The Loading Chute is Creston’s Old Haunt
Story by Dakota Kim
Photography by Ruby Wallau
On busy nights, The Loading Chute on Highway 229 could double as Creston’s town hall. Loyal regulars along with a crop of wine tourists and visitors from nearby towns crowd the cozy ranch-style steakhouse, slicing into tender, oak-smoked rib eye over quality bottles like Presqu’ile Pinot Noir and Venteux Syrah. Set in the heart of tiny Creston, 10 miles from both Paso Robles and Atascadero, this family- and woman-owned restaurant is celebrating 25 years of service.
Since it opened in 2000, The Loading Chute has been a staple where “lifers” aren’t uncommon as front and back of house staff. “People consider our restaurant a community space, and we host everyone — winery owners, ranch owners, all the local people that run businesses in our area, even cowboys,” says Co-owner Dana Zepeda.
During the busy season, The Loading Chute flourishes as the only full-service restaurant on the Paso Backroads Wine Trail. The space buzzes with families on Mother’s Day and Easter, slinging biscuits and gravy and prime rib. At Christmas, the 1940s barn out back plays host to 50- to 200-person family reunions and parties. On sunny afternoons, diners flock outdoors to the newly renovated side patio while their kids play on the adjoining lawn.
Named for the cattle-loading mechanism that populated the property over a century ago, the restaurant is known for 21-day-aged Harris Ranch steaks cooked over a pit blazing with local red oak. But it might be just as beloved for its wood-fired French country loaf, a piping-hot accoutrement brought to the table, complimentary. Bakers churn out 50 to 100 loaves a day and guests can even grab a loaf to go. Until recently, Dana herself baked that bread daily. “At age 66, I have to let some others do the work,” she laughs.
Restaurants are labor intensive, and it’s not uncommon for some of them to buy their bread, sauces and desserts pre-made. But at this steakhouse, most products are made the slow-food way — with many of the condiments, sauces and dressings, including barbecue, teriyaki, ranch, blue cheese and blue cheese butter, thousand island and whiskey peppercorn — made from scratch. Desserts are also made in-house and served warm, topped with vanilla bean ice cream; those delights include bread pudding, mud pie, grasshopper pie and an off-the-menu secret: mixed berry cobbler.
“It’s not formal dining, but it’s full-service,” Dana says. “Two sides and the traditional bread and soup or salad come with the meal, and we’ve become a destination spot with folks out here wine tasting in Paso Robles or Atascadero, who want to come out to Creston and enjoy a nice day.”
So synonymous is The Loading Chute with Creston that the last page of the menu details the history of the town and the restaurant in the same breath. Creston was founded in March 1884, named after C.J. Cressy, one of four pioneers to purchase the 40,000-acre Rancho Huerhuero land grant. In the late 1800s, George Bell built The Loading Chute as a general store, supplying the town with clothing, groceries, hardware and horse and farm equipment; later, two families moved in and used the building as their home. In the 1940s, a front-facing bar opened to the public, while residents continued to live in the back. The next decade left the building deserted, but Creston native Herman Heilman bought it in 1973, opening a café, saloon and grocery. The building changed ownership several times before burning down in a 1992 fire.
In 1999, Dana Zepeda bought the acre of land and renovated the building, reopening the restaurant on the eve of the new millennium. She now runs it with her husband, David Zepeda, who mans the oak pit, and her daughter-in-law, Kristin Parker, who serves as their front-of-house and event manager for the barn behind the restaurant.
David learned butchery working in restaurants in Cambria, and hand-cuts the rib eyes. “My husband is probably the best grill cook in the county, I say — and a lot of people would say that,” Dana remarks proudly. “We also go through a lot of fresh salmon off the oak pit, which comes from a high-end Japanese company.”
The restaurant’s prime corridor is the front room, where guests sit sandwiched between the bar to the left, and the oak pit and pizza oven to the right. “People like to sit on that row right there to watch what’s going on,” Dana says. “You can watch David cooking the steaks on one side, and the pizza bubbling up on the other side.”
The Loading Chute may be known for its prime rib and rib eye, but Kristin loves their filet mignon with house-made whiskey peppercorn sauce. Other fan favorite entrées include the herb cheese chicken and rack of lamb, both of which are baked in a house-made rosemary herb sauce. Other favorites include the Ortega burger with grilled Ortega chile and chipotle aioli; the crispy Brussels sprouts, flash-fried and topped with goat cheese sauce, apple cider vinegar reduction and bacon; and the beef skewers with pepper and onion, basted in a house-made teriyaki sauce. Pizza is made from scratch with dough that’s hand-thrown into a 10-inch pie and cooked in one of the area’s first wood-fired ovens. All kids’ meals end with an ice cream sandwich for dessert.
In recent years, Kristin says the restaurant has gotten busier, and a newly renovated patio has let them expand their guest numbers. With 80 seats inside and another 100 on the patio, nice weather means a buzzing restaurant. Besides regulars who treat The Loading Chute like a second home, more tourists have come in recent years. She believes reliability and good value in an era of inflation account for some of the restaurant’s growth.
“Our service is great, our menu doesn’t change, and we’re open for lunch and dinner every day, so people never have to check our hours. People are always impressed by our large portions and we’ve also managed to keep our prices reasonable—I feel like you can’t get that at many other places.”
