text: Years ago, I reviewed the Black Bear Diner's original restaurant in Mount Shasta, California. I have a soft spot in my heart for this chain because it started essentially in my hometown's back yard, in a remote northern part of California that some call the State of Jefferson. You can see on their placemat, a black bear framed by the snow covered peaks of the extinct volcano, Mt. Shasta, in the background. I am pleased as punch that they have a franchise in Gilbert now that I am living in Arizona.\n\nThe food here is some solid, stick-to-your-ribs comfort food. The portions are huge. And it has that old-fashioned diner food vibe. This has been covered in many of the reviews posted by my fellow Yelpers. However, there are some unique nuances at this diner that you might have missed...\n\nFor one, they sell their own line of hot sauces. This includes Baby Burn (original cayenne), Mama Burn (green jalape\u00f1o), and Papa Burn (haba\u00f1ero). I am hooked on the Papa Burn, even though I'm not a huge haba\u00f1ero hot sauce fan. My tastes tend towards the cayenne and chipotle varieties, but this Papa Burn sauce is special. It has some serious heat from the haba\u00f1ero, but the best component is the infused black pepper flavor. Try it the next time you're here and you might just buy a bottle to go (like I did).\n\nThe other thing you may have missed is that the Black Bear Diner serves craft beer! Hop Rod Rye Specialty Ale and Big Bear Black Stout are the two offerings they carry from the Bear Republic Brewery. I have tried neither of these, but they sound delicious! I tend to frequent Black Bear Diner for breakfast, and really haven't made beer with breakfast a habit since college. I know the Yreka, California Black Bear Diner restaurant used to serve a special label craft beer brewed at the Etna Brewery, so I was pleased to see that the beery bear tradition continues at this Gilbert restaurant.