans were derailed by the first inter-mountain snow storm of the 2021 season.  Alan and I ended up driving straight through Utah and Wyoming to preclude being stuck on Interstate 80 if it ended up closing.  (It did.)  Fast forward to 2024.  Our Utah plans were back on the table - and we already had a campground practically booked.