MINA, NEVADA — Passersby may trick themselves into thinking this careworn burgh on U.S. 95 in wind-swept Mineral County is pretty close to the middle of nowhere.

Poor souls. They probably are speeding toward production line fast food served by clowns and kings. If they pause long enough to take a closer look, they’d surely find their cheeseburger in paradise at S’Socorro’s Burger Hut.

Painted red and white, the humble hamburger stand isn’t much larger than a gardening shed, but it sticks out like Circus Circus on a Saturday night in Mina. The tiny town, population 155 according to the 2010 census, was founded in 1905 as a stop for the Carson and Colorado Railway.

That train hasn’t come through in decades, but it’s full steam ahead at the Burger Hut, where bubbly owner Socorro Streight greets customers with a friendly “Hi ya, hon, what can I get you?”

The burgers are made one at a time with quality beef, a fresh bun and all the fixings. The fries and milkshakes are hard to beat, and there’s more to the menu than hamburgers. But why mess with perfection?

Over the 16 years she’s run the Burger Hut, Socorro has developed regulars ranging from long-haul truckers and traveling salesmen to off-road enthusiasts and the women who work at Wildcat brothel a short drive down the 95.

At 74, she’s open most days despite dealing with a variety of age-related aches and pains. She lost her husband seven years ago and now operates the Burger Hut with help from an assistant named Judy. But it essentially remains a one-woman hamburger stand.

“I’m everything,” Socorro says, laughing, her head bobbing into view through the order window. “I’m the president, I’m everything. It’s just me!”

If you can imagine it, she started out even smaller, selling food from the back of her pickup. Then she found steady customers in an unlikely place, the Wildcat.

“I was working in the brothel, in my day job,” she says, adding, “I cook all their food. I cook for them once a month.”

When truckers tried her food, the word went out up and down the highway.

“Then in my day job I cook a lot because all the truckers, they say, ‘Socorro, if you open a restaurant we will come and stop.’”

And they do, sometimes calling ahead to have their orders foil-wrapped and ready for a quick 18-wheel takeout.

Now, about the unique spelling of her name on the Burger Hut’s sign. It comes from some of her customers’ comments about the quality of her food: “Super and Special place, Socorro’s. That’s what it is. All those truckers for all those years, hon, they used to stop, the truckers, and everybody, the highway patrol they stop.”

Although she still enjoys bantering with friends and regulars and meeting new customers, she’s considered selling the Burger Hut in recent years and has entertained several inquiries. For now, she’ll keep the grill hot and fill half of Mineral County with the heavenly scent of hamburgers.

“When my husband was so sick and I was worried, I wanted to sell it,” she says. “I want to sell it, but I don’t. You know? I have fun over here with the guys — and the ladies, they’re pretty nice. People know me and they keep coming back. I have people who have been coming since the first time that I opened. So that’s pretty good. So, we sell or not. That’s okay. I’m not trying to sell it. I’m not rushing. I don’t want to break everybody’s heart who likes to eat here. I’m making money. I’m happy. So, hell with it. I keep working!”

She adds, “Why, hon, you interested?”

“No,” he replies, dizzy from the scent and dreaming of a cheeseburger in paradise found in a most unlikely place. “I just like eating here. I like it when it’s open.”

John L. Smith is an author and longtime columnist. He was born in Henderson and his family's Nevada roots go back to 1881. His stories have appeared in Time, Readers Digest, The Daily Beast, Reuters, Ruralite and Desert Companion, among others. He also offers weekly commentary on Nevada Public Radio station KNPR. His newest book—a biography of iconic Nevada civil rights and political leader, Joe Neal—"Westside Slugger: Joe Neal’s Lifelong Fight for Social Justice" is published by University of Nevada Press and is available at Amazon.com.

Contact him at [email protected]. On Twitter: @jlnevadasmith