GRIDLEY, CA (MPG) - The flurry of activity at the former Black Bear Diner in Gridley has definitely caught the town’s attention and peaked curiosities.

The location has remained dark and somewhat austere, curtains studded with black bears and Lysol cans left forgotten in place, collecting dust for over a year after covid forcibly closed its doors forever.

But you know the saying - when one door closes, another opens, and in this instance, Huckleberry’s Restaurant is walking right on in.

Huckleberry’s Restaurant describes itself as “southern cookin’ with a California twist” and features a breakfast and lunch menu. The nearest Huckleberry’s is located in Yuba City on W. Onstott Road, so if you’re too curious to wait a few months for a taste, you’ll have to go there for a sneak peek.

Why a few months? Well, even with work progressing quickly, demolition and construction crews onsite last week estimated the restaurant’s opening to be about 2 months out. The outside of the building has already gotten a facelift with rustic stone façades masking the brick and a fresh coat of semi-gloss reinvigorating the fading walls, but the most dramatic transformation is the inside. It has been completely gutted.

Gone is everything that you once knew and saw upon walking into the building that has been many restaurants over the years. The layout looks to be holding true, but everything else is history. Deservingly so, the old gal is getting a complete remodel from floor to ceiling, including new bathrooms (taken down to just the studs, plumbing and wires), a re-imagined dining room, and a sparkling, updated kitchen. If you weren’t curious about the incoming restaurant before, there’s a good chance you are now.

Sounds exciting and worth the wait. Their website answers the question, “Who’s your Huckleberry? We Are!” 

For more information or to view their menu, visit their website Huckleberrys.com.