Whidbey Island Living

EP 10 - AB Hillbilly Gyros & AB Ice Cream Parlor

• Reid Schwartz

Share episode

In today's episode of Whidbey Island Living, we’re getting an exclusive look into the life of Jessie Abrahamson, the passionate owner behind AB Hillbilly Gyros & AB Icecream Parlor. From navigating challenges by being a mom and juggling the business, Jessie’s dedication shines through in every detail. Watch as she shares her journey from being a service crew to managing a booming business of food trucks and restaurants.

🌟𝙂𝙀𝙏 𝘼 𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙉𝘾𝙀 𝙏𝙊 𝙒𝙄𝙉 𝘼 𝙁𝙍𝙀𝙀 𝙈𝙀𝘼𝙇 𝙒𝙃𝙀𝙉 𝙔𝙊𝙐 𝙎𝙃𝘼𝙍𝙀 𝙏𝙃𝙄𝙎 𝙑𝙄𝘿𝙀𝙊🌟
Mechanics:
1. Must Like the Youtube Video
2. Subscribed to the Youtube Channel
3. Share the video Publicly on FACEBOOK with the hashtag #𝙒𝙄𝙇𝘼𝘽𝙃𝙞𝙡𝙡𝘽𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙮 and tag Reid Schwartz.

𝙒𝙄𝙉𝙉𝙀𝙍 𝙒𝙄𝙇𝙇 𝘽𝙀 𝘼𝙉𝙉𝙊𝙐𝙉𝘾𝙀𝘿 𝙊𝙉 𝙁𝙀𝘽𝙍𝙐𝘼𝙍𝙔 26, 2025 🎉

GOODLUCK!


AB Hillbilly Gyros & AB Icecream Parlor: https://www.abshillbillygyros.com/
Jessie Abrahamson:   / jessie.abrahamson   

Reid Schwartz is not just a real estate broker; he’s a dedicated leader and active participant in the Whidbey Island community. A Navy veteran and 30-year island resident, Reid brings a unique perspective and deep-rooted passion to his work. As a proud Rotarian and a founding board member of North Whidbey Hearts and Hammers, he’s committed to making a difference in the lives of those around him. He also serves as the organization’s Public Relations Director, always on the lookout for volunteers eager to give back.

Whether it’s helping clients buy or sell their homes, connecting locals with community resources, or creating opportunities for neighbors to support one another, Reid is driven by a desire to make Whidbey Island a better place. He’s always looking for creative ways to help—whether it’s growing local businesses or offering a hand to those in need. For Reid, it’s about more than just real estate; it’s about building a stronger, more connected community through kindness, collaboration, and service.


Reid can be reached:
Phone: (360) 929-4808
Email: reid@reidschwartz.com
Website: reidschwartz.com

Speaker 1:

Hey everyone. I am Reed Schwartz with eXp Realty and today on Whidbey Island Living. I'm here with Jessie Abrahamson. She's the owner, founder of AB Hillbilly Euros and now AB's Ice Cream Parlor. So we're going to have a conversation about Jessie's background and what got her started in the restaurant business, and maybe she'll even share her secret recipe and stick around till the very end and you'll have the opportunity to get a free meal with ab hillbilly euros that'll be good.

Speaker 2:

It's gonna be good. Well, you've been open.

Speaker 1:

You're getting ready to reopen yes, shortly okay. So, jesse, every restaurant has a great story. What brought you and gave you the brainstorm to open AB Hillbilly Heroes?

Speaker 2:

Well, I am a longtime resident of Oak River and I was a young mother and I was having another baby. So I needed a job and my friend told me about a place hiring down the road from me. So I came downtown to this location and applied for a job and I had no idea what euros were. I thought they were churros, so apparently I didn't know what churros were either. Anyway, so I go in and it was a hot sandwich place and so I was intrigued and I talked to the owner and I started working there and I stayed there for quite a few years and went out on the food truck with them and I really enjoyed it and I ended up given the opportunity to take over another food truck because the owner of this location wanted to retire out of her food truck and just keep the permanent location.

Speaker 2:

So I said sure, so took over her food truck and got those events. So then I was running two food trucks eventually. Then she wanted to retire out of her permanent location and then she offered me the opportunity to take over the permanent location. It was a really good experience. I learned a lot. It gave me the confidence to do it by myself, which is a big thing in itself. Thinking you can do it and actually doing it is a whole other ballgame.

Speaker 1:

There is yeah, exactly, there is a big difference there. It's a lot of work, a lot of organization, a lot of things.

Speaker 2:

A lot of failure.

Speaker 1:

A lot of failure. A lot of work, a lot of organization, a lot of things, a lot of failure, a lot of failure. So running a restaurant isn't easy. Has there been some uh, stumbling blocks and lessons learned along the way?

Speaker 2:

oh, absolutely. You know, um, when you're dealing on the road is one thing, because you're dealing with several different health departments. They all have their own little interpretation of the law, so that's really difficult sometimes. But if you keep a good rapport and you talk with your health department, you learn to know what their expectations are. So you go not going into it blind. Because there are several, they're not all the same. You might use time as temperature control in one and the other county says absolutely not. You can't do this, and so it could be frustrating. But if you ask the questions beforehand, that can eliminate some of those hiccups and make it go smoother.

Speaker 1:

So your restaurant gets pretty busy. You got a lot of traffic coming in at lunchtime. I've seen your trailer up at festivals. There's a big line. So is there some secret recipe that you have that brings everybody in? Well, we try to do a gourmet sandwich at a fast food rate.

Speaker 2:

We want to get it in, get it out fast, get people moving, get people eating. We have a very small location so you can't have too many people in there at the same time. It can get quite crowded, so speed is our best friend. You know, there are days that we have our challenges where our fryer will be messing up or something like that, and most of the time the community is graceful with us. Sometimes not, you know, but you know you can't please everybody, but you do your best, okay.

Speaker 1:

What's your specialty? What's your favorite recipe?

Speaker 2:

So the hillbilly is our most popular gyro. It comes with the lamb, beef, bacon, lettuce, tomato, grilled onions. We also have a good variety of vegetarian food, so my personal favorite is the falafel sandwich. It's very good. Oh my goodness, it's so good. And you feel good after you eat gyros, you, you're not bogged down, You're not feeling like, oh, I need to go take a nap. You know you get your as long as you only eat one, yeah, and the fries.

Speaker 1:

And the fries. So, jesse, if someone was coming to visit your restaurant for the very first time, what would be something they would absolutely have to try?

Speaker 2:

They would definitely have to try the fries for sure. The fries are like the biggest hit. Even people who don't really care for gyros that much will come and get the fries, you know. So that's awesome and they are so good. What sets our fries apart from other fries is the seasoning that we put on, and then we age our feta and we grind it and so you get a lot more on there than most places. You know, we don't just sprinkle a little bit, we cover it with the grated feta cheese. I love feta cheese.

Speaker 1:

So when people cook from home, it's not quite always the same, because sometimes they're missing some secret ingredient. What's the secret ingredient that you use in your cooking?

Speaker 2:

Well, you need to be patient with yourself, first of all, because Greek food is a patient food. Everything is so has to be done right. Baflaval you have to layer it and you have to put it put the sauce on at the right time. You know stuff like that to Zigi sauce as well. You know you have to take your time and do it correctly, because if you're not doing it correctly then it's going to be runny or you're just not going to have the consistency that you want. So I would say patience.

Speaker 1:

Secret ingredient?

Speaker 2:

It is it really is, Because most everything is simple. You can follow a recipe, but you need to be patient because you know if it says wait until cool and then pour it on, or vice versa. Right, right. Don't jump ahead, don't get crazy.

Speaker 1:

So home cooking is great, but cooking having food made by the experts is even better. So what is one mistake that a lot of home cooks make when they're making food?

Speaker 2:

I'm not really sure, because Greek food is particular and so if they don't feel comfortable making something, they just come to me for it. So if they want a special kind of pita, they'll come and get pita. I've had um. One of um our guests was roasting a whole goat and so he, he had the goat, but he wanted everything else, all the toppings and stuff, from our place. So, and then he'd come in and you know what seasoning should I use? And I was like, oh, use mints. And you know what seasoning should I use? And I was like, oh, use mints. And do you know, I got really excited and was very eager to help him out with this adventure. He went on.

Speaker 1:

That sounds like an adventure.

Speaker 2:

Yeah. So I mean that's really cool, you know, being able to interact with the community that way, and that they trust my advice when it comes to it, and so um, as we get towards this secret recipe, you know, and maybe the opportunity to come get a meal here, what would be your?

Speaker 1:

what recipe really defines your restaurant that you'd be willing to share with everybody? So you can play with this at home?

Speaker 2:

So again I bring up the tzatziki sauce, because it's the staple in Greek food. Everyone well, not everyone, but a lot of people really enjoy it. It's a thick, creamy. It's a cucumber garlic sauce. It's a guilt-free sauce. It's made with nonfat Greek yogurt, so you really can put anything you want in it, honestly. But to make like a traditional tzatziki sauce, the trick is to strain your yogurt through cheesecloth.

Speaker 2:

You'll be amazed how much brine comes out. Even if you don't think there's a lot of brine in your yogurt, you'll be shocked. That little bit of brine will keep that tzatziki sauce from getting that really thick and creamy consistency that you really want.

Speaker 1:

If you enjoyed this like this, make a comment down below and share it with a friend. Share this video and you'll get entered into a drawing. Jesse's giving away a $20 gift certificate for lunch for somebody, so be the winner. Share this video, put it out there and we look forward to seeing you on the next edition of Windy Island Living.