Edith Smith and her crew are proud to announce plans for an official “Grand Opening” of her downtown Piru restaurant with a menu full of specials and events for all ages on Saturday, July 24th. The day’s celebration kicks off at 8 am with incredible breakfast specials. In addition to their famous biscuits and gravy, the home style cooking will include a variety of tasty offerings throughout the day.

The menu then changes to lunch time meals including free hot dogs and lemonade for the kids. At noon they start serving bar-b-q specials hot off the grill. Shredded beef burritos and pulled pork sandwiches are just two of the other planned specials. The delicious summer desserts prepared fresh daily by colleague Joy Zavala will surely tempt your belly and will feature local produce, including fresh strawberry treats.

Beginning at 2 pm a local DJ will spin crowd favorites and live music for dancing under the stars will be to the tunes “Ice”, a popular local area band. Door prizes and other activities will be offered throughout the day. No alcohol will be sold.

This longtime Piru establishment, formerly home to the Blue Bird Tavern, is again a favorite destination for locals and visitors alike. Some of the regulars gather one or more days a week to catch up over a home-style breakfast and fresh brewed coffee. One day earlier this week I joined one such trio of locals --Jim, Frank and Norm. Asked to describe their impression of Railway Café, they called it “excellent” and “very homey with great food and service”.

Some of the daily menu items are centered around the comfort food of home-style cooking. Traditional breakfasts of meat and egg offerings, pancakes and combination plates, along with fresh seasonal specials. Lunch and dinner menu includes awesome burgers, sandwiches, and soups and salads. Weekly dinner specials range from tri-tip plates, taco combinations and steak dinners with the works.

Their summer hours are Sunday 8 am to 3 pm, closed Monday and Tuesday (off to market for the freshest ingredients), Wednesday to Friday 7 am to 2 pm and 6-10 pm. Saturday hours are 8 am to 7 pm. The phone number is (805) 398-5031. They are also available for special events and offer patio seating for private parties. The café is located at 3989 Center Street at Via Fustero in the town’s central business district and across from the Piru Depot and Gazebo Plaza Park.