Hitchcock Station — Restaurant in Fruitland

Drove 45 minutes for my birthday dinner and left with a stomach full… of regret.

First red flag: you're asked to pay and tip before you even get your food. That’s bold—especially for a place charging steakhouse prices in a fast-casual setup. I guess they want your money before you realize what’s coming.

The fries, fried in beef tallow (which sounds fancy), showed up looking like they'd lost the will to live. Limp, soggy, and soaked in oil. I’ve seen more structure in a wet paper towel. The sauce tried its best to be the hero, but it’s hard to save a side that’s already surrendered.

The “Cluck Cluck” chicken sandwich was… fine. If that’s all I’d had, I might’ve thought, “Hey, not bad!” But then came the ribeye.

Ah, the ribeye. Pricey enough to expect fireworks, and instead I got a meat-flavored sponge. No seasoning. None. Just a sad pat of “cowboy butter” on the side, as if I was supposed to baptize the steak myself. And the steak was laid on—what else?—another tragic pile of limp fries, now made even sadder by absorbing all the melted butter like some kind of flavorless sponge bed.

The service? Well, there were people working. They brought food. That's about it.

Honestly, the whole place feels like one of those Instagram traps: great lighting, cool concept, but when you actually show up, it's all smoke and soggy fries. Lesson learned: hype is not seasoning. Overall: overwhelming underwhelming 🤦🏻‍♀️

But hey the water was filtered and treated great! I Loved that!!

Edit to reply Hi there, thanks for your reply.

Yes, I did take the food home—mainly because we just paid a lot for it and we had just driven 45 minutes and didn’t want to leave it behind, not because I was thrilled with it. And yes, I asked for sauce because I was hoping it might help salvage the flavor, especially since the steak was extremely under-seasoned and the fries were limp and oily.

I really do appreciate the complimentary desserts. They were so yummy and I was going to look for the business and leave a review on their cookies! That was a kind gesture, and it’s never my goal to tear down a local business. But I shared an honest experience—one that didn’t match the online hype or the price point. I stand by my review.

Hopefully my feedback is taken in the spirit it’s intended: constructive. Everyone has off days, and I wish your team the best in continuing to grow and improve.

Have a...

Burger was ok and fries were pretty good. Kitchen staff was using bare hands to handle all food. The same person was putting the burgers and buns on the grill, pulling the buns off the grill and putting them on the plate, picked the burger up with a spatula, then sliding it in to the bun with bare fingers. Then picking up the condiment bottles followed by putting the lettuce and pickles on the burger. Next picking up the fries (after they were cooked) and putting them on the plate. All with bare hands. The one time gloves were used was when picking up raw chicken and dropping into the fryer. Gloves were removed and no hand washing in between going back to plating food. In fact, the whole time I sat there, no hand washing took place. The worst part is when he wiped his nose (on the side of his bare hand) and then proceeded to pick up lettuce and put it on a burger. Even more frightening, the person doing all this with bare hands seemed to be the one running...

6/23/25 update: Hitchcock continues to wow with different specials throughout the week! Monday is Pasta night weekly. I picked the Rigatoni with prosciutto and mushrooms for $12 and added $3 focaccia. This has to be the BEST pasta I have ever eaten. I was half way through my dish and already wanted to order a second bowl! The ingredients are fresh and prepared with care. It is never lost on me that we have such beautiful cuisine available at a real-world price right here in Fruitland. 10/10 recommend for Pasta Night or any other night you can go!

Original review: My favorite place in town! I definitely have my regular favorites, a burger or Border & Bloom salad. But the weekly specials are unique and always delicious. Chef Emran brings new items to the menu all the time. When I can get fresh farm-to-table meals for the same or less than I can eat fast food, this is my pick, hands down! Grateful to have such a gem in this...