It all started with a conversation over cocktails between two women, Tomeka Bryant and Ailsa von Dobeneck, ladies with very different backgrounds, but who have the shared experience of working on the railroad in New Orleans. The two had run into each other unexpectedly at a business conference.
“As we were having cocktails, we came up with this business idea and actually bought a caboose on the Internet,” von Dobeneck says. “Then we woke up the next day. At breakfast, I was like, ‘Tomeka, did we buy a caboose?’ She said, ‘Yes!’”
And that is where the duo’s journey to open a bar and restaurant in Long Beach, Mississippi began.
At first glance, the dynamic duo do not appear to be (former) railroad workers. In fact, they look more like models you’d find in a fashion magazine, but one should not mistake their looks for lack of intelligence, drive or business savvy.
“We are complete opposite sides of the brain,” von Dobeneck says. “Tomeka is a boss. She’s so smart and business-focused. I am the creative, colorful one that does the menu plan and things like that. We’ve been really good friends for years, and we work together well in business, which I think is a really perfect sauce.”
“Juicy Caboosy is actually a name that Ailsa came up with,” Bryant says. “It seemed exciting and a name that people would not forget. I think that’s important in business, to have a name that people will always remember.”
Construction continues on the Juicy Caboosy restaurant and bar located at the intersection of Mason Avenue and West 5th Street in downtown Long Beach. It’s the duo’s first brick-and-mortar business venture. The caboose got a new paint job in mid-January, and the establishment is tentatively set to open in mid-February.
Inside the new bar and restaurant, customers will feel like they’re taking a step back in time. The caboose, which serves as the foundation and main building, is decked out with historically accurate décor, a living history lesson, if you will, when it comes to railroading and the nation’s deep roots and history in the industry.
“They’re going to see a beautiful red caboose, of course, with a deck where people can sit and enjoy a cocktail, fresh juice and food,” Bryant says. “You’ll also see a covered area and seating for an outdoor bar. Then you’ll also see green space for games, just a place to have a good time with friends and family.”
“Cabooses are no longer used on the railroad, so sometimes you see them used as Air B&Bs or as man caves or lady caves,” von Dobeneck says. “We thought, why don’t we take something like this from the railroad that means so much to us and renovate it? It’s been a fun journey for both of us.”
The menu is special, too, including fresh food daily. Healthy selections, such as salads, and vintage railroad recipe dishes will be on the menu, as well as fruit juices. There will also be a kids’ menu.
“I like the history of food,” von Dobeneck says, “The railroads have some old vintage recipes. We’re using some of them at the Juicy Caboosy.”
Patrons can dine on site or order to go, and, of course, there will be a considerable list of taste-tested and specially-selected cocktails to choose from, many of them Bryant’s creations.
Von Dobeneck is a history buff, foodie and columnist who actually appeared on Gordon Ramsey’s Master Chef TV show a few years ago. As for her and Bryant’s current business venture, if location truly is everything, the duo believe they have picked the perfect spot.
“We drove the coastline up and down looking for the perfect location for this business,” Bryant says. “I can tell you, the people we ran into Long Beach, the City officials, really made it feel like home. We definitely saw the potential of Long Beach and the growth and thought this would be a great place with such a community vibe, a place that already seemed like a big family. We found the perfect piece of property, and all the stars aligned.”
“It’s a unique concept. We’re hoping people love it,” von Dobeneck says. “It’s definitely going to be a focal point. I know kids love trains. The cocktails will be great. The food will be great, and it will be really fun.”
But before landing and settling on the Friendly City as the site for their new business venture, Bryant and von Dobeneck had to settle some unfinished business in Pattonsburg, Missouri, where they purchased the caboose.
“This story and concept [of the caboose] is very special to the people in Pattonsburg,” von Dobeneck says.
Pattonsburg showed their appreciation with a proclamation in the ladies’ honor, which deemed July 14, 2021, Juicy Caboosy Day in and by the City of Pattonsburg. In part, the proclamation reads, “The residents of Pattonsburg are happy to know that the caboose has found a new home, where it will provide enjoyment to others for years to come…and wish this new business success.”
“I know this caboose was a staple in their community; because we were taking something so precious from them, we wanted to document the journey,” Bryant says. “We want to make sure they continue to be a part of the history of the caboose, that they continue to see something that was so important to them be something that becomes important in Long Beach.”
Bryant and von Dobeneck keep the townsfolk of Pattonsburg updated on their progress and business venture in South Mississippi, a far-reaching social media drive that has forged friendships spanning almost 900 miles.
“Pattonburg’s big claim to fame is their yearly car show, located near where the caboose was in town,” von Dobeneck says. “Some of those from Pattonsburg come down for Cruisin’ the Coast. A couple of them [in Pattonsburg] reached out to South Mississippians on Facebook to link up to tailgate and meet up on the Coast. I hope this year we can get a lot of the Pattonsburg folks back down here to mingle more. It’s kind of serendipitous.”
“I think her [von Dobeneck’s] love for food and cooking and my creative drinks and just us both enjoying a cocktail on the Coast when we were both here is something we connected over,” Bryant says. “I’m just happy to be able to do this with somebody who means so much to me and has played such a huge role in my life.”
The feeling is mutual.
“I’m excited,” von Dobeneck says. “It’s new. It feels different. Tomeka and I were so fortunate to be able to write and build our vision. Now people are coming to visit our vision, and it feels really special that they love it as much as we do.”
For updates and more information, visit The Juicy Caboosy Facebook page or their website at TheJuicyCaboosy.com.
