Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana

Column: Grub's

Every few months I will have a dream of a small little diner in my hometown of Rock Springs, Wyoming.

After the dream, I will always wake up hungry and craving a double shamrock and fries with from Grub's Drive-In. While it may make some people giddy to dream about food, I will always wake up angry because the food in question is a bit more than a quick trip downtown or a short trip to Bozeman or Butte.

I still remember the first time I ever stepped foot into the little diner that has counter space for about 10 people to eat but was always somehow filled with about 30 people during the lunch hour. As soon as I got out of the car, I started to smell the burgers and fries and the pleasant aroma only intensified as I walked into Grubs. I was with my aunt and uncle and we picked up a huge bag of takeout and it was torture driving the 10 minutes back to their house so we could eat.

By the time we arrived at their home, the bag was turning clear from the greasy fries and my first tastes of Grubs were pure magic. It was the epitome of a greasy spoon in all the right ways and to this day the best cheeseburger and fries I've had. For the next several years I would try and convince the adults in charge to make as many trips to Grubs as possible, but it was not near enough for my liking. It wasn't until I hit 11th grade that I was truly able to eat it as much as I wanted.

This was the year my mom finally started giving me money every day for lunch instead of buying tickets from the cafeteria. I didn't have a car at the time, but one of my good friends Jeff did and just about daily we would make the five-minute drive to get a shamrock and fries. The shamrock is a double patty with tons of cheese, pickles, and onions. Years later I figured out you could get a double shamrock with four patties, but at this time I was content with my near-daily meal. It also came with fries that combined with their gravy are still one of the most incredible bites on the planet.

Although it was a short drive to the diner, it would often be packed with patrons and we would arrive late for fifth hour which happened to be my math class. There was a policy at my high school that you lost a point off your grade for each tardy. My teacher was kind and did not ding me every time I was late but those days when I rolled in about 15 to 20 minutes after class started, she had no choice. Jeff was one of the smartest people I've ever met and is now a successful Doctor, so the loss of points didn't really affect him. He went from 99 percent to 91. On the other hand, I was in math and to this day have no idea what is going on in that subject. I took myself from a B to a C which was a real bummer because for me to get a B in math in high school was like finding a unicorn – it just doesn't happen.

Rather than just put an end to the trip to Grub's, I tried to figure out how I could get my meal and not a tardy. We finally decided to call from a payphone at the end of fourth hour, (yes, I'm that old), and it would be ready for us when we arrived. I was never tardy again, I still got Grubs, and by golly the next semester I got a C without food giving me issues.

Prior to moving to Montana, I would still eat at Grubs once or twice a week and it always one of my first stops when I arrive home. Sometimes it is the first place I want to go, but I figure I should at least stop to see friends and family first.

One of these days I'm going to have the dream about Grubs and if the weather is okay, I'm going to get in the car and drive for seven hours just so I can have a shamrock and fries. Maybe I'll miss work, but there will certainly not be anybody giving

 

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