Clarkesville is welcoming a new dining destination as Rustic Cabin Bar & Grill officially opens its doors on Monday, August 25. The restaurant, located where the old Hawg Wild used to be, is a joint venture among friends. Longtime restaurateurs Carlos Hernandez, Rudy Hernandez, Rudy Ibanez, and his wife, Juanita Magdaleno, are all working together to bring the vision to life.
Magdaleno said the idea for the restaurant grew out of conversations she and her husband had with the Hernandez brothers while working together at Chicago’s Pizza in Demorest. “We became very good friends with them, and we talked about the opportunity of maybe one day getting together, and it just worked out,” she explained.
A fitting name and location
The name Rustic Cabin came naturally. “We looked at the location and thought, we’re up in Clarkesville, closer to the mountains, and the place looks just like a cabin. We wanted something that would fit the area,” Magdaleno said.
After the popular barbecue restaurant on the northeast side of Clarkesville closed its doors in May of last year, the building sat vacant. Rudy Hernandez purchased the property in January. Since then, he and his business partners have been hard at work renovating it.
“It was a beautiful building. We couldn’t believe that nobody was doing anything to it,” said Magdaleno. Beyond the structure itself, the owners were drawn to the community.
“The community here in Clarksville is great. Rudy and Carlos have been here their whole life. They talked about how great the community is and how supportive they are. So we thought it would be very good to add another restaurant here in the area,” she said.
A diverse menu
Rustic Cabin won’t stick to just one style of food. The menu features steaks, burgers, wings, pasta, seafood, salads, and appetizers. “It’s not a huge menu, but everything in it is very delicious, very good, well portioned, and with great flavor,” said Magdaleno.
The kitchen team, she said, is top-notch. “A lot of them took school for cooking. So they’re actually chefs. They are wonderful,” she added. “It’s very healthy. Very, very well put together.”
Renovations and features
The owners expect the updated bar to be a big draw, with its signature Rustic Cabin Margarita made fresh from scratch with top-shelf tequila. They’ll also offer skinny margaritas, jalapeño margaritas, blue ocean margaritas, and other specialty cocktails.
In addition to the interior renovations, the exterior changes have created a new gathering spot in Clarkesville. The new owners built a deck and outdoor fire pits and cleared a number of trees to open the back lawn up to a view of Rocky Branch near the Soque River Greenway Trail. They plan to offer cornhole and other activities and envision Rustic Cabin and its grounds as a place where people can “hang out,” perhaps walk their dogs while “enjoying a beer or two.”
“We’re going to try to make this place a destination – instead of just another restaurant. We want to make it fun for people,” Rudy Hernandez told Now Habersham when first interviewed about the project in February.
Hours and atmosphere
Rustic Cabin will be open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., and the bar will remain open until 2 a.m. on weekends. The team is working on keeping appetizers and wings available late into the night. The goal is to offer a new nightlife option in Clarkesville.
“There’s nothing out there that stays open that late, especially here in Clarkesville. We wanted to have a place where people can have safe fun,” explained Magdaleno.
The owners plan to have live music on the weekends.
The opening week won’t include specials, but live music is planned for Friday night. They’re waiting on confirmations, “That’s going to be a surprise,” she said.
Family connection
Family-friendly dining is at the heart of Rustic Cabin. “It’s 100% family friendly,” the owners emphasized. “The bar is in a separate room, but if you’re sitting with your kids and want to have a drink, you’re more than welcome.”
To-go orders will be available. “People have been asking if we’ll do to-go, and yes, we’ll have dining, to-go, drinks, and fun—we have it all,” Magdaleno said.
The restaurant is located at 515 Grant Street off Historic Highway 441, just west of Old Clarkesville Mill. The phone number is 706-754-1954.
