BiteClub

FAIRFIELD - Not exactly a traditional home of Cajun cuisine, the city nevertheless landed the second site for a new 'Bayou-themed' restaurant.

Huckleberry's opened Wednesday near the corner of Travis Boulevard and Oliver Road, a site previously occupied by Original Mel's diner. Huckleberry's, a new chain of franchised restaurants, opened its first location in October 2007 in Exeter, near Visalia.

'It's basically California cooking with a Cajun flair,' said Randy Brooks, owner of the restaurant and founder of the parent company, Fresno-based Dynaco Inc. 'We have a lot of items on the menu that you see in California, but they have a Cajun flair.'

Huckleberry's claimed the spot after an aggressive marketing effort by the city after Mel's closed.

The location and the fact it was already equipped as a restaurant made it a desirable spot for the company to take over, said Curt Johnston, the city's assistant director of economic development. And the city was happy to land a brand unique to Northern California.

'We actually prefer the new concept because we know that it's going to be a restaurant that isn't in this immediate market area,' he said.

And although Huckleberry's is new, parent company Dynaco is well-established as a restaurateur, noted Lorraine Hernandez, who was the city liaison to the company.

Dynaco is also the parent company of Country Waffles and Perko's Cafe and Grill, and has other new restaurants in Yukon Jack's and Cool Hand Luke's Steakhouse.

'All of our concepts are kind of intertwined,' Brooks said. 'We try to make them noncompetitive with each other.'

The restaurant is open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., serving breakfast and lunch only. Its breakfast menu includes items such as a southern quiche and a Cajun breakfast burrito. For lunch, Brooks said the menu includes Cajun-inspired menu items such as catfish and mushroom-smothered skirt steak.

Reach Ben Antonius at 427-6977 or bantonius@dailyrepublic.net.