As you enter White Sulphur Springs from the northeast where US Hwys 89 and 12 are together, you’ll drive by an A-frame style building. It has housed a restaurant as long as I can remember and for the past year or so it has been called Snook’s Diner.
I had heard they served pie and since Central Montana has a fun pie trail (Pie a la Road), it was a must-stop on my recent travels. The restaurant was quiet when I arrived. It was about 4:30, past the afternoon coffee crowd and a bit too early for the dinner crowd. That was to my advantage so I could visit more with staff.
The Lester family, local White Sulphur Springs residents, own Snook’s Diner and there are currently four generations involved. I visited with a nephew of the owner who manages the restaurant for his uncle.
My first task was ordering pie and my choice was peach. Pecan pie and apple crisp were also on the menu and they both sounded good but I hadn’t eaten peach for quite awhile. I ordered my slice of peach pie warm with whipped cream on top.
The pie recipes used come from the manager’s grandma and cousin and are made onsite.
I looked at the dinner menu and also the daily specials. There were two soup specials – Snake Bite (sausage, peppers and chili beans) and taco soup. Fish dinner specials included broiled walleye, broiled cod and broiled blackened salmon (I visited during Lent) and the daily special was chicken fried steak, my Mother’s favorite item to order.
My curiosity got the best of me as I was finishing my pie and I had to get the answer. How did they come up with the name “Snooks”?
The manager told me there used to be a character on a radio show listened to by his Grandma years ago. That character’s name? Baby Snooks. The name of the restaurant is a tribute to his grandma.
One more thing I found out – every Wednesday they serve a free slice of pie with a meal order. My next road trip to White Sulphur Springs just might be on a Wednesday!