Schell-Vista chicken BBQ is the real deal

August 5, 2017 by Fred Allebach

We had been wanting to go to the Schell-Vista Fire Dept. annual chicken BBQ for years, and for whatever reason, hadn’t made it. This year we went, on Sunday 7/16, and we were very impressed and had a great time.

Our niece and boyfriend, both captains, came over from Travis Airforce Base, with their two Australian cattle dogs, one 8 weeks, the other a year old. We toured the back yard, had a few fresh ripe figs, saw the gourd teepee, and headed down to Schellville @ 1:PM We were lucky to get a parking spot. The place was packed. Fire engines lined the street, Cal Fire was there; the classy old red Ford pickup shined out front in the sun. All the Schell-Vista firemen were in uniform wearing smiles and looking sharp.

Big tents were set up, ticket takers, a serving line, drinks, a BBQ tent off to the side. We figured out what to do, got some seats, parked the dogs, and got set up to munch out. Norm Yenni sold the tickets. At the serving line, friendly women in aprons loaded our plates. The food was just great, the half chicken was done to perfection with a nice smoky flavor, and just the right touch of burnt taste. The beans had a chili-type texture and solid spicy attack, strong and robust, but compelling enough to keep after until the last bite. The rolls were perfect, fresh and chewy, crust not too hard, nice sourdough flavor, and with the melted butter, just heavenly good. We wondered who baked them? The salad was fresh and provided a clean, crisp finish.

The captains and KDB had a few ice-cold beers while yours truly sipped a cold Coke, as a warm breeze blew through the festive atmosphere of the big tent. The dogs were conked out under the table. Firemen made the rounds to chat and we asked questions. How much do they make on this? Are they volunteers? And, we thanked them for being so quick on the call that one day, to arrive and take one very special so and so who had a stroke to the hospital. Yes, we like the Schell-Vista firemen very much. How could we not? They showed up.

Looking over the crowd it was easy to see this was not your Plaza wine tasting scene. This was a down-home county fair atmosphere. There was Chief Mike Mulas, different North Bay Water District guys, and any number of farmers and locals with deep Valley roots. These are the Native Sons and Native Daughters; they are small town character. It was really cool to be there. The atmosphere was great, families, smiles, chatter, conviviality. Nothing too fancy or pretentious. Here was old Sonoma alive and well for all to see.

To cap off the authenticity, Broadway Market, the working man’s store, of knock-out salami sandwich fame, provided the chickens and probably lots of volunteer help. We love Broadway Market.

Another round of beers and soda passed down the hatch, while the Air Force captains regaled us with the tale of their recent Havasu Falls hike. The thermometer clocked in at 100 degrees. Then, after all agreeing how great an experience this was, we headed to Bartholomew Park, to a trailside pool for a nice cool dunk, and a fun-filled game of stick with the dogs.

All in all, a great Sonoma Sunday. If you haven’t been to the BBQ, you’ll want to go next year. This is the real deal.