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| Holcomb's Custard Stand - Isom, Kentucky |
Happy Labor Day! Welcome back to my little corner of the internet, where this time I found myself heading over to the small, unincorporated town of Isom, in Letcher County, Kentucky. It was a random trip, not at all planned or anything. Friday finally showed it's beautiful face, and I decided to make a quick trip over to Whitesburg and pop into Roundabout Music, just for a little something to do. Afterward, I headed back in the general direction of Knott County, when I suddenly realized it was now officially Labor Day weekend, and in this part of the world, that means one thing...Isom Days. I figured I'd stop in, if only for a few minutes, and see what was going on.
I walked around for a few minutes, looked at some crafts and listened to a few songs being played at the stage, and watched as they prepared for the now famous Isom Days Rodeo (seriously, everyone comes to this thing). I was honestly pretty tired, and it was hotter than blue blazes, as it has been almost EVERY DAMN DAY since May. If you find yourself disagreeing with that statement, then you're either a shut in with an exceptional air conditioner and no access to weather information, or you live on the Arctic Shelf somewhere, with no access to weather information. It's been a scorcher.
So, I figured I'd seen most of what the fair was offering that evening, and since it was around supper time, I would treat myself to a little something, it being Friday and all. I saw this as a perfect opportunity to try something out that I'd heard so much about for so many years, but somehow never got to try myself. Yes, you read that correctly...I live in the general area, and I've never eaten at Holcomb's Custard Stand. There's no legitimate reason for this, and goodness knows I haven't purposefully tried to avoid it. It just somehow never happened...until now.
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| First approach. |
Appearances can be deceiving, especially if you're the type of pretentious knob who turns their nose up and drives by such places. This isn't some 4 star ball room with snobby waiters and fancy indoor plumbing, no sir. This is the genuine article. This is an authentic order-at-the-window and eat-where-you-can-sit Dairy Bar, and there aren't many left. Anywhere. Even here. Holcomb's is one of the last privately owned "mom n' pop" type establishments of this type that I'm aware of. It's a shame too, because many of my childhood memories involve visiting places like this and getting amazing food and service. It's a dying industry, but this place stands defiant against the odds, just like many other businesses in Isom.
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| There's clearly been many, many people served at this window. |
I approached the above window, and a very nice young lady greeted me and asked me what I'd like. Not wanting to sound stupid, I pretended to know what I wanted as I quickly scanned the hand written menus hanging in the front windows. She knew I was full of it. So, I kept looking, and looking at all the great menu items they had. It made the decision very difficult.
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| Very difficult. |
This is one of those places that, though small, has so many different options to choose from. It's like a concession stand on steroids, and that's the hallmark of these types of places. Great variety, low prices. But when you're getting hungrier by the minute, it makes the task all the more daunting.
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| Must...resist....must....eat dinner first. |
After the longest 3 minutes of my life, and probably the longest 3 minutes of that poor girl's life who very patiently waited on me to answer, I finally decided on something. As I said, this wasn't simple. But, when trying something new, I generally try to get some kind of signature dish, as good as everything else may sound. I've heard various stories over the years about what's best here, but I've never heard anything about a signature dish of any type. It's a free for all, but I finally noticed something that kind of stuck out to me.
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| I couldn't pass up something called an "Isom Burger", no matter the options. |
The Isom Burger Box is a burger, topped with bacon, cheese, and a fried egg. On the side, you get a big order of shoestring fries and coleslaw. I opted for extra fries rather than slaw, because honestly, I'm not a fan. I know that must be some form of 'Hillbilly blasphemy', and I'm sorry if it is, but it's the truth. I just don't care for it. Extra fries for me, all the way. She took my order with a smile, and said it would be ready very shortly. I then picked out a table.
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| Ok, the only table. |
I sat there, and just took in my surroundings. It was a beautiful start to the weekend, with the sun getting ready to set over a hill off in the distance. I watched passers by, walking down the road, as the fair was only down the street about 500 feet or so. So many kids and adults alike, just enjoying their time together at a small town festival. You have to love that. I could also hear a train, undoubtedly hauling some 'black gold' slightly off in the distance as well. I was witnessing "Eastern Kentucky" in one collective spot, as I sat there, waiting on my order. It was an honest revelation at that very moment. I just kind of smiled. After a mere 8 or 9 minutes, she called my name, and my order was ready. $7.59 later, and I was more than ready to dig in and savor every bite. Again, it has been a very long day, and I was starved out at this point.
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| Don't even act surprised. |
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| Oh my...yes, and YES. |
The smell was amazing. I guess a big ole burger and a pile of fresh crispy fries can't smell any other way, but still, it was intoxicating. I squeezed my ketchup out of my little packets, and was ready to chow down.
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| YUM. |
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| Crisp on the outside, soft in the middle. The way God intended. |
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| Check out those layers.....drool.... |
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| Ok last one, I promise. |
The burger was fantastic. The patty was nice and juicy. It was the pre-pressed variety, but that's fine. It was well seasoned and cooked nearly to perfection. The bacon was as real as it gets. Nice and thick, cooked thoroughly, and hit a nice middle ground somewhere between soft and crispy. Perfect. And the egg...ohh boy. I was put off once upon a time at the thought of an egg being on my burger. It just didn't sound good to me, not appetizing at all. One day, I talked myself into it, and I never looked back. It's an amazing flavor and texture combination, and I recommend it to anyone, especially if you had the same notions as I once had. This one was no exception. It was cooked perfectly, with only a very slightly runny yolk, just enough to give it moisture, and to release the flavor. I was pleased.
The fries were great as well. They were standard shoe string fries, but they were really good. They were fried the right amount of time at the right temperature. That isn't always an easy thing to do, and they nailed it.
I enjoyed every bite, took in the scenery around me, and pondered on dessert. And by "ponder", I mean "I'm definitely getting something but I have no idea what". I walked back over to the window, and again was indecisive.
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| Because yes, there's an entire other dessert menu separate from the above hand dipped ice cream one. An already impossible task has now just reached improbable levels. |
This wasn't going to be easy, and I sure wasn't going to skip out. You can't go to a dairy bar and not get ice cream of some type. It's a law. I looked and looked, pondered and pondered. Everything looked good, and as hot as it was, any of it was going to feel pretty good going down. I just couldn't decide....that is, until I seen something. I don't know how I saw it, because it isn't on the menu. Somehow, I just knew. I knew to look past the menu...through the glass. That's when I saw it. With thine own eyes and thine own heart, I saw it; something....
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| ...extraordinary. |
I could have cried. It would have been silly, but warranted. I could have laid down right there in that parking lot, with all of Letcher County walking past me, and just sobbed. I just found, for the first time in decades, Superman Ice Cream. I just found my childhood. I just found Summer in the 80s. I just found Saturdays at the old Hindman Mi-Dee-Mart. I just found after school at the long gone Brinkley Dairy Bar. I felt like Indiana Jones after he found the Arc.
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| The world could have ended at this moment, and I would have had no regrets. |
I savored every bite. I sat there, and felt sorry for anyone not eating Superman Ice Cream at that moment in time. I knew, at that moment, life was grand, and everything was going to be ok. That's the power it wields.
Holcomb's Custard Stand is a gem hidden in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. How I managed to miss this place for this many years is something I'll never know, and surely something I'll have to atone for later. I very much enjoyed it. I enjoy Isom in general, it's a neat little town with lots of small wonders, antique stores, and beautiful rustic views. It's also just down the road from where current UFC women's superstar Jessamyn Duke was born and raised. How's that for a little bit of trivia?
I've found another favorite eatery, right here, close to home. It was right under my nose, and though I had always heard about it, I just never made my way over to check it out. I'm glad I did, and I'm glad I can share some of these adventures with you, no matter where you may be. I'm proud to be a Kentuckian. We're a proud people in general, and many share my love for this area.
Many may do so....but there's one in particular. One person who has no qualms about laying it all on the line, and showing the world what we have to offer. One person, who is always the first in line to shine a spotlight where so much darkness can sometimes lurk. One person...that has graciously agreed to join me next time around.
Hopefully, she'll bring the Bourbon.
