Sitting in the empty dining room surrounded by Alabama football relics, Rama Jama’s owner Michael Hebron sounded defiant.

Roy Orbison’s “Only the Lonely” played to only a crowd of a few workers scurrying from the kitchen to serve those at the walk-up window of the classic Tuscaloosa diner. Outside in the parking lot sits Hebron’s latest plan to regain market share in the coronavirus-fueled restaurant business freefall.

He hitched it to the trailer of his Jeep and drove it two-and-a-half hours home from Jackson, Mississippi. New, they sell for $3,500 but Hebron found this used hot dog cart for $2,700 on Facebook Marketplace.

And the car hop trays he ordered online? They should be in soon.

It’s all part of Hebron’s proactive approach to saving the iconic eatery he bought from Gary Lewis in 2017 and has lived in Bryant-Denny Stadium’s shadow since 1996. They added delivery not long after the pandemic closed dining rooms across the city and state. Everyone’s rewriting the playbook on the fly as the food and beverage industry saw revenues plummet.

There have been a few heartening moments for Hebron and Rama Jama’s. They’ve seen an influx of large orders called in to feed workers at other essential businesses. They got a call from Hebron’s native Long Island for $350 of food for first responders and a local attorney phoned in a $100 biscuit order on Friday.

“We’ve had people call and just put $50 on their credit card,” Hebron said, “just bought the staff lunch.”

Rama Jama’s rode a social media wave supporting the small restaurant after a March 25 story on AL.com noted its sales were down 60-65 percent. Hebron said business was back to normal for eight to nine days after the story ran but has since slumped again.

Another boost came from a former Alabama football star.

Rashaan Evans, now a starting linebacker for the Tennessee Titans, called Hebron recently when he heard business was suffering. What could he do?

“And he put it on his Instagram story,” Hebron said. “And for two days after that, there was an increase.”

Former teammate Tony Brown saw Evans’ story and stopped in for food three straight days last week since he’s training in Tuscaloosa. Hebron said Evans “gets it.”

“He knows you get more with sugar than spice,” the owner said.

Those moments of fleeting success helped fund the hot dog cart. It’s Hebron's hope that will bridge the gap between today’s valley and tomorrow’s return to normal.

It has all the capabilities of a cart you’d find on a Manhattan street corner. They can cook on it, run hot and cold water. Once it clears inspection, the plan is to load it up with burgers and hot dogs and hit the road where other essential work is done.

“I could also market it if people want to cater lunch for their employees, we can bring the cart, drop it and it’s loaded,” Hebron said. “They can make their food and do what they need to do.”

The hot dog cart Rama Jama's purchased for $2,700 to take the business mobile.Photo by Michael Casagrande | mcasagrande@al.com

This would otherwise be the cash cow of Rama Jama’s year. With campus tours, A-Day and a five-day graduation slam, places like Hebron’s turn the biggest profits this time of year. Seniors would be making that final tour of Tuscaloosa restaurants, holding onto the memories hitting the real world.

Looking forward, Hebron hopes summer sports camps will continue on the UA campus because that pumps strong business through Rama Jama’s. The thought of a fall semester without students or football is crushing.

“I would still be here,” Hebron said, “but it would be one cook and Gary, one cashier and me.”

They had to cut back considerably on the workforce at Rama Jama’s with just the walk-up window and deliveries in play. Two of the cooks in the back are on social security so they’re not eligible for any additional government stimulus.

The college students running orders to the walk-up window can’t collect that either while two older dishwashers have been able to maintain their part-time hours, Hebron said. Only one employee qualifies for unemployment benefits but he’s been able to maintain his hourly schedule to avoid filing that claim.

Outside Rama Jama’s on Friday, glimmers of normalcy remained. A group of Alabama seniors sipped milkshakes in their caps and gowns on a break from one of the graduation photo shoots that became so common on any other gorgeous April afternoon in Tuscaloosa.

This, of course, was just another day in the upside down known as 2020. Hebron can’t wait to have that crew among the Alabama history on the walls inside Rama Jama’s when this is all a bad memory.

But for now, he’s got a hot dog cart and hope better days are coming.

Michael Casagrande is an Alabama beat writer for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.