As a special treat, on our way back from the lavender festival in Sequim, Washington the other day, The Girl and I stopped by a little burger shack called Fat Smitty’s. I don’t know how anyone could possibly NOT stop with all those cool hand carved statues out front. We figured we’d find your typical roadside burger and fry place, but when we stepped inside we were in awe.
It wasn’t the food that surprised us {I mean it was awesome and just like a Mom & Pop hamburger shop should taste}, it was the money. The dolla dolla bills, yo! There were dollar bills covering every inch of that place; every wall and every spot on the ceiling! The ritual began when a traveling salesman wrote his name on a single dollar bill and tacked it to the wall 27 years ago.
That practice became what Fat Smitty’s was known for and before they knew it, people were coming from all over the state/country to pin their own bills to the restaurant walls. It was a pretty incredible site to see! Almost every bill has a note written on it and is addressed to Fat Smitty himself. Last year, Carl “Fat Smitty” Schmidt took down $10,316 in $1 bills from the walls and ceiling of the restaurant and donated them to charity, $3,000 of that going to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital {how cool is that!}.
It didn’t surprise me one bit to hear Fat Smitty was charitable. The entire diner screams patriotism and he even has a jar so people can donate money to pay for lunches of uniformed military personal, whom he feeds for free when they come in! He’s an all-American, support-the-troops-and-our-country kind of guy. I’ll give him my business any day!
And just when you were thinking our troops were the only one Fat Smitty was hooking up, check out this killer deal. In the market for a new knife? Buy a Smitty Burger and get a knife for only $2. Of course you’ll probably never live long enough to use it because a Smitty Burger consists of two patties, three slices of bread, bacon, lettuce, tomato and sauce, plus a side of fries! Whew. I’m getting heartburn just thinking about it.
If you’re in the Discovery Bay, Washington area, I totally recommend putting “Eat at Fat Smitty’s” on your to-do list. Your wallet might be a few dollars lighter, but you’ll leave with a full belly and a full heart. Charity {and a big fat hamburger} will do that to ya!
~Mavis
Em says
Really cool! Thanks for writing about this!
suzanne says
The hubs and I stop in a few times a year. We always share as the portions are extremly generous. It was crazy packed over the lavendar fest weekend. Next time you’re passing through Kingston stop by and we can will fill your trunk with plants. Promise I’m not crazy but my garden projects may get your OCD twitching.
Mavis Butterfield says
Will do! Thanks. 🙂
Kaia says
What a neat place, thanks for sharing!
Linda says
This is so cool…. Thanks for sharing!!
roxana and katerina says
Hi.
Last week my foreign exchange student from Albania went to the Peninsula for a few days. We saw the statues outside and decided this might be a good place to get a burger. It was such a fantastic place. And all the money on the walls. But most of all the kind fun people working there. The owner showed my student all the foreign money in the back and they told us all about the Game Farm and other attractions. Everyone should go here once. I look forward to going again soon..