RANCH HAND

IN PROFILE

Hughson brothers introduce community to the Ranch Hand

BY CHRISTOPHER CORREA

209 Business Journal

Adam and Kevin Bradley have become well-known in Hughson and the surrounding areas for their success with the barbecue restaurant Slick Fork. The brothers founded the popular restaurant in 2018, and in 2021, brainstormed ways they could grow their business ventures.

“Slick Fork is a great location for us, but we were looking at other spaces to operate the catering side of things,” said Kevin.

In July of 2021, the brothers officially acquired the space at 6901 Hughson Ave. in Hughson, but their plans quickly changed.

“The place needed a lot of work, especially the kitchen area since we wanted to cook out of here,” Adam explained.

The history of the building goes back over six decades. It started out as an auto parts store before transitioning into a bar back in the 1970s.

“It gone through a bunch of different stages in its life and it got really ran down,” Adam said. “Soon enough, I just realized that if we’re going to be putting in all of this work, we should just make it into another restaurant.”

Exactly one year after the date they received the keys to the space, the new location, named Ranch Hand, had their grand opening on July 1 of this year.

“Ranch Hand is literally the little brother of Slick Fork. Without Slick Fork, Ranch Hand would not be here today,” Adam said. “It’s why we chose the name. On ranches, you need a helping hand, and this location is exactly that.”

Though Ranch Hand is an extension of the Slick Fork brand, the menus are very different. As Slick Fork continues to serve their iconic barbecued meats, Ranch Hand is taking aim at dishes like burgers, sandwiches, pasta, salads, tacos and appetizers.

“In this town, there hasn’t been a true burger place for some time, wo we decided to go for it along with the wings, fries and things like that,” Adam said.

There are a number of menu items that will stay consistent throughout the year, but the Bradleys want to make it a point of emphasis to experiment with new flavors.

“We just come up with different ideas. We like to play around with the menu a bit,” Adam explained. “Keeping everything the same is not what we do here. Our vision is to keep things fresh all the time and keep people coming with new stuff. It keeps people excited about the place, because if you have the same beers and food all the time, it can get old and stagnant. We want to liven it up.”

As they have only been open for about a month, Bradley’s are the team is looking forward to experimenting with more seasonal meals as well.

“We’re preparing to do more seasonal dishes,” Adam said. “We want to incorporate the vegetables of the given season and make dishes depending on the time of year. As the weather gets colder, we’re going to focus more on the warm, wholesome dinners.”

Aside from the food and drinks, Kevin and Adam also want to make the dining atmosphere one that customers remember. Inside of the restaurant, there are antiques such as lunchboxes, country music vinyl, license plates, auto parts and other vintage relics hanging from the walls, many of which the Bradley family and their friends have found at yard sales and flea markets over the years.

“We were really going for the American, blue-collar, country look in here,” Adam said. “People always ask about some of the antiques and it really builds that bonding experience we want people to have here.”

Those experiences can also be had during sporting events and other weekend events. Along the walls are five large televisions, which are always showing the tops sports channels, and come this fall, will feature NFL Sunday Ticket. Additionally on many Fridays and Saturdays, their outdoor patio space plays host to live music from local bands and artists.

“The atmosphere we’ve built is amazing and we’re really starting to see it grow,” Adam said. “Ranch Hand has been really great for us so far.”

To keep up with the latest menu specials and upcoming events, the Bradley’s encouraged the public to follow @ ranch_hand_by_slickfork on Instagram.

Photo contributed

Since opening in July, Ranch Hand by Slick Fork in Hughson has been a popular spot for burgers, barbecue and more amongst community members.

Ranch Hand by Slick Fork

Location: 6901 Hughson Ave., Hughson Hours: Wednesdays to Saturdays from 11 a.m.to 9 p.m., Sundays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Contact information: (209) 542-7033 or slickforkbbq@gmail.com