The Meal in the Sticks

Unique is the word that came to mind as I walked into Nick’s in the Sticks. Being greeted outside by a man with a t shirt on and a scruffy white beard I didn’t know what to expect as I pulled open the creaky door. I stepped inside and tried to let my eyes adjust to the lighting. It was dark inside and the main source of light was coming from the sun setting outside. Not many people were there due to the fact that it was only four thirty in the afternoon, so my friends and just sat at any table. I sat down in the metal chair and found myself fixated on the ceiling. My eyes glazed over the wooden beams up above almost in amazement. Variety is what I saw, two hundred or so dollar bills covering the entire ceiling except for one small corner that had not been filled yet. All of the bills covered in names or sayings of the previous customers that had eaten there. Originality is what I saw in Nick’s in the Sticks.

            The menu was what you would think and expect in the typically burger place. Burgers, steaks, fries, potatoes, and chicken sandwiches covered the double sided laminated menus handed to me by the waiter with the pony tail. With what seemed like not much to pick from I decided on the cheeseburger and french fries and expected it to taste like every other burger I had ever put in my mouth before. But little to my surprise this meal would soon turn into something I had never imagined.

            Three metal dishes sat before my eyes starring me in the face. Not knowing what any of them were I hesitated to try them. One white, one orange, and one a musky looking brown, all of them creamy I just starred. I went with my gut and what I knew and doused my chefs side salad with the white dressing. Looking like bleu cheese but also like ranch I thought I could not go wrong with either of those, that I was bound to enjoy it. The first bite touched the tip of my tongue with the ice burg lettuce and the homemade dressing and I soon felt like I was in heaven. The creamy dressing covered the inside of my mouth and I felt the curiosity start to build, like it did when I noticed the dollar bills on the ceiling. The feeling of comfort and originality crossed my mind as I savored every bite of lettuce, like I never had before. Adding the other two dressings to my meal I didn’t want the salad to end. As I reached for one more scoop of what I thought was the homemade ranch, I was interrupted. My hand barely got the spoon back into the metal dish before the three prong holder was ripped from the table. It was almost as if the waiter didn’t want me to get a hold of their homemade dressing and steal the recipe or even just the thought of the taste. Disappointed in the fact that I could not eat my last few bites of salad drowning in dressing I wondered why he did that. I wouldn’t say that it was considered bad service, because maybe he just thought that I was finished, but I still could not believe that the unbelievable dressing was just ripped from my taste buds. But sooner before I could become completely disappointed with what had just happened the dressing returned. My friend Hanna had ordered a salad for her main course and my mouth began to water again. I asked Hanna to pretend as though she was still using the dressing again when the waiter came back with my main dish as well so that I would be able to dip my fries in them. Right as she picked up the spoon as though she was going to take another spoonful of dressing when he walked over he picked up the dressing holder and moved quickly. I could not understand why he would not leave the dressing on the table with us until we were all finished. As I asked myself that question I realized that it brought up a lot of other questions in my mind. Why the water cups were clear plastic cups and the rest of the serving cups were red? Or why the right side of the restaurant had more dollar bills on it than the left? As I thought of all of the little things that I noticed I realized that all of these things are what made Nick’s in the Sticks unique.

            From the moment I walked in the door I knew that this was a place that would not be able to compare to any other restaurants.  The atmosphere was special, the dim lighting gave it almost the feeling of the unexpected and the employees were able to keep me on my feet without even knowing it. The excitement that the salad dressing gave me when I tasted it was something I noticed that carried over to every aspect of being there. I felt a thrill by what Nick’s in the Sticks looked like. My eyes amazed about the sites around me and my body trying to take in every smell and sound. To the interactions I had with the people. It was almost like a game to me with the waiter that he kept stealing the homemade dressing back every time I tried to keep it. Many other waiters would ask if you wanted to keep it or if my hand was still on it they would not take it. But he did not give a care in the world or even think to ask if I would like to keep it. All of these attributes are what make Nick’s in the Sticks unique to me. I’ve never been to a place where I felt uncomfortable but right at home at the same time, and at Nick’s I felt that. The feeling confused me but it was something that I know I would crave to go back to, and especially if I got to taste the homemade ranch dressing again.