Wagon Wheel restaurant will close doors after 6 decades

Jodi Susick wasn’t going to miss her chance to order the red devil’s food cake from the Wagon Wheel.

“My dad would pick me up on his lunch break and bring me with him for lunch,” said Susick, 49, of Salem as she waited for a massive slice of Our Famous Red Cake from the Salem restaurant.

Owners said the Wagon Wheel will close its doors before Thanksgiving after more than six decades in business.

George and his wife, Mary “Hoppy” Jobe, opened the Wagon Wheel in 1956, and it has been a staple along Route 22, welcoming diners with an interior decorated with wood paneling, nature art and taxidermied animals. The centerpiece is a giant grizzly bear in a glass case.

But despite its fearsome appearance, “he’s as light as a feather,” according to Mary Ann Huey of Delmont, who has been a waitress at the Wagon Wheel for more than four decades.

“I used to clean him off with a broom,” Huey said.

Susick’s father was friends with Dick Jobe, the second generation of the family to own the restaurant. Today it is owned by his daughters, Mimi Jobe Kaufman, Sharon McGoff and Wendy Jobe.

“I literally grew up here,” Susick said. “I would always order the same thing as a kid — their Wagoneer beef sandwich and a chocolate milk.”

Susick said her favorite has always been the red devil’s food cake, a go-to dessert for longtime patrons, and a frequent mention in comments on a Facebook post announcing the restaurant’s impending closure.

“It’s got the best icing you ever had in your life,” she said. “They’ve gotten a couple requests for the recipe. I don’t know if they’re going to give it out or not.”

Kaufman, McGoff and Jobe said they are not ready to talk about closing the family’s restaurant, but it will remain open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday until supplies run out. The restaurant is closed Sundays and Mondays.

“They said I could work here ‘til I’m 80. I’m only 75 — they owe me for five more years,” Huey said with a laugh. “I’ll miss it. There are customers I’ve waited on here for more than two decades.”