Catch Your Dinner and Eat It Too at DeVito's at Bear Creek Springs.

There are few places you can get your food as fresh as what you'll find at DeVito's Restaurant north of Harrison. Let me show you just how fresh that dinner can be.

Master Chef in Harrison: Throw it in!

An excerpt from the new book Classic Eateries of the Ozarks and Arkansas River Valley by Kat Robinson (photography by Grav Weldon), published November 2013 by History Press.  For more information, click here.

This restaurant has closed. See the bottom of this page for information on the new restaurant that has taken its place.

South of where U.S. 62 and U.S. 65 converge (today, above Bear Creek Springs, at what’s now known as the Eureka Springs overpass), the highway goes through town. Today’s path takes it almost to the downtown area before making a hard left at a stoplight and out onto two successive loops of bypass. Before the bypass, the highways converged with Arkansas Highway 7 and rolled into downtown as Main Street. Along this stretch you’ll find the offices for local radio stations, a handful of old motor courts and roadside hotels (some of which are still in operation), shops and even the grand Hotel Seville.

Main Street hits the downtown square a couple blocks later, on which sits the grand restored Lyric Theater. After a couple blocks more, Highway 7 splits and goes south, while U.S. 65B crosses the bridge over little Harrison Lake and heads into the older suburbs.

Not far from where the north end of the bypass hooks in, you’ll find a red-roofed restaurant that’s been hanging around serving the town—and traffic to Dogpatch USA—since 1969. This is Master Chef.

This is not a fine dining establishment with a culinary-schooled chef and white-glove service. This is a community diner with an eclectic menu that’s been around for nearly forty-five years.

Master Chef served up what the community wanted and needed: another dairy diner. But then something interesting happened. Someone would come in and ask for a dish, and the folks there would attempt to make it.

And if it was good, it got added to the menu. So over the years, the menu broadened. There were Ark-Mex dishes like the plato de saltillo (Saltillo plate, an enchilada covered in red sauce, cheese taco covered in cheese sauce, beef taco in a hard shell and tortilla chips with salsa, a long-standing popular combination at many Arkansas Mexican restaurants), fried chicken, cold sandwiches, barbecue sandwiches, shrimp dinners, fried catfish, “diet-centered meals,” fajita plates and even cashew chicken (the latter of which is less surprising when you learn that this popular “Chinese” dish was created just over an hour away in Springfield, Missouri). Baked potatoes stuffed with ham? All right. Raisin fried pie? Sure, why not?

What’s crazy about Master Chef is that items kept going on the menu, and they didn’t come off.

I can remember visiting the restaurant on one of those Dogpatch USA trips as a kid. Even then, I can recall coming in, walking through the waist-high divided lobby and up to the ordering counter and being absolutely overwhelmed by the choices. On visiting in April 2011, when I looked up and my eyes got big at the even more expanded menu above the kitchen, the counter girl handed me a three ring binder full of items to choose from.

Ron and Burlene Hinson bought Master Chef in 1992 from Jerry Sharp.  Burlene had worked at Master Chef since it opened in 1969; she knew what made the restaurant great, and she didn’t change a thing. The Hinsons have kept up the long-established business and it’s still a very important part of the community.

So Master Chef does a lot of things, but does it do them well? The Ark-Mex is good—it’s not the authentic Mexican fare we’re used to today, but it’s not expected to be, either. Burgers are fine, and the stuffed potatoes are pretty dang good. 

And then there are the chicken strips. I suppose at some point, someone came in and suggested that since Master Chef did fried chicken, it should also offer fried chicken strips. Rather than ordering a box of prebreaded pieces to throw in a deep fryer, the strips there are actually hand-pulled strips of breast delicately battered and spiced. It still looks like

chicken, rather than another battered and deep-fried wonder.

***

UPDATE:  Since the book was published, Master Chef has closed and is now up for sale.  Anyone want to buy a well-established restaurant in Harrison?

ANOTHER UPDATE:  Master Chef's been purchased by the folks who own the Ranch House Restaurant and is set to re-open in January 2014.

The Highway 65 Sandwich.

I get crazy ideas in my head every once in a while, and this qualifies as one of those “onces.” I wanted to see if I could make a really good sandwiches with nothing but locally sourced ingredients that could be gathered at restaurants, smokehouses and the like all along Highway 65 -- in particular, the section that runs through north Arkansas.

US Highway 65 takes you from just south of Branson, MO through some of the most varied terrain in Arkansas. There are the peaks of the Ozarks around Harrison and Marshall; the cliff faces and valley of the Buffalo National River; the rolling hills of the River Valley around Greenbrier and Conway; wooded pine forests just outside of Little Rock and the long stretches of endless farmland of the Delta through Dumas and McGehee before skipping off from the Mississippi River at Lake Village and crossing into Louisiana just south of Eudora. All along this major corridor are some of the great and unique foods that make Arkansas what it is -- a repository of culinary treasures and heritage foods.

I have no good reason for showing you
this photo of a cat I saw at Coursey's.

For this sandwich, I decided to stick to the northern section, a stretch from north of Greenbrier up to Harrison. This is a popular route for motorists to take to both Eureka Springs and Bull Shoals and a lot of places in-between.

My thought was that this could be a bit of a primer for folks who were wanting to try the local care all along the way in the form of a picnic. And of course, when I got to thinking about it, I decided a sandwich was the way to go. But how to make this ultimate sandwich?

I knew a good sandwich would have four things -- bread, meat, cheese and vegetation. And if I was lucky, I’d find the perfect condiment to go along with it. You know what? I found everything I needed, and dessert, too. Here’s how you do it. First, head to Greenbrier on Highway 65. Then head north.

The first place you’ll stop on your way up isn’t even staffed. The Damascus Honey Stand is owned by one Mr. Garland Gilliland, whose home sits behind it. Any daytime you’ll see a selection of jams, jellies, honey, syrups, fruit butters and sorghum molasses on the three neat little stands beside the road. It’s unusual because it’s an honor stand -- it’s up to you to pay your fair share. I

find I’m compelled to drop a little extra in the till... and I suspect others are, too.

If you’re looking for a good condiment to put on your sandwich, try Mamaw Flo’s Pepper Jelly. The mild version is hardly spicy at all but full of sweet flavor; the hot version’s pretty spice-packed. The place that makes it, Maria’s Home Made Country Fare is out of Greenbrier, so you’re getting a quality Arkansas product. And this pepper jelly’s made from just sugar, vinegar, peppers, cranberry juice and pectin. It’s an unusual condiment for a sandwich, but I figure anything goes, right?


Now head on up the road. If you’re hungry for watermelon, there’s usually a stand or two at Bee Branch... and if you’re lucky, you can get a Cave City watermelon there and enjoy the sweetness. Otherwise, head on up to Leslie to stop in at Serenity Farms Bread. This is a comfortable little home-grown place that specializes in all sorts of breads, from European Rye to foccacia. Pick up a loaf of your choice. I’d suggest the Country French... it comes in a round that’s good for both sandwiches and for bread bowl stews. That French bread seemed like a good basis for the sandwich.

Serenity Farms also does pastries -- like biscotti, danish and sticky buns. There are baguettes and sometimes bagels, and the foccacia is a meal in itself. The cooler is also full of juices and cane sugar sodas and fresh cheese.

Back on the road, head up through Marshall to St. Joe, a hot spot for good travel food. This is where Coursey’s Smoked Meats lives. Coursey’s has been around longer than I have, and I have been enjoying great smoked turkey and chicken from the place since I was in my single digits. Til about a decade ago, Coursey’s was next door to Ferguson’s Country Store and Restaurant, as close as

you can be with a yard between you.

Well, a while back the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department decided to go and change where U.S. 65 lay through that area, and they swung that road around and cut it right between the two places.

Coursey’s has great deep smoked meats, though it’s not a large selection. You have a choice of ham, bacon, sausage or turkey and Swiss or Cheddar cheese. If you’re wanting to take some stuff with you but want a snack, there are always bags of bits of turkey and Cheddar in a basket on the counter -- and for $1.50, you can’t get cheaper good eats.

Coursey’s also makes up a fair amount of jams and jellies and sells products from House of Webster as well. I decided some of that smoked Swiss and some smoked turkey would be the right thing to acquire for the sandwich.

If your sweet tooth is aching or you’re looking in at an overnight trip, drop into Ferguson’s as well. You could sit down and have breakfast or lunch, or you could order up a cinnamon roll to go. One feeds two, easy... they’re big fat five inch rolls and if you order them to go they put the icing in a cup for you to drizzle on later. I didn’t need the cinnamon roll this time, and besides -- Mr. Thompson was having the parking lot asphalted when I came through. Next time, though.

A little further up 65 on the right you’ll find the Big Springs Trading Company, another great smokehouse good for picking up some meat to take with you. Big Springs also does smoked ribs and pork.I’m a big fan of their smoked Cheddar...

they also smoke several other cheeses and meats --

ham, sausage, venison sausage with cheese and jalapenos, turkey, chicken and beef brisket. There’s a dining room up front filled with all sorts of local nostalgic items and knick knacks. I had the smoked Cheddar a while back and I was itching to have it again, so I got a whole pound... after all, I might want something to snack on while I make that sandwich, right? I also got some smoked beef brisket.

Once you’ve packed away meat, cheese and cinnamon rolls in your cooler, get back on the road and head north to Pindall. This tiny little town doesn’t have a lot going on, but it is home to Dry Creek Mercantile and what could be the best fresh strawberry pie in the state. While it hasn’t been open all that long, it

feels like it’s been there forever.  Here’s where you can pick up deli meats such as Petit Jean Smoked Ham, Petit Jean Bologna, Petit Jean Chicken Loaf and Big Eye Swiss. There are also plenty of staple items on the shelves and plenty of advice on where you should go to enjoy just about any sort of activity. One thing you’ll want to do is get some stone-ground mustard for that sandwich. I know it’s not locally made -- but I haven’t been able to find homemade mustard on this particular stretch of Highway 65 yet and you’re going to need it.

That pie, though... well, if you decide to get a slice, you’re in good shape. They’ll even give you a fork and a napkin to take with you. If you order a whole one and you won’t be to your destination for a while, you get the whole strawberry bit in its hand-rolled crust AND a frozen container of Cool

Whip to take with you to dollop on top when you’re ready. Did I get some pie? You know I did.

Try not to get your fingers in the pie as you drive further north on U.S. 65. Get up past Valley Springs and Bellefonte and right into the limits of Harrison. Look on the right

for Friends Orchard. One of the oldest farmers produce stores in the area, Friends always has a good selection of what comes out of the garden ready to take home.
 Right now they have bushels of fresh peaches ready to go, and there are boxes full of canning tomatoes. They also sell dehydrated items like banana chips and gallon sized ziptop bags of nuts. Reasonably priced, too. I saw some little heritage marble-sized tomatoes and had to have some of those, and a quart of peaches to boot.

And while you’re in Harrison, go by Neighbor’s Mill to pick up some fresh bread. Neighbor’s bakes bread every day except Sunday, at least seven varieties at a time. I am partial to the Rotel Four Cheese, the Tomato Herb and Cheese, the Spinach Feta Cheese... heck, if it has cheese in it I love it.

Neighbor’s offers a sit-down meal, being an entree or a sandwich or soup or salad. They do fancy coffee drinks. Do not, do NOT leave without trying a dessert. It could be something simple like a cream bread or something elaborate like a chocolate bomb cheesecake. They have decadent things like Chocolate Chip Banana nut Muffins, too.  My favorite? Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins, where the center is pulled out of the muffin, packed with a cream cheese filling and the center’s put back on top. Delightful.

My muffin? Went right in my mouth. But I did pick up a loaf of Spinach Feta Cheese bread and that Blueberry Cream bread as well. Hey, my mom didn’t raise any dumb children. Well, maybe one... no, I can’t say that. My brother Zack’s pretty smart in his own way... but I digress.

So I get home with this bounty and consider how to make it. I set out everything and looked it over, smelled it (it smelled like God’s smokehouse) and thought about it. And here’s what I did.

I took my bread knife and sliced off the top of the Serenity Farms Country French Loaf and the next slice down, and smeared them with the Mamaw Flo’s Pepper Jelly. I went back and added mustard to the bottom slice.

On top of that I put a layer of Coursey’s smoked turkey and smoked Swiss. I topped that with a single thick slice of the Neighbor’s Mill Spinach Feta Cheese bread. I know that may seem weird. For right now think of this as a Dagwood... but yes, it was there for a purpose.

On top of that, I scattered sliced up heirloom marble tomatoes from Friends Orchard. They were especially juicy and almost immediately soaked the Spinach Feta Cheese bread.

Atop that went slices of the smoked Cheddar and smoked beef brisket from Big Springs. I plopped the smaller top of the French bread on top, sliced it in half and gave it a try.

And ladies and gentlemen... somehow it worked. Somehow all that salty, smoky flavor blended perfectly with the coarse bread, the sweet jelly, the tart tomatoes and tangy mustard. And that one slice of Spinach Feta Cheese bread added a peppery touch to the whole mess. But dang if it didn’t make a HUGE sandwich. I had to share it.

So I present to you the Highway 65 Sandwich. Enjoy at your own discretion, preferably over a sink or when you’re wearing your rutty clothes. Substitute items as you will... I bet this would be good with ham, too.

Burger joint of the week: JP's Restaurant and Gathering Place.

This restaurant has closed - KR

This one, I should likely call “In defense of a rare burger.” Because I know some folks are going to disagree with me.

JP’s Restaurant and Gathering Place is the restaurant inside the Hotel Seville in Harrison.

DeVito's Trout and Eats on the Forgotten Road.

U.S. Highway 65 runs from Clayton, LA through the Mississippi River Delta all the way up to Little Rock, AR, across Missouri and Iowa up to Albert Lea, MN.  The highway used to be a long meandering path from Conway, AR to Springfield, MO - two lanes of twists, turns, inclines and declines spanning half a state.  On its curves it held rock shops, quilt stores, smokehouses, fruit stands and every sort of roadside attraction.  There were places to stop to view grand vistas, little quaint towns with old manned service stations, bluffs and waterfalls along roadsides and cute country-clad motels.  Over the years the kinks have been knocked out of the roadway, as the highway has been improved to three and even four lane sections.  The curves have been bypassed, in some areas numerous times.

One particular section of US 65 north of Harrison has seen two bypasses in the past 30 years.  The first, in 1982, moved the highway less than half a mile to the west, but it was enough to change things drastically for one Boone County family.  The second just recently has moved the highway way to the west.

But the DeVito family won’t give up.  The fifth generation of DeVito cooks are still preparing some of the best Italian specialties you can find in Arkansas right along Bear Creek Springs and the family trout farm, all these years later.

The history reaches back several generations.  On the DeVito side of the family there was Jim DeVito, an Army man born in Wisconsin who grew up in Illinois.  He served in the European theater during World War II.  His first stateside posting afterwards was at North Little Rock’s Camp Robinson… where he met his future wife, Mary Alice Raney.  She was a student at Baptist Hospital.  They married in 1947, and when Jim DeVito retired in 1970 after 29 years of service, they settled in Harrison.  

Mary Alice’s dad was Albert Raney, Sr.  He had himself a couple of big attractions up north of Jasper, a trout farm and a cave he showed people around in called Mystic Cavern.  In 1966 he sold the trout farm and cave to an up-and-coming enterprise called Dogpatch USA.  The Raney family continued to operate that trout farm until the attraction closed in 1993.

Mr. Raney also owned a little patch called Bear Creek Springs along US 65.  He had blasted the rock where the springs tumbled out and created a trout farm.  When Jim and Mary Alice DeVito came back to Harrison in 1970, he gave them the farm to run and keep.  They ran it with Mary’s brother Gene quite successfully, building it up into a great attraction that was a must-stop for travelers on the Little Rock-to-Springfield route.  In his retirement and with a crop of boys to feed, the DeVitos also opened an antique store.

This was the first time the highway ran away from the DeVito’s.  For so many years, traffic had brought people whirring by the trout farm, right on the shoulder of the road and so easy to see.  They stopped in droves to cast a line and reel in dinner.  But when Bear Creek Springs was bypassed in 1982, they stopped stopping.

Business for the trout farm shrank… out of sight, out of mind.  Sure, there were signs to direct people down into the hollow below the new roadway, but there were also signs going the other way for US 62, which took travelers to Eureka Springs.  There were also signs for Silver Dollar City, the growing theme park in Branson just across the Missouri border, and for acts such as the Baldknobbers and the Presleys along Highway 76. 

Well, it was time for a change.  In 1986, with the four boys back home and full partners in the enterprise, the DeVito’s opened a restaurant across the road from the trout farm.  It became an overnight success.  People would drive in for miles around to come eat fresh trout and fabulous Italian dishes in the little restaurant over the antique store and rock shop.  Some would come and fish at the farm and have their catches cooked up fresh, but far more came just to eat and experience a fabulous Italian experience in the Ozarks.

And the popularity was well earned.  The men held court in the kitchen -- cooking fish and making sides, bread and dessert from scratch.  Their rich tomato-strong sauce became famous, as did their overstuffed ravioli.  The restaurant drew in business so fast that two years after opening oldest son James picked up and started a second restaurant in Eureka Springs, which was also an instant hit.  And in the late 90s a third DeVito’s was opened at Big Cedar Lodge near Branson.

That last restaurant was fortuitous.  In 2000 DeVito’s original restaurant at Bear Creek Springs was destroyed by fire.  Business still continued at Big Cedar Lodge but there was a decision to be made.  Brothers Steve, Chris and Joe made the decision -- they had to rebuild.  14 months later they were open once again, in a beautiful new facility twice as large as the old one.  It thrived from the moment it opened its doors.

But the highway wasn’t done with DeVito’s.  The late Oughts brought controversy to folks all along the Harrison-to-Branson corridor, with the coming of a four-lane replacement for the major highway that connected the two cities.  The new road was given the US 65 designation, the old road became a series of local loops along the way, and DeVito’s restaurant and trout farm were that much further from the hubbub of traffic.

Still, it persists.  Sure, business took a hit, but locals still come all the time.  And in April the DeVito brothers received a great bit of news -- they’ve received a liquor license from the state, which will be sure to draw people who’d like to have a little wine with their trout.  The restaurant is filled with DeVito’s -- the boys have had children of their own, and most of the employees are some relation. 

***

The springs are as they always were, clear and a constant 58 degrees year round.  It’s full of rainbow trout, ranging from small fry to buggers in the five pound range.  You can still go down and fish -- taking home whatever you catch cleaned and packed in ice at the bargain rate of $6.25 a pound.

Now, though, you can pay an extra $5 and get that trout cooked and served up with a choice of potato and some hush puppies.  A salad’s another $3.  It’s still a deal.

On an unusually warm Sunday morning in April, the trout were especially biting.  Joe DeVito showed me and my photographer across the old foot bridge and down to the westernmost pool, where we could see trout popping the water and nosing up to the bank.  They’re used to people; fish feed is available for a quarter a handful to toss in.  Kids love to watch the feeding frenzy.

“We had four really big ones in that pool over there,” Joe points out as we walked along, “but an otter got them.”

No matter.  We sat down our bag and inspected the tackle we’d brought along.  I cast out first, getting a hit right off the bat on a piece of fish food, a small fish maybe a half pound in size.  Joe came over and unhooked the little one and tossed him back in.

“I remember passing by here as a kid.  I think I even fished out here a few times,” I told Joe.  I couldn’t quite pin the memory down for certain, but I did recall coming out with my best friend in the early 90s to cast out a line or two.

“When I was a kid, there would be days when kids would be lined up all along the bank, nearly shoulder to shoulder.  Sometimes people would have to wait.”

“And it’s always been this way?”

“People used to come out all the time and catch their dinner.  But since the highway moved in ‘82 it hasn’t been as busy.”

I pulled in my first keeper of the day, a pounder who’d swallowed the treble hook on my spoon.  Joe expertly flicked it off and dropped it into water in a wire box at the water’s edge.

I pulled out two more that were in the pound and a half range as my photographer caught shots across the pond.  The sun was piercing.  I was going to end up with a sunburn.

It was his turn, and I took the camera as he made his first unsuccessful cast.  Maybe I shouldn’t have poked fun, but on his next cast he hooked in quick to something with some fight to it.  For several minutes it pulled back on him, wearing itself out.  Joe joined him on the bank with the net, and together they pulled out a two and a half pound beauty.

It was still fighting and managed to get off the hook onto the bank.  Joe picked it up, took it over to the fishing shed and deftly bonked it on the head with a short metal rod.  The fish quieted, and I got to shoot my photographer with his catch.

A few minutes later, he hooked in again, this time bringing in a three-and-a-half-pounder.  I felt dutifully humbled at my earlier success. 

I cast in again while he took fish pic- tures.  It was funny to watch him as he took off a shoe and placed it next to the fish on the bank.  His three-and-a-half pounder was longer than his size 12 ½ loafer.

I had one more catch that day, my largest, a two pounder I took from Joe by the gills to have my own photo taken with.  What can I say -- there’s little glamour to fishing.

We talked with Joe as he took our catch into the shed and ran a sink of water.  He told us about growing up with the trout farm as he expertly beheaded and gutted the fish one by one.  They were each cleaned thoroughly and put in a container.  He then took the largest of the fish and carefully butterflied it as we watched.

“It took me a while to learn this,” he said.  “When we just had the trout farm, we’d just clean them and pack them away.  Now, some folks cook them whole with the bones in them.  I think people like it better when there aren’t any bones in them.”

He slid the knife along one side of the ribcage and then the other and removed it, then slid it into the meat on each side and removed the second row of bones.  A quick trim of the belly fat and there was a gorgeous butterflied fillet of trout.

He filleted two more and then we were heading back across the footbridge, me to the bathroom to clean up and wash while Joe headed for the kitchen.


***


I had brought a clean shirt and took the time to wash up, brush my hair and change before sitting down for lunch.  This part of the job was what I was really used to.

We started with a couple of appetizers -- the Trout Fingers ($7.95) and the Toasted Ravioli ($6.95).  The crispy little trout fingers were lightly breaded with a cornmeal mixture.  They were slightly salty, nicely seasoned and served up with tartar sauce.  It was difficult to keep from inhaling the half-inch-thick little pieces of firm fresh trout. 

The raviolis were fat swollen affairs filled with Parmesan and mozzarella cheeses and tiny little bits of salami.  They’re hand-made and gooey thick and served up with some of the DeVito’s house red sauce, a marinara that includes a lot of tomatoes, fresh spices and a little flavor of pork.  I could only take the smallest taste of this and wish I could have had more.

That was all right… there was much food to come.  We knoshed on salads and homemade Italian bread with real butter before our entrées arrived.  With them came a surprise… the brothers had sent out a half-order of the other ravioli they make, a splendid chicken, spinach and cheese combination heavy on the meat.  The sauce, a Parmesan based cheese sauce, was ethereal.  I believe I tasted notes of Asiago and perhaps Romano in the sauce but was too polite to ask.

We’d ordered trout -- I mean, we’d caught the trout, so it only made sense, right?  My companion had ordered the Pesto Trout ($17.95), and it was a beauty, a gorgeously butterflied fish covered in a fine fresh basil and garlic pesto with pine nuts and olive oil and just a touch of cheese.  It was fragrant and almost delicate.


I chose to do the Half-and-Half ($16.95)-- not listed on the menu, but available and usually suggested by the staff.  On one half Cajun seasoning is used; on the other, the DeVito family spice mix.  It was the latter that really won my heart, with flavors of parsley and paprika and peppers and such, all on a nice soft buttery fillet.

The portions were enormous.  Later we’d find that the portions were oversized just because we’d caught bigger fish.  Yes, we took what we didn’t eat home with us.

As full as we’d become, my photographer insisted we try two of the different pies offered for dessert.  He’d been in the kitchen when they had pulled the hot pies from the oven.  The scent had been overwhelming.

Brother Steve is the pie maker.  He makes all of the pies the restaurant serves up.  My companion had already decided on the Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie and had offered to share, but I couldn’t resist the traditional Apple Pie.  Besides, mine came with a scoop of ice cream.

As we sampled our pies, Joe mentioned his brother James and the operation over in Eureka Springs.  “A lot of people think DeVito’s, they think about his place.  When the awards come out each year, they get sent here even though they’re for over there.  I think we’re as good, three times as good.  He does make his own bread and scampi, but we make everything.”

There’s still some love there, though.  James DeVito still uses fresh trout from the family trout farm in his dishes. 

We were into our pies.  I had to try a little bit of the Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie.  It might be the most alcoholic-flavored non-alcohol in the area.  I could quite clearly taste the Canadian Mist by brand within microseconds.  The rich custard was only enhanced by the chocolate.  It had a soft biscuit-y flakey crust that fell apart in my mouth.

As good as it was, I was so glad I’d chosen the Apple Pie.  The crust was almost phyllo-dough layered but softer and with so much butter in it.  The apples were pliant, like they’d recently been picked, undoubtedly never canned.  They were almost pear-like in flavor and firmness, sweet apples instead of tart.  With the homemade-style golden vanilla ice cream, it was ambrosial.

It was also the absolute last thing I could manage to ingest, and that was a tight call at that.  As we prepared to take off, we were presented with the rest of the fish we’d caught, already packed and iced for us to put in a cooler and take home with us.

While we’d been there, we’d talked about the recent development of Boone County going wet.  Turns out that next week the DeVitos found out they had been granted the liquor license they’d applied for.  That’s really good news.  The brothers hope having that license will bring back the crowds they once had in the restaurant.

Thing is about those crowds -- for the most part, they’re return customers.  “We have people who come in once a year at the same time each year,” Joe told me.  “They’ll see the same people who also show up at the same time each year and say ‘hey, weren’t those people in here last year?’ and we’ll say ‘yeah, they’re in here every night!’ ”

He told us about a couple who’d come in every night and a couple of lunches each week, a couple of vegetarians who always got the Eggplant Parmigiano to share.  They came every week until the man had died.  Such devotion to one restaurant is rare around these parts.  I find it so sweet.

Outside, it was amazing how quiet and still things were.  A few more photos and we left out, heading north.  The same old bridge just north of the Springs is still there, probably unchanged since 1982.  Up on the old highway the signs still point into the hollow.  And out on the new four-lane, there’s a sign that says just where to turn to head down to the trout farm.  If you’re along the way, it’s worth a stop-in.  Don’t worry if you forgot your fishing pole -- they have tackle you can borrow.

You’ll find DeVito’s Restaurant and the trout farm at Bear Creek Springs by heading north on US 65 from Harrison to Old US 65 north of town.  Veer right and go a short distance for the next right hand turn.  The restaurant will be a block down on the left; the trout farm across the street to the right.  It’s open Wednesday through Friday and Sunday for lunch and Monday through Saturday for dinner.  You don’t need a fishing license to fish there but you do need an appetite for dinner.  For more information call (870) 741-8832 or check out the website at www.devitosrestaurant.com.