Newspaper Page Text
Page 2— Wednesday, August 26, 2020, The True Citizen
l)ININCf with Mo
LAKEVIEW RESTAURANT:
BACK TO ITS GLORY DAYS
DIANA ROYAL
jdianaroyal @ gmail .com
If I ate bacon, right now I’d
be telling you how amazing the
cream cheese chicken wrap is,
but since I don’t, you’ll have to
trust this fact: Within a matter
of half an hour, at least 10
people swore the deep fried
wrap is one of the best things
they’ve ever eaten. Yes they
swore. One even contemplated
giving up her first born for a
year’s supply. (Okay, I’m ex
aggerating; it was her second
born.)
Yes ladies and gentleman,
the long awaited re-debut is
here; Lakeview Restaurant is
finally open again and tastes
just like we remember.
Imagine if you will being
new parents to not one but two
baby boys (twins!) and com
pletely remodeling a restaurant
in the midst of a worldwide
pandemic. But the Drakes are
still smiling, genuine grins as
the fruits of their labor have
turned out pretty plump and
juicy.
Back in November 2019,
Russ Drake decided to take
over management of the res
taurant, lovingly dubbed The
Lake before he was ever even
born, and thus began a ma
jor remodel. He gutted the
old bathrooms to extend the
kitchen (and doubled its size!),
ripped up the buffet and salad
bar and replaced them with
windows to allow for more
space and a prettier view and
added a front room to make
waiting a more pleasant experi
ence for customers.
I got to see a lot of the behind
the scenes action over the past
several months, and I also saw
the worried look on Russ’ face
as he’d stress about opening
and whether folks would enjoy
the new menu items. He and
his wife, Erin, worked closely
with Cisco taste testing new
options, picking out decor and
hiring a staff that would tit their
vision. When I walked through
the door Saturday night dur
ing their soft opening and was
greeted by half a dozen sets of
eyes and masked faces sing
ing, “Welcome to the Lake,” in
unison, I knew my friends had
succeeded.
“I just want my mama to be
proud,” Russ said a few months
back, explaining how much
she enjoyed serving others and
spending time with folks from
around the community. On
Saturday, he proudly pointed
out “Kathy’s Kitchen” - a me
morial right by the front door
donning the name and photo
of a woman whose life was
cut short due to breast cancer.
“This is for her,” he said, his
eyes moving around the room.
“This is all for her.”
The familial charm I re
member as a teenager seems to
envelope Lakeview Restaurant
even though it looks entirely
different now. The gumball
and candy machines Russ
and his sister, Allison, sat out
front to make extra profit as
kids are gone. The various
cakes and warm crock pots
no longer flank a dinner bar
featuring fried chicken and
gooey macaroni and cheese,
yet the nostalgia remains there
amongst the new shiny tables
and fresh paint. Perhaps that’s
because every time the door
opens, whoever walks through
is greeted by name or with a
hearty clap on the back.
Lakeview is so much more
than a restaurant, and those
working or eating are there for
more than just a paycheck or
food. The place offers some
thing you just can’t put your
finger on, but whatever it is
wraps you up in a warm hug.
It also offers a big ol’ plate of
just about any food your heart
desires. Hamburgers. Seafood.
Pastas. Salads. Hand-cut fries.
And yes, everyone’s beloved
hamburger steak is on the
menu; Robin Baxley over at
Best Office Solutions says it’s
as close to the original as it’s
ever been.
I had the buffalo chicken
Philly - grilled chicken piled
on a hoagie bun with peppers
and onions, drizzled with moz
zarella cheese and a buffalo
mayo sauce that’s just spicy
enough. The chips and queso
offer a mix of homemade com
and flour tortillas (my heart
screamed silently with excite
ment when I saw this), and the
onion hay is a wonderful alter
native to fries (but hey - you
can always have both). I know
all of y’ all have prayed to Baby
The buffalo chicken Philly with onion hay and sauteed veggies (with Nacho Normal Nachos
peeping in the background)
J about that hamburger steak,
but let me tell you about those
grilled green beans. I would eat
them at every meal. I would eat
them cold. I would eat them
hot. I’d eat them straight out
of the pot (but that’s not sani
tary). Lakeview will become
famous over these beans. Mark
my word.
An appetizer I’d never seen
before also made its way to our
table: the Nacho
Normal Nachos. SEE
Why aren’t they D-RO
normal? Because 14
Bacon cheeseburger all the way with grilled green beans
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706-554-2114 www.mizellford.com Waynesboro, Ga.