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<\/a>Off a lonely stretch of highway, a small diner in a small town has earned a big following. On a Sunday in Rufus it\u2019s not unusual to see Bulldog Diner packed with patrons and a line of folks waiting for a table.<\/p>\n
Serving up country-style breakfasts and monster burgers, this tidy caf\u00e9 with a checkered past could be the harbinger of opportunity for a town long ignored. Rufus, a wayside nook of 250 residents, is 26 miles east of The Dalles and immediately off I-84. Exiting the highway, Bulldog Diner is the first\u2014and biggest\u2014thing to see.<\/p>\n
With the work of Austin Evans and Sylvia DePaepe\u2014two Sherman County School graduates who took ownership of the Bulldog Diner just more than a year ago\u2014the restaurant offers a first welcome to a town they hope to help thrive and grow. The couple bought the business, including recipes and equipment, in December 2016. They took over from Greg and Christy Lesh, who ran the diner for two years.<\/p>\n
High school sweethearts Austin and Sylvia have been together 10 years. Working to make the diner their own, they have added fresh paint, new tables and renovated bathrooms. They plan to create outdoor seating, have applied for a license to serve beer and wine, and are working to renovate the back storage area into a sports bar.<\/p>\n
With the diner open six days a week, from 7 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., the couple works around the clock, often up to 70 hours a week. If the diner seems like a second home, it\u2019s because it is. Austin and Sylvia live upstairs.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s exhaustion with a smile,\u201d says Sylvia.<\/p>\n
Both Austin, 25, and Sylvia, 24, come from Sherman County families cheering on their entrepreneurial endeavor. Sylvia, who mostly works \u201cfront of the house\u201d taking orders and serving customers, was born and raised near Wasco. She and her 10 siblings\u2014plus dozens of short-term foster children\u2014 grew up on the wheat farm of parents Ed and Margaret DePaepe.<\/p>\n \u201cMy dad comes in nearly every day,\u201d Sylvia says.<\/p>\n Austin primarily works behind the scenes cooking in the kitchen\u2014a skill he admits is newly acquired.<\/p>\n \u201cI had to learn fast,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n \u201cFortunately, we both have very optimistic personalities,\u201d Sylvia adds.<\/p>\n Drawn to small-town life and opportunity, Austin\u2019s family moved from Portland to Rufus in 2008. His mother, Jeanie Pehlke, and grandmother, Judy Satoris, own and operate the Hillview Inn, a 12-room motel down the street from the diner.<\/p>\n Like his enterprising mother and grandmother, Austin is fueled by self-starter ambition. At 19, he opened Death Row Coffee (\u201ckiller coffee\u201d) within Gorge Outfitters Supply. He studied business\u2028for one year at Portland State University, but realized he preferred the hands-on learning the family business provided.<\/p>\n \u201cI like the service aspect,\u201d he says, \u201csolving problems and making sure everyone is happy.\u201d<\/p>\n The diner now hums with Sylvia, Austin and two full-time employees, Jayde Miranda and Miguel Ambriz.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a team effort,\u201d says Sylvia. \u201cEverybody washes dishes. Everybody is able to do everything, and everyone is welcomed with a smile.\u201d<\/p>\n Mother\u2019s Day is the busiest day of the year, summer weekends are steady and business is good, they say. On busy days, it\u2019s a family effort, with Jeanie and Grandma Judy pitching in.<\/p>\n \u201cGrandma is here all the time, helping out,\u201d says Sylvia. \u201cShe\u2019s great.\u201d<\/p>\n The hard work is paying off. The diner fills with cross-country travelers, along with folks from the nearby towns of Goldendale, The Dalles, Arlington, Wasco, Moro and more.<\/p>\n<\/a>