The Oink Joint, Birch Run: On The Beaten Path

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This past Wednesday after we made final arrangements for our mom at Flint Memorial Park, my sister Barb headed north on Dort Highway out of Clio, Michigan, intending to take me to lunch. Given the situation, Barb knew what was needed; The same kind of homey place mom and dad would have both sought out, with a service staff that would treat us like family, and a food that’s decidedly “home-style”. She headed straight for the Oink Joint.

That’s funny. I drive by that spot all the time. But I’ve never been there. I just never saw the place before.

The Oink Joint is one of those places I’ve driven past numerous times and never really noticed. Technically it’s in Birch Run, Michigan, just like the huge manufacturer’s outlet center at I-75 at Birch Run Rd., our friends at Dixie Dave’s, and Tony’s, shown on the Travel Channel and soon to be on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.

Getting off I-75 at Birch Run Rd, you tend to turn east, drive right past Dixie Dave’s, head the couple miles to M-54/83, hang a left, and drive straight for Frankenmuth. About a thousand feet north of Birch Run Rd., you tend to look to the right at the putt-putt golf course.

Look left instead. There it is. The Oink Joint. You almost drove past it. Again. Quit that …

The Oink Joint, formerly known as Ken”s Diner, is located next to property for a former amusement park where my mom’s female cousin once drove a go-kart through a retaining wall back in the 1960s. The building is a classic stainless steel art deco diner, all original, and extremely clean. Of course, I’m sure it was spotless when Drew Barrymore directed her upcoming film Whip It! inside the diner this past fall, when the Saginaw News reported the Oink Joint as a new and successful business.

The restaurant’s owners, Dave and Ann Rheaume, keep things nice and tidy. This is no greasy spoon. This is a classic diner in the true sense of the word.

But past the Oink Joint’s film history and obvious cleanliness, it’s the food that really shines.

Barb ordered the pancakes. You can see these 12″ beauties in the first photo in this post. Barb has cooked in a professional kitchen for more than 30 years. She commented that when you have pancakes as big as those they have a tendency to be chewy along the edges while being fluffy in the middle. However, the pancakes in the photo were fluffy all the way to the edge, and had a great flavor that was well-balanced by the butter and syrup instead of being overpowered by them.

I ordered the restaurant’s classic cheeseburger. Longtime readers will know I compare burgers to my two faves, Halo Burger in the Flint area (there’s also one right there at the Birch Run Rd. exit), and Sonic, I’m not sure but I’m wondering if the Oink Joint also gets their hamburger meat from Otto W. Liebold as Halo Burger does. While the flavors are different, the quality of the meat is the same. The toppings were fresh and crispy as they should be, not wilted whatsoever, and the French fries seemed as though they may have been handmade by the aptly-nicknamed Tiny there in the restaurant’s kitchen.

My sister Barb, with server and Oink Joint co-owner Ann Rheaume.

On trips to Birch Run, Frankenmith and points north, I do believe the Oink Joint will be one of our go-to spots for good food and a family atmosphere. But with the Turkey Roost not too far to the north, we’ll have to choose. Hmmm …