SIGNATURE DISH: At Ed’s Truck Stop in Poulan, try the hamburger steak

POULAN — In 1964, Ed Souter was driving his milk delivery truck on his route. As usual, he stopped at a small nondescript truck stop between Sylvester and Ty Ty on U.S. Highway 82. He always thought the place, which had a small restaurant, had the potential of being a moneymaker with some hard work.

And hard work never bothered Ed Souter; but he had no idea how long it would take. Ed’s Truck Stop is the fruit of that labor.

“I was delivering milk through here and the guy who was running the restaurant was fixing to give it up, said he couldn’t make it,” Souter recalled. “I don’t know why I thought I could because I didn’t know anything about the business. I asked the guy who owned the building if he’d lease it to me. I drove the milk truck about three more years while I was also running the restaurant. I had a cot in the back I’d sleep on.”

After three years, Souter finally quit driving the milk truck and turned into a full-time restaurateur. As things turned out, that move changed his life forever.

“I was determined, could be pride, I don’t know because I certainly didn’t have any money,” Souter said. “It wasn’t until 1980 that I felt like it was going to work and I was able to buy the place. If people only knew what I went through those years. Even my wife and children have no idea. I had to borrow from Pete to pay Paul. But once I started something I was determined I was going to do it.

“It was rough at first. there were nights I didn’t make enough money to pay the help. After a few years people started showing up. It really got to be a monster, and we got by.”

Souter built the business on quality meals, even if it mean selling Ed’s Truck Stop’s signature hamburger steak for just $1 more than over the cost of the meat, which is never frozen and ground fresh daily by his brother, Joe, who is also Ed’s butcher.

Ed’s hamburger steak is divine, big and tasty with home style fries on the side.

“I’m telling you, Ed makes the best hamburger steak in southwest Georgia,” state Rep. Ed Rynders, whose district includes Poulan, said.”If I’m driving through Worth County, I’m going to stop at Ed’s and get me a hamburger steak. I’ve never been disappointed.”

In July, Souter, 79, finally hung up his spatula and leased the restaurant to Gina Lee, who had worked for him for the past 20 years.

“Mr. Ed has been in business for the past 50-something years,” Lee said. “Me and Angie (a server) have been here for more that 20 years and our cook, Sally, has been here for a year or so longer than us. We don’t have much change over at all because we are like family here.”

Lee said the decision to lease the restaurant was not difficult.

“I’ve been here so long I didn’t want to see somebody else come in and want to change things,” she said. “I wanted to keep it local and this place is like home for all of us. We get all kinds of people in here, farmers, families, and we have a lot of outsiders who come in who have heard of us. People from Tifton and Ashburn come over a lot.

“We’re known for our hamburger steaks and our Labor Day Scene where we have a big mullet supper that Mr. Ed started about 15 years ago. We have a live band outside. It’s all you can eat and people set up lawn chairs outside, listen to the band and have a good time.”

After 53 years, Souter let Lee take the helm … he left with no regrets except for one.

“When I borrowed the money to buy the restaurant my banker advised me to take a little more money than I was asking for to help get started. I said, ‘No.’ Looking back I wish I’d taken that extra money.”