Serving traditional country cooking, Buckeyes Restaurant, open since November, has already made a name for itself as the destination in Jersey.
Named in memory of the late Dr. William McGarity, who was known for handing out buckeyes to his students and patients, the restaurant is owned and managed today by his son and daughter-in-law, Tom and Angie McGarity. Completing the family operation are the couple's three daughters who also work in the hunting-lodge themed restaurant.
The hunting lodge theme is emphasized throughout the restaurant with mounted deer heads, antler chandeliers and hunting paraphernalia on the walls. Several of the restaurant walls are also devoted to the history of Jersey and to the life of William McGarity, who was a well known surgeon, and are adorned with old photographs, bank checks and newspaper articles.
"We just wanted a place where people would come and hang out and people do. They come and hang out for hours," said Angie of the restaurant.
While the restaurant was originally intended to serve the many hunters who pass through Jersey on their way to the McGarity quail hunting reserve, Angie said she and her husband decided to make Buckeyes open to the public because they saw a need for a restaurant in the area.
"It's just a nice place to come and have some good food," Tom said. "There's really not anywhere to eat within 10 miles."
Buckeyes offers a full breakfast buffet from 6 a.m. - 11 a.m. for $5.99. Egg platters, served with the choice of grits or gravy and a biscuit or toast cost anywhere from $2.75 to $4.75 depending on the choice of accompanying meat. Breakfast biscuit sandwiches are also available as are pancakes.
Lunch is served from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Customers can choose between a variety of lunch platters which range in price from $4.25 to $6.99 and include such combinations as one meat and three vegetables or four vegetables.
Lunch items vary daily but are all well-known Southern cooking staples and include macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, meatloaf, chicken casserole, squash casserole, chicken and dumplings and steak and gravy.
Sandwiches, soups and salads are all also offered. Homemade barbecue, grilled chicken, fried chicken, BLTs and tuna salad sandwiches are all served as are Caesar salads, garden salads and Brunswick stew. On Fridays, a seafood lunch is served with catfish, shrimp and flounder.
Buckeyes is open for dinner from 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Angie described the dinner atmosphere as slightly more upscale than the lunch atmosphere. For dinner, a chef is on staff to prepare the menu items which include prime rib, steak, chicken and seafood and are served with baked potatoes and a side salad.
Dinner entrees range in price from $12 to $18. Saturday night is also seafood night with all-you-can-eat catfish and quail for $13.99. Scallop dinners are also offered.
Grill items, including chicken fingers and hamburgers are also offered on Friday and Saturday night. Buckeyes is open on Sundays when the restaurant features an all-you-can-eat lunch buffet for $9.99.
Buckeyes features a drive-through window which is open during restaurant hours. Carryout and catering orders are available as well.
Hand crafted walking sticks and Buckeyes T-shirts are on sale at the restaurant. Angie says the restaurant plans to begin carrying a line of Buckeyes jams, jellies, salad dressings, pepper sauces and old fashioned candies.
