Strat's

The restaurant that's more than a restaurant.

Recap: Strats during a typical weekday like a monday and Starts during a weekend look very very different, but make no mistake. This is the same restaurant that has been around and making moves in the car community for over 37 years. As someone who has never really been involved in the car community at all, I wondered what could be the reason that it has to make people from all over gravitate towards it. Is it the food? Is it the cars? Well, turns out it isn't just one specific thing. It's the community. Strats has opened its doors (and parking lot) to many car “takeovers.” This is where people come and bring in the cars they have been working on and own. There is no set criteria for these vehicles to be parked for the gathering. All types of cars ranging from muscle cars, trucks, vintage cars and motorcycles are common sights for people attending Strats on a weekend. This is all thanks to the Owner of Strats who saw a business opportunity 37 years ago when he first opened his restaurant. “There was no one doing anything like this at the time” Strats said, referring to other restaurants allowing car hangouts at their parking lots and areas. It was a fast build up, Strats said “the first weekend i had five cars, the weekend after that was 12 and the weekend after that was 25.” With the popularity of Strats restaurant increasingly weekly as he said, many have wondered why he doesn't “capitalize” on this and start charging people to attend these takeovers when parking their cars. That was not and is still not part of Strats plan. “This is a social gathering. This is like baseball and apple pies. This is america. People love their cars and they want to show them off and like to see other peoples cars and that's what it is.” he likened the idea of charging someone attending Strats as if you were to pay for a movie ticket and then have to pay for the parking spot to go see the movie, emphasizing how the culture at his restaurant was not built for exploiting the customers for every nickel and dime. But to give them not only a memorable experience and a community to be a part of.   When asked what caused everyone to gravitate towards his spot he said the aspect of socializing was a big component to his success and the foundations laid back then are still present in the community three decades later. The ability to meet new people and be involved in a community is human nature, and Strats allows the people who go there to embrace that. Jeremiah, a car enthusiast who has been attending Strats for years said “people will talk to you, i come up to random strangers and talk with them because we are all chill. It's not crazy and it's very family friendly.” The aspect of family friendly is important for many who attend Strats, as car takeovers can get dangerous but Starts, while also having a community that is considered safe also takes security seriously. Strats has security officers monitoring the people in the parking lot and cars to maintain safety. A stark contrast to a lot of the takeovers around the country, many who just take control of an busy intersection on a whim.  which ends in people being hit during drifts . Strats has built up not only a safe haven for all types of people, but a great long lasting community with generations attending and generations to come

to view my Tik Tok vid of Strats, click this link :https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRwshLNL/