Swinging Bridge Restaurant

Last week cousin-in-law, Rick, suggested that we all venture out on a little trip to the Swinging Bridge Restaurant. This restaurant is in the tiny town of Paint Bank, Virginia which is west of Salem and almost to the West Virginia/Virginia state border. Rick drove us in their car and we left before lunch time.

We drove out Hwy. 311 and it was a scenic drive that took us over 2 mountains and through the Jefferson National Forest. Along the way there were farms with cows grazing in the fields and many scenic overlooks with fantastic views of the Appalachian Mountains. It only took us about an hour to get to the tiny town of Paint Bank. The Swinging Bridge Restaurant is at the back of the Paint Bank General Store. There was already quite a full house of diners seated so we had to wait for a table. While we waited, we decided to mosey around the general store. The store stocked a lot of supplies for campers plus the usual souveniers that can attract the attention of the visitor or tourist. It was done up in the style of the general stores of the past.




This is what the Paint Bank General Store looks like. Penny candy? They have some, but it isn't a penny any longer. This is the front porch of the General Store and it has the requisite rocking chairs for the visitor to relax in.

This is cousin Gail, Rick and Bruce seated at our table and waiting for our lunch to arrive from the kitchen. The menu read, "Slap Your Mama, cause she don't cook like this no more". The menu was full of wonderful selections with the usual southern flair found in most country restaurants. Bruce and I opted for the more calorie and fat conscious choice of a Buffalo Burger although we did eat the french fries that came with the burger. Rick got a BBQ Buffalo sandwich and Gail got a nice cup of Ham 'n Bean Soup and a salad. Gail enjoyed that soup so much she couldn't stop talking about it and I swear she was ready to "slap somebody's Mama" if it would get her another bowl !!
This is the actual swinging bridge that is found upstairs in the gift shop. Shoppers can cross back and forth across this bridge as they make their selections from the wide array of merchandise. A great deal of the merchandise was handmade and some of the quilts on display were amazing. They also had a lot of items for the fisherman or the hunter. We are not in the market for keepsakes or souveniers so we just did the window shopping.
After we had eaten our wonderful meals and looked at all of the stuff in the gift shop, it was time to make our way back to Salem. It was a lot of fun going to the Swinging Bridge Restaurant and the weather cooperated with a lot of sunshine and blue skies for the whole day. Terrific outing !!!