Operating in a rural park area on the eastern outskirts of Buckley for nearly 25 years, Wally’s Drive In Restaurant offers a glimpse back to a time when eating in your car was an everyday enjoyable activity and drive-ins were common in every town.

Wally’s has a big, colorful sign and welcoming  parking lot lined with parking spaces, each one provided with a menu and a speaker for ordering,  and a broad walkway for the carhops delivering orders, packed ready to go. Inside the 1950-decor dining room, you can have table service, but we stayed in the car.

The food is mostly reasonably priced and tasty, and the famous milk shakes are thick.

We decided on traditional drive-in food, including a Cheese Charburger ($4.59) with two slices of American cheese, mayo, ketchup, lettuce and pickle, and we added fries ($1.59), which were thick-cut and mouth-scalding  hot. Yum.

We also ordered one piece of cod with frie,( $8.99), which came with tartar sauce and ketchup on the side. It was a breaded deep fried piece the size of the palm of a man’s hand and very good.  ]

The grilled chicken sandwich ($6.99) was tender and juicy. The bun was fresh and soft and the sandwich was very satisfying.

We ordered a vanilla shake and a blackberry shake, both small-sized at $3.59. The  vanilla  was intense and sweet and thick. The blackberry was actually berry-flavored with berry pieces throughout.  Both were very good, but I think a bit overpriced for the size.

The food was good, and  I recommend this enjoyable experience that is not common any more.

IF YOU GO

Wally’s Drive In

282 State Route 410, Buckley

360-829-0871

Open Sunday through Thursday 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday-Saturday  8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Carolyn Augustinem who writes the Senior Eats column for Senior Scene, is a freelance restaurant writer.