August 9, 2012 - Nabers Drive In, Bryson City, NC

Hail, Hail the gangs all here! We are back together tonite for our weekly dining experience. And tonite.. one of my favorites. Nabers Drive  In. This place evokes good memories from my high school days of cruising Bryson, jumping back and forth into friends cars to go check out the parking scene, ride around or just sit and talk. Nabers was the quintessential meeting place for all teenagers in Bryson. It was an  unspoken routine that every Friday night you would be at Nabers. There you would find out who was dating who, who was broken up, who was drinking and who had something to drink, and who was too drunk for good sense. You also found out who had a new car they were showing off. If you wanted to be in the know.. you had to be at Nabers. The rule of meeting at Nabers was especially true during football season. There, we could meet and greet our players and relive highlights of the game. Of course, the opposing teams would also show up as this was before fast food joints. We knew we had to get there first because if you didn't the wait would be forever with a whole football team showing up in a bus. Not to mention the available parking space was just diminished tremendously. 

The food was just an added bonus.  The best onion rings, chili slaw buns, and hamburgers around. Fabulous "real" milkshakes, and their signature dessert.. hot fudge cake. And delivered right to your car.. can't get any better than that. 

Nabers was originally built at the east end of Bryson on the way out of town. It was located at the end of the Governors Island Bridge where it stayed until it burnt down. My mother used to work at Nabers when she was in high school. I have a photo of the old Nabers in its original location. I also have a photo of my mom and dad  standing in the parking lot of the original Nabers. 

Beside Nabers, was a gas station my dad worked at and a little locally owned motel. The area has been vacant for awhile and the state built a little pull off area with picnic tables there recently. You have a view of the river and could watch rafters and tubers go past in the summer. The river was much fuller back then than now. At the bottom of the bank where Nabers was built, are old cars from the 40's and 50's. The county or state put them in the bank to curtail erosion. You can still see them sticking out of the bank. Little did they know those cars would be worth a mint now. 

Original Nabers. Governors Island 

Larry Dixon & Alyne Walker in front of Nabers

After Nabers burnt down, it was rebuilt in its present location. Still on the east side of Bryson, but closer to town. It has been in its present location for over 30  years. It has changed hands a few times in those years, but the food has stayed the same. And as far as the employees, there were always some mainstays at Nabors. You could count on seeing them working when you pulled up. It was a comforting sight and made you think.. that things had not changed and you were going to be young forever. One of those folks who worked at Nabers for decades was Bayless. He passed away several years ago, but it was like seeing an old friend you grew up with when you would pull into Nabers and see Bayless delivering food to cars. The other icon at Nabers was Dixie Kirkland. She worked alongside Bayless for decades. She always had a smile on her face and a greeting, like she had been waiting all day just for you to show up. And if you were lucky and she would slow down for two seconds, she would offer you a joke with your change. She and I often traded jokes. She had some doozies too. 

On a sadder note, Dixie is no longer there. A victim of the misbelief  that older folks are not valuable in the workplace. The new owners told her unexpectedly that it was time for her to go home and take it easy. TAKE IT EASY!! That is like telling the grass not to grow, or the rain to fall up instead of down. Dixie could no more take it easy than the sun could rise in the west. She was a dynamo and had the energy of  five... or make it 10 - 20 year olds. On a good note, the day she was fired, several local businesses called her and offered her a job. So, she is still working, which is what she wants to do. I do miss seeing her at Nabers though. Instead of Dixie and Bayless, there are several young Mexican girls.While they are pleasant, they often get your orders wrong due to the language barrier. And no jokes either... sigh. I dont even know their names. 

As far as I know, Nabers has always had a drive in and dine in section. It still offers curb service as it always has. The girls do not wear skates. You pull into a slot, push the button on the speaker box and place your order. In a bit, here comes someone with your food on a tray that hooks onto your window. 

When Jim Sneed owned Nabers, he had very large pens built beside the river. In them, he kept peacocks. Now, these were pretty exotic for back then. I used to love to to watch the peacocks strutting  back and forth. And to hear  them call! It would be almost as good as being in the jungle. Wild, primitive sounds that echoed up the river. I don't know what happened to those birds.. I suspect they died off. It was a great tourist attraction. 

Curb Service at the drive in

Nabers has been painted different color schemes over the years. Not as colorful as it used to be .

The menu is on the board at the side of each car slot. The prices and menu selections haven't changed much over the years.They still offer  hamburgers, hot dogs, corn dogs, onion rings, fries. They do offer plates now such as Fried Chicken, Corn on the Cob, as well as BBQ sandwiches and plates. The Fried Chicken is really good. It is basic drive in staples... but they still make milkshakes with real ice cream and in a variety of flavors. I remember peanut butter used to be favorite when I was in high school. They also will "spice" up your drink with cherry syrup, vanilla, etc. It is also the only place I know of where you can still get a "Pink Lady." I'll let you all figure that one out....can't tell everything I know. They also serve breakfast. I have never eaten breakfast at Nabers. 

One word of caution... we put slaw on our hamburgers down  here. If  you want lettuce, you have to ask for it. So if you want everything on your burger, ask for a hamburger (or cheeseburger) "all the way." That means ketchup, onion, pickle, tomato, mayo and slaw. You can get your burgers and dogs anyway you want but you gotta ask. 

 And   one more thing.. they do have  chili slaw buns.. For those uneducated folks out there... that is a hot dog bun, with chili and slaw. You can get mustard, onions and relish on it, but the locals ask for a chili slaw bun. My husband had never heard of one til he moved here. Now he loves them. I have to agree. 

Hot dog with mustard, chili and slaw & onion rings

Chili slaw bun with onion rings

Cheeseburger with chili

Hot Apple Pie with Ice Cream

One inside dining area

Same room with view of river

Order board with speaker box

The fries and onion rings are great. The pies are served hot with ice cream if you want.  And their signature dessert - Hot Fudge Cake is delish!! Brownie type cake with ice cream and hot fudge. Huge portions!  We did order a Hot Fudge Cake, but we ate it before we remembered to take a picture. You'll just have to go order one. 

We did not have a Pam question tonite. We basically caught up and talked about our various projects. We did talk about people's need to post every move they make on FB. What is that about? As if anyone is interested in what they had for breakfast or their hourly on again, off again relationship. I am of the generation that you don't air your dirty laundry in public and there is still a thing called decorum. Some of these younger folks need to look that one up. 

We have been getting lots of compliments on the ASC and we do appreciate the support and comments we get. Keep reading us.... our adventure continues. Maybe we'll get out of Swain County one of these days. 

Next week we will be at the Rivers End restaurant in the Nantahala Gorge. See you there at 6:30. Come join us if  you want.