Wabamun
Our son and his family moved over to the other grandparents for a couple of days so this freed us up to take a nice drive just the two of us. ( We’re getting old and need more breaks it seems.)
We chose Wabamun Provincial Park for a fairly close drive out heading west and Jingls restaurant for lunch when we got to the town.
We had been to Jingls a long time ago but they have new owners now. The diner has a real retro feel to it with lots of tables and chairs right out of the 70’s, painted floors, and fun things to look at like the very vintage, working safe.
I met “Ken” who proudly displayed his Hawaiian shirt and gold jewelry. He kindly chatted with me and let me take his photo. We were saddened to hear that his wife of 62 years passed away in April of this year. But he feels her near him and told us that he was coming up to his 80th birthday.
That’s a thing I love about small towns: meeting interesting people who are friendly and open to visiting with us.
The new owners installed a huge “shade blanket” over the back patio and with the nice little breeze our 28 degree day didn’t bother us at all.
The back, outside area was pleasant with lots of tables and chairs, umbrellas, and great service from the owner “Feriella”, her husband, and their daughter, “Gigi”. They only just opened this month after running a downtown Edmonton restaurant for 13 years. Feriella said that she purchased Jingls in her retirement because it reminded her of a place you would find in a Christmas Hallmark movie (ie, slow paced little local coffee shop) but she said they’re busier than ever!
We both had the freshest sandwiches (chicken salad for Terry and ham and cheese for me) with a giant portion of tasty fries.) You won’t leave hungry and when you’re finished your meal you can shop in their attached little antique/gift shop.
I forgot to mention that there was also a ‘retro’ camper van in the back that one could choose to use for an inside meet up with children or friends. We certainly wish the very best for Feriella and her family’s new business.
After lunch we hit up the local mini mart for drinks, found the Wabamun Provincial Park ,and played our Tile Rummy game under the shade of the beautiful, large trees there. Another lovely breeze kept us cool and we enjoyed watching the kite flyers and beachcombers.
