Patrons invited to make tracks
over to MJ’s Pitlane
By Scott Mitchell Johnson
Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE — Dan Martin hopes people will race over to MJ’s Pitlane in Presque Isle, enjoy a championship meal and maybe watch an upcoming NASCAR event.
DAN MARTIN, right, owner of MJ’s Pitlane in Presque Isle, is looking forward to the upcoming NASCAR season. The restaurant, which opened in October, features a NASCAR theme and many of the menu items have a racing flare, as well, including the Brickyard Burger and the Daytona Burger. Located at 79 Parsons St., MJ’s Pitlane features burgers, fries, seafood and ice cream. Here, cook Cole Davenport and Martin take a break between filling customers’ orders.
Martin, who owned and operated the Washburn Food Mart for 11 years, opened MJ’s Pitlane in October.
“I was looking for a change and decided to sell the grocery store,” he said. “I didn’t really know what I was going to do. Someone I know from Northern Maine Development Commission called me and said the former Winnie’s Restaurant was for sale, and it went from there.
“We used to come here as a family all the time on ATVs. I enjoyed coming here and the food was good, and I hated to see it closed,” said the St. John Valley native. “Surprisingly enough, when I sold my store I had a lot of people talk to me about this place and suggested that I buy it. Even my daughters would come home and tell me that their friends’ parents thought I should buy the place. People encouraged me so I said, ‘Let’s give it a try.’”
As the name may imply, MJ’s Pitlane, located at 79 Parsons St., features a NASCAR theme.
“There are a lot of racing fans here in The County — including myself — but nobody really does anything with racing,” said Martin. “I went back and forth with changing the name of the restaurant or leaving it and decided to have a fresh start … something new and exciting. I wanted to try and draw a younger crowd and figured NASCAR was something different that I could do a lot with. I can do car shows, antique tractor shows, bike shows, ATVs … anything motorized, so that’s how the racing theme came about.”
The “M” in MJ’s stands for Martin’s daughter, Mallory, while the “J” is for daughter Jordyn.
“I wanted my girls to be part of the business,” he said, noting that his daughters occasionally help bus tables. “I wanted it to be a family-oriented business. My wife, Leslie, also works at the restaurant.”
The biggest change to the building is its black and white checkered roof.
“When I bought the building I knew the roof needed to be done, and originally we were just going to do a black roof. My cousin who works here said, ‘Why don’t you checker it?’ and I said I’d take a look at it,” Martin said. “We walked out to the road to see if you could see the roof and it’s actually low enough so that you can see it, so I decided to go for it.”
The checkered flag roof has certainly gotten peoples’ attention.
“We had a few fender benders out front because people were distracted by the roof,” Martin laughed. “People kept coming by and looking at it. I think it’s neat. The NASCAR items on the wall are from my personal collection, and we have two TVs that are kept on the Speed Channel. As soon as the Daytona 500 and the other races start, that’s what’s going to be on.”
Martin said the restaurant features similar fare as Winnie’s but with some obvious changes.
“The variety is still the same … I have burgers, fish and french fries. We’re now offering fresh cut fries which are back by popular demand,” he said. “What I wanted to specialize in was the burgers and seafood. I love fish and there really aren’t a lot of places in town that specialize in that. Our fish is fresh and we hand-bread it here. We put out a good quality product.
“Every place has a burger, but I wanted ours to be different. They’re 100 percent Angus, and the buns are different. It’s a brand that people around here don’t use and it’s a nice, butter-flavored bun. It’s not one of those little wimpy buns; it’s a nice, presentable bun,” said Martin. “When we decided on the bun, we had started out with a smaller burger, but I knew that wasn’t going to work. We kept trying a bigger patty to fit the bun and I think we found what works.”
A lot of the items on the menu also have a racing name.
The Brickyard Burger, named after NASCAR’s Brickyard 400 race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, is smothered in barbecue sauce and topped with melted cheddar cheese, bacon and onion rings. The Daytona Burger, in honor of the Daytona 500, features Swiss cheese and is covered with mushrooms, onions and choice of toppings.
The Intimidator, a tribute to the late Dale Earnhardt Sr., is a deep-fried chicken breast soaked in hot sauce and topped with blue cheese and choice of toppings. Other creatively named items include a Qualifying Lap Burger, Pole Position Haddock Plate, Winner Circle Scallops and Chicken Lug Nuts (chicken nuggets).
“We also have home-cooked meals,” said Martin, who also helps cook, bus tables and wash dishes when needed. “We’ve done chicken stew, lasagna, shepherd’s pie, soups and a French dip. Every three or four days we’ll offer something different, and that’s proving to be very popular.”
MJ’s Pitlane also offers ice cream, sundaes and milkshakes.
“I’ve had people tell me that they used to go down to Grammy’s in Linneus or the Blue Moose in Monticello which was their ‘place to go,’” said Martin, “but since they’ve been here, this is their place to come because they absolutely love the food.”
As Martin looks toward the summer, he plans to offer carhops and car shows, and would like to bring an active NASCAR driver to town for an autograph signing.
MJ’s Pitlane is open in the winter from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. seven days a week. Martin said probably in March he’ll switch over to summer hours which are 10 a.m.-9 p.m. To place a take-out order, call 540-1128.
