Wednesday & Thursdays are Burger Night!
Featuring the Yocona Burger--a half pound Hereford filet burger topped with
bacon, blue cheese, caramelized onions & Yocona Sauce.

Old Gift Certificates:
We will honor all gift certificates issued before the fire
(regardless of expiration date) until the end of 2010.

WE ARE OPEN!
Update--December 30th

It is official--we will be re-opening at 5:00 p.m. tonight.

We will be open New Year's Eve, with our regular menu and NO reservations.
We will be closed New Year's Day, then resume regular hours on Saturday the 2nd.

Wednesday, Thursday & Sunday 5:00-9:00
Friday & Saturday 5:00-10:00

We look forward to seeing you in Abbeville!

FINALLY!
Update--December 6th

Open House Party, Sunday evening, December 27th

Open for Business, Wednesday evening, December 30th

Barring catastrophe, we will be opening the doors in Abbeville in just a few weeks!
If you are in town for the holidays, please help us celebrate. More details later.

We will be open for New Year's Eve, but with our regular menu and NO reservations.
We will be closed New Year's Day, and will resume regular hours on January 2nd.

Gift Certificates are available for Holiday gift giving. Please email us if you're interested.
We are now also offering gift certificates for Cooking Classes.
We will publish a list of class offerings after the first of the year.
Classes will be held at the restaurant on Tuesday evenings. Tuition is $60 per class.

Yocona In Exile
Update--October 20th

Several weeks ago, I received two phone calls. The first was from Mike Bennett,
a local contractor who owns several properties in nearby Abbeville.
Mike offered us the old Ruth & Jimmie's space to set up shop temporarily. I was tempted.
Two days later I got the second phone call. It was the loan officer reporting back
with the loan committee's decision:  we will have to go through the SBA for our loan.
That means more wheel-spinning--only this time on the Federal level.

Mike's offer was becoming more attractive by the minute.
I met him a week later in Abbeville, and we sealed the deal with a handshake.
We will be right at home, feeding folks in yet another converted old gas station.
Hopefully the other essentials will also remain the same.

Yocona In Exile is going to be a scaled-back version of Yocona River Inn.
We will have less space and less equipment to work with, which means a smaller menu.
We won't have a range, so pastas and mashed potatoes won't be possible.
We won't have a fryer, but there are plenty of ways to skin a catfish.
(Unfortunately, I know of no satisfactory substitute for french fries.)
Filet with Yocona Sauce and our salads will definitely be on the menu.
We should be able to offer a steak, fish and poultry entree each night.
I'm fairly confident that I can work some soup magic with a portable burner,
and that we can put out a nightly appetizer with only an oven to work with.
Yes, you will still be able to Brown Bag.

We are shooting for Thanksgiving for our grand re-opening--
however that is a hopeful goal, not a precise one.
We will start with Thursday through Sunday nights as our operating hours.
Once we have dinner running smoothly, our plan is to add lunch on those days.
If all goes well, we will stay in Abbeville even after Yocona River Inn is rebuilt.
We hope to restore both old gas stations into the popular eateries they used to be.

We will continue the Brick Patronage Fund Drive indefinitely.
We are saving the bricks for Yocona, but we will begin the restaurant credit ASAP.
As soon as we work out the logistics, we will send out certificates to all Patrons.
We look forward to all of you putting those certificates to use.

I cannot tell you how excited we are about getting back to work.
We all miss our jobs, but we miss our customers even more.
We are so grateful for all the support we've received,
and for the enthusiasm everyone shows when we tell them about Abbeville.

I can't thank Mike enough for making this possible.
Although he didn't intend to, he is essentially renovating the building.
He's investing in us as much as he is his property.
Thank you, Mike.

Project Yocona
Update--August 12th

I apologize for not getting to this sooner--
unfortunately, there hasn't been much to report.

Our warmest thanks to Kenny Brown, Rocket 88, and Blue Mountain.
They put on an incredible show at the benefit hosted by
Proud Larry's on July 23rd.
In addition to the much-needed funds,
they also provided us with some much-needed fun.

The first bit of news is that the building has finally come down.
It took the insurance company forever to sign off on demolition.
Despite Jon Coleman's best efforts, the front porch did not survive;
the old brick columns crumbled the instant the roof was lifted.
We are left with a patch of red dirt and the Bridge to Nowhere.

As of this morning, the insurance part of the project is officially closed.
Wow, only five months. Good thing there weren't any problems.
Suffice it to say, I've learned a few things.

Alas, the re-building process is creeping along,
and there seems to be little that I can do to hasten it.
I am waiting on a few quotes before a final cost can be determined.
Then I go back to the banks to figure out how to pay for it.
When the funding is in place, things will get exciting.

Once we are back up and running smoothly,
we will be offering cooking classes.
In the meantime, I am trying to get a head start on this
by offering classes to groups in private homes.
If you are interested, please feel free to email me.
Class size is from 4 to 8 people, and I'm happy to cover
any topic as long as it's within my competency.

The Patronage Fund Brick Drive is still going strong.
Many thanks to all of you who have contributed.
We will continue the Brick sales throughout construction.

I also want to thank everyone for the continued support.
I have been living by Faith for the last few months,
and it never fails to lift my spirits when someone stops me
to check on our progress and let me know how much we are missed.
God bless you all.

The Front Porch Pages

It is now official--the whole building will be coming down.
Only the front porch is worth saving.
On the bright side, there is progress to report.

The Buy a Brick Patronage Fund is exceeding all expectations.
These funds are proving crucial in meeting on-going expenses.
Because of these contributions, my employees,
my child and I still have health insurance.
I cannot possibly thank everyone enough for this support.

There is also progress on the rebuilding front.
Gary Coleman of Coleman Builders is going to help us
build the new restaurant as inexpensively as possible.
Gary's generosity will allow us to take advantage of other offers of help:
like Kirby Houston's offer to do our plumbing work at cost,
and Andy Douglas of Andy's Steak House offer to paint.

Corey Alger of Alger Design Studio is our architect.
With Corey's help, we will be albe to recreate much of the
feel and charm of the old building, while solving lots of problems.

Now all I have to do is finish with the insurance adjustor
so that demolition and debris removal can take place.
I look forward to that day with mixed emotions. While it will be a relief
not to look out on the wreckage from my kitchen window,
it will be heart-breaking to see our beloved old building come down.

Then again, the thought of new plumbing is quite consoling.

posted March 24th

Update:

I do not have much to report at the moment.
The fire investigation is still underway.
I am waiting on a structural engineer to assess what is left of the building.
The inside of the building is pretty well gutted; only the front dining room is intact.
I suspect that the front dining room--with all its shelves and trinkets and heart pine--
is what many of you picture when you remember meals at Yocona.
My hope now is that we are able to at least save this room and rebuild around it.
But even if that fails, we still have the front porch!

On a personal note, the entire Yocona family would like to thank everyone for
the OVERWHELMING display of support we are receiving.
It is impossible not to be positive in the midst of such warmth and generosity.

Patronage Shares

In order to meet on-going expenses and to raise funds for our rebuilding project,
we are selling Patronage Shares.
Each share is $250, for which the contributor receives:
A brick engraved with the contributor's name, as well as
$250 credit to be used in the restaurant in the form of a 50% discount.
The plan is to use the bricks to build a patio next to the front porch.
Checks should be made out to Yocona River Inn and mailed to:
Paige Osborn
Yocona River Inn
P.O. Box 2609
Oxford, MS 38655

We are profoundly grateful to John T. Edge,
John Currence and Randy Yates for making this happen.

If you have any questions regarding this project, please feel free to email me.

posted February 12th:

Dear Loyal Customers:

Early Thursday morning, March 12th, the restaurant suffered a major fire.
Our kitchen has been destroyed, and much of the interior of the restaurant was gutted by the fire.
We do not yet know the cause of the fire or the full extent of the damage, but we do know one thing:
We will rebuild and get back to cooking your steaks as soon as possible.

In the meantime, we thank you for your past patronage and appreciate your thoughts and prayers.

Sincerely,
Paige Osborn and the entire Yocona family

Oxford Mississippi restaurants
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