THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, July 17, 1996 TAG: 9607160142
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Coastal Journal
SOURCE: Mary Reid Barrow
LENGTH: 98 lines
When Elizabeth Brinkley passed away last year, folks weren't sure you would ever get a sandwich as fine as the ones she compiled at her country store down on Charity Neck Road.
Mrs. Brinkley made good old fashioned sandwiches on fluffy white Mary Jane bread, slathered with mustard or mayo or both, and stacked with your choice of meats, cheese, tomatoes and lettuce. Farmers, city workers and folks who lived nearby would stop for lunch and order up a sandwich. In this case, ``order'' meant made-to-order.
``The thing that gets you is the one that stands here and tells you how to make the sandwich,'' Mrs. Brinkley said in an interview last year. ``Mustard on one side of the bread, mayonnaise on the other and meat against the mustard and cheese against the mayonnaise . . . ''
That's a hard act to follow, but new owner Eddie Johnson is sure trying. A name change - from Brinkley's Store to Trader Vic's - had already occurred by the time Johnson purchased the store this spring. But one thing that hasn't changed is the sandwiches.
According to Amy Dudley, who worked for Mrs. Brinkley for a year, Johnson is doing all right. Dudley was in the store the other day to buy a Smithfield ham sandwich for herself, which is high praise in and of itself.
``He comes close to her sandwiches,'' Dudley said. ``He's done a very good job.''
While keeping the basics, Johnson has added a few new items to Mrs. Brinkley's repertoire, like a chicken patty sandwich and individual servings of coleslaw. One really out-of-the-ordinary addition is tortillas. Johnson offers up nachos and burritos on flour tortillas made from scratch by his wife, Diana Johnson.
It took some doing to get folks to sample the Mexican fare, but now they like it. One couple stops by for nachos every Friday night, Johnson said.
Customers didn't have to be convinced to go for Diana Johnson's baked goods, like carrot and banana nut cakes or homemade fudge. And every day, the plates of homemade chocolate chip and raisin cookies, at two for just 25 cents, are wiped clean.
Johnson, who had wanted to run a country store since he was a 14-year-old out in Texas, had never heard of Brinkley's Store until a friend told him it was for sale. ``I walked in and fell in love,'' he said.
To escape suburbia, the couple had already moved from Green Run to Indian River Road near Pungo. Johnson, who said he had gotten tired of working for corporations, left his job with Rent-A-Center in Hampton, when he purchased the store.
``I figured if I worked that hard for them, I could do it for myself,'' he said.
And Johnson does - in at 7 a.m. six days a week, baking up the buttermilk biscuits and serving up ham and sausage biscuits for the breakfast crowd. He closes the doors 12 long hours later at 7 p.m. and on Sundays, Trader Vic's is open from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Diana Johnson comes in to do the baking in the mornings before she goes to her job with an insurance company in the afternoon. Son Brandon, 12, is working at Trader Vic's this summer, too.
Johnson keeps the little country store stocked with staples like soap powder, paper towels and dog food. But he also has added several side lines that don't distract from the country store atmosphere. He sells local crafts. He's a United Parcel Service and Federal Express pickup station. He hand-dips Bergeys Dairy ice-cream cones and for a $10 minimum, he delivers lunches to areas like the Municipal Center.
``I'm trying to expand it month by month,'' Johnson said.
And keep the sandwiches the same.
P.S. THE TIDEWATER DAYLILY SOCIETY'S summer sale is from 9 a.m to 6 p.m. Saturday and from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday at McDonald Garden Center on Independence Boulevard. Many varieties will be sold at $5 per plant or $20 for 5 plants.
OWL CALL, a walk to learn how to identify these nocturnal raptors, takes place from 8 to 10 p.m. Saturday at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Call 721-2412 for reservations.
SNAKES ALIVE! is the program from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Sunday at False Cape State Park. Cost is $3. Call 426-7128 for reservations.
AN ENGLISH HANDBELL CONCERT will be at 2 p.m. Sunday at First Church of the Nazarene on Wishart Road. A reception will follow at Lynnhaven House, sponsor of the program. The cost is $4. Call 456-0351 for reservations.
BURLAP BANNERS are the topic of craft night for children, 6 to 12, Thursday at the Virginia Marine Science Museum. The fee is $6 for members and $8 for non-members. Call 437-6003. MEMO: What unusual nature have you seen this week? And what do you know
about Tidewater traditions and lore? Call me on INFOLINE, 640-5555.
Enter category 2290. Or, send a computer message to my Internet address:
mbarrow(AT)infi.net. ILLUSTRATION: Eddie Johnson quit his job with Rent-A-Center in
Hampton to buy Trader Vic's, the former Brinkley's Store on Charity
Neck Road in Pungo. He and his family are keeping the store's
sandwich-making reputation alive and well.
Photo by
MARY REID BARROW by CNB