We're suckers for a meal with family members. The trouble is that we don't have any family in Roanoke. We had gotten a call earlier in the week about a breakfast with my late mother's extended family. The trouble was that the breakfast was at 8:00 am a little over two hours away from us so it was a non-starter from the beginning. Getting on the road at 5:30 am during the holidays is a choice I would not willingly make.
Since we stilled needed to get down for a visit, we planned a trip down the day after the family breakfast. We thought we would just drive around and visit as many families at possible. That triggered another event. These days it takes almost nothing to get everyone interested in eating out, so the suggestion was made that we meet at The Depot at Cody Creek, which is just a few miles south of Dobson, NC on US 601.
We had heard of the Depot for a while. It has the reputation of being one of the best restaurants in that corner of North Carolina. You enter off of the highway and follow a small lane through a covered bridge into a beautiful park like area. We were there early as is a tradition with our family. Getting to a meal fifteen to thirty minutes late might might be okay in the big city, but in Yadkin and Surry Counties, down in North Carolina, you are supposed to be there fifteen minutes early, and we were. We were even the next to last to arrive.
The lobby is impressive, with a rustic and functional water wheel with a supporting cast of stuffed wild animals. The restaurant has two large dining halls, one with booths and one with tables which easily handle large groups. I think we had thirteen at our table. Both Glenda, my wife and I had steaks, my Sirloin was very tender and cooked to perfection. It was accompanied by an excellent salad, a baked potato, and a roll. The beverage of choice was the wine of the South, sweetened Ice Tea. It was exceptional. Our two meals complete with tip was under forty dollars so the meal was also a good value. As far as I could tell everyone enjoyed their meals which ranged from ribs to chicken.
I was also pleased to hear that at least some of the wood in the tables and the building came from the old wooden buildings of the National Furniture factory in Mount Airy where my father worked for years.
We had eaten early at 5:00 pm but by the time we left at 6:30 pm there were huge crowds of people waiting to be seated. The Depot looks to be a great place to relax and wait to be called for dinner when the weather is a little warmer. They have a lot of rocking chairs along their porch.
A short walk away from the Depot there is a country store that runs in the summer. There is also a chapel which is available for weddings. Not far from the main dining building, a banquet hall is also being built.
We may get to the point that no one cooks, based on the number of people I see waiting to get into restaurants. Actually I suspect that is unlikely to happen in our rural South, but going out to eat is still a great way to get together without a lot of work on someone's part.
I snapped this picture of our extended family. As is often the case, the person who went to the trouble to organize the event, my cousin Jane, ended up being the only person whose face was covered in the picture.
I'll have to make certain that doesn't happen again. If you're interested in dining at the Depot, the phone number is (336) 386-8222 and the address is 112 Old Depot Lane, Dobson, NC 27017.
The Depot at Cody Creek now has its own website. http://www.codycreek.net/
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Update 7/10/2006
Another more recent visit to the Depot is chronicled at "The Depot at Cody Creek, Dobson, NC revisited."