As we prepare to celebrate our 4^th annual Sample of Sedro wherein we feature the foods prepared by our local restaurants we are showcasing our business of the month the Iron Skillet Restaurant. Once I read a poster with a picture of St George the Dragon Slayer on its face that said “Who if Not You, When if not Now,” and in taking pictures of one of the long-standing businesses I found it applicable. Reba Sines keeps her business fresh and alive. A haunt of many locals, a home to the Wildcat Steelhead Club, and the place of proclaimed “good food, lousy service”, there is still something new at this long established restaurant.

The Iron Skillet recently revitalized the look of their restaurant, thereby, winning our kudos for their efforts. With a beautiful bright red awning, fresh paint, hanging plants on the east end and planter box near the door, a person feels welcome approaching the restaurant. Two chainsaw carved statues stand like doormen, adding that truly Sedro-Woolleyesque touch of whimsy. Then one opens the door and finds the use of vibrant color everywhere. Bold red lighting fixtures, festive colored walls and mugs greet the patrons old and new. Reba says when the orange paint first started going up she wanted to cry and then they put the yellow up and she felt sick to her stomach, but she stayed with it and as the accents were added in she applauded her sister-in-laws vision of the décor and says it makes her happy to come to work. She said some of the things everyone expected her to keep were the saws on the walls and the Loggerodeo pictures which look great against the bright yellow paint. 

The establishment is full of color much like the lady, Reba Sines, who has owned and managed the restaurant for years. Like Saint George, Reba does not wait for a committee, when something needs changing she just goes to work. In the past twenty years this is probably her business’ third uplift. If such attention to stewardship were displayed throughout downtown how sharp looking our town would be.

Reba opened the business on February 29, 1980. She had been working for 16 years in the food service industry starting in 1964 at the old hotel in Concrete, where her mother Leatha Snyder worked as a cook. Reba continued to waitress and many will remember her from her days at the Liberty and Gateway restaurants. Ms. Sines truly values loyalty as well; many of her staff have been with her for years. Hazel who cooks for her, used to work for George Bellos at the Liberty and try as she would, she could not woo her away until the Liberty closed. But besides her cooking, another trait Reba valued in Hazel was her loyalty. She tries to buy locally; John Hinton, at Sedro-Woolley Glass, put in her new windows. Reba, in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce, has helped keep the Outdoor Movie Project alive in Downtown Sedro-Woolley stepping up as a sponsor this year. Her loyalty to Sedro-Woolley is clearly apparent.

The idea for a place of her own started as just a soup and sandwich place but she kept hearing input from others which first convinced her to add breakfast, then dinner. While fishing at Baker Lake she put together her menu and ideas for the restaurant. Specialties include her chili, which she describes as mild, the homemade soups prepared daily by Jamie Perkins, her hamburgers, and chicken fried steaks. But everybody, especially the Steelhead club, would agree the meatlover’s omelet and fisherman’s breakfast are multi-star worthy. When Reba first opened it was her country biscuits and gravy that received rave reviews and many other local restaurants soon followed her lead, trying to emulate her product.

Good food, lousy service has brought many a visitor to town some coming in the door giggling about the fact that the sign just made them stop. Once a visitor told her she had done a real disservice to her staff, which were fantastic, by advertising her place in such a way, and she asked him what the sign said about the other restaurants? He stammered and said, “what other restaurants?” Her response was, “exactly, my sign did what it was intend to do, it brought you here”, then her eyes twinkled and she graced him with that charming smile of hers. Reba we thank you for all the meals you have served and for being apart of our community for so many years.