What do you think makes a good "country cafe"?

Freya · #41 02/20/12, 01:20 PM

Yes I am pondering an opportunity.

I totally agree with everything being clean and having a friendly waitstaff!

And now I want biscuits and gravy for some strange reason!

#42 02/20/12, 04:24 PM

There is a restaurant in the middle of MN, miles from any town, called Inspriation Peak. It's located in the middlle of the Alexandria lakes area so it has a bigger customer base in the summer but it is still busy in the winter.

People come from miles around because it is good home style cooking with big portions (not too big), and reasonable prices. It's nice and clean and a good deal.

I would give some thought to what happens to the country restaurant you are considering when gas hits $5 a gallon or more.

emdeengee · #43 02/20/12, 04:38 PM

A good cafe does not have to be fancy or even well decorated as long as it is clean and the people who run it are friendly and polite but not intrusive. They keep the atmosphere family oriented and do not allow loud mouths to dominate. The food is home made and they concentrate on a few really great items - not trying to be everything to everyone. They make a decent living but do not gouge the customers. We have one such place here where I live and other restaurants and cafes have gone through tough times but this place never will.

blufford · #44 02/20/12, 06:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by emdeengee

A good cafe does not have to be fancy or even well decorated as long as it is clean and the people who run it are friendly and polite but not intrusive. They keep the atmosphere family oriented and do not allow loud mouths to dominate. The food is home made and they concentrate on a few really great items - not trying to be everything to everyone. They make a decent living but do not gouge the customers. We have one such place here where I live and other restaurants and cafes have gone through tough times but this place never will.

Sometimes that table where the locals gather everyday is a hot bed of hurtful gossip and loud profanity. Many of them get crazy checks or some other disability claim. And then they get mouthy and loud to hard working people who are lucky enough to have scraped enough money together for coffee and toast. No thanks. I'll stay home.

WoodlandWoolens · #45 02/20/12, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Horseyrider

Really good hot coffee, and keep 'er comin.'

Right after that is good pie. Not vendor pie with crust with shortening and three pieces of fruit. Real pie with a lard and butter crust, bursting with fruit, where they smile and tell you what kinds they have left when you walk in the door.

A couple of really long tables for all the farmers to gather for breakfast and gossip.

A really good burger. Fried chicken can take too long for many people, so the alternative is a top quality burger, with all kinds of different toppings available.

A cook in the kitchen that listens to instructions and knows the difference between "bacon still wiggly" and "bacon crisp," and "bacon burnt."

Brisk waitresses who remember you and keep your cup full.

What makes them bad is slow or indifferent service, with indifferently prepared food. Food that is cold, or greasy, or cooked at the wrong temperature. (Like fries thrown into fat that hasn't gotten hot enough; the result is grease soaked flabby pale fries.)

Dirty dishes or silverware. Ugh.

Cold coffee, not visited enough by the waitress.

Food that was obviously canned or shaken out of a bag. Don't give me that; I can do that at home.

A menu that's a variation on fried, fried, fried or fried. Hey, I already know you have a walk-in freezer. How about showing me that you have a real cook?

Here, a country cafe is pretty casual. It's not going to have carpet, and a guy can come in wearing his overalls and seed cap and fit right in. The floor might be tracked with mud during the spring or fall, and nobody says anything about it. The food is hearty and like your mama made, and there's always a special of the day.

This completely!

kenworth · #46 02/20/12, 07:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geo in mi

All the food in Michigan started tasting better since they passed the smoking ban in public places......even over at the Teapot Dome........'course, it's kinda hard to get in the door now, everyone is huddled around it "whisperin'" into their gloves.......

geo

I love Teapot Dome for breakfast. YUMMY! And, it's down to Teapot Dome, LOL.

wanda1950 · #47 02/20/12, 11:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shaycool

Good homemade food! Check out Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network, or check on youtube, they have many segments of the show

Love that show! He can find the best looking food.

**Ross** · #48 02/21/12, 05:45 AM

I don't know if they make the most money but theres a place here that does most of their menu from scratch, has lots of good friendly waitresses (not kids either) and their prices are very reasonable. Stopped there for a good hot lunch and I couldn't finish it there was so much. Cost me $4 more than subway the previous day and a tip but it was worth every cent. Did I mention the place was nearly packed? I try to get there early so I can grab a window seat. I had their hot turkey sandwich with veggies and fries (and a cheesey broccoli soup) Nice thing is you're never rushed there but the service is the best you'll find anywhere so if you are in a hurry its not a problem.

haypoint · #49 02/21/12, 06:43 AM

For breakfast, good locally produced thick, meaty bacon. Toast from home-made bread and fresh coffee.
For lunch, a good burger. A pretzel bun is a big plus. It is sort of like a bagel, but shaped like a pretzel. Homemade soup and a small variety of homemade pies. A lemon meringue with three inches of meringue is an eye catcher. In the summer, a shake or malt made from hard ice cream.
Potato slicer is cheap to buy and fresh potato chips are a hit, too. I’ve seen one that spiral cuts a potato. Just deep fry it and it looks great on a plate. For just the cost of a potato.
Clean restrooms. Forget the hot air hands dryer, have a paper towel dispenser. Keep a bit of bleach in the wash rag container that the waitress uses to wipe tables. Most people associate a hint of bleach smell with cleanliness. If your cook has tattoos, stretched out ear lobes, wears his baseball cap to keep hair out of the food or wears sleeveless tee shirts, don’t let him go where the public can see him. If he smokes, don’t let him sit out back on a milk crate where the public can see him.

Our Little Farm · #50 02/21/12, 07:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ross

I don't know if they make the most money but theres a place here that does most of their menu from scratch, has lots of good friendly waitresses (not kids either) and their prices are very reasonable. Stopped there for a good hot lunch and I couldn't finish it there was so much. Cost me $4 more than subway the previous day and a tip but it was worth every cent. Did I mention the place was nearly packed? I try to get there early so I can grab a window seat. I had their hot turkey sandwich with veggies and fries (and a cheesey broccoli soup) Nice thing is you're never rushed there but the service is the best you'll find anywhere so if you are in a hurry its not a problem.

A local to me place is like this. They buy most of their ingredients locally and advertise it. It is ALWAYS busy. Food is always good.

Kazahleenah · #51 02/21/12, 07:44 AM

Good:

Good coffee, and frequest refills.

A nice, juicy burger... many toppings to choose from.

Good eggs, omlettes etc.

Good coffee, and frequest refills.

Food served hot, not lukewarm.

Friendly Atmosphere.

Did I mention Good coffee, and frequest refills?

meanwhile · #52 02/21/12, 08:55 AM

Gravy! Gravy! More good gravy. That white type of gravy with chunks of sausage meat it in and eat it on good thick brown biscuits.

Butter. Lots of real butter.

Then, more sausage gravy.

emdeengee · #53 02/21/12, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blufford

Sometimes that table where the locals gather everyday is a hot bed of hurtful gossip and loud profanity. Many of them get crazy checks or some other disability claim. And then they get mouthy and loud to hard working people who are lucky enough to have scraped enough money together for coffee and toast. No thanks. I'll stay home.

Yes that is what I meant. Over the years there have been several cafes that have lost our patronage because the owner does nothing to quiet down the rowdy bunch even when he/she sees that other customers and staff are upset. I have had limited success with different groups when I have gone up to them and asked them to please watch their language as children were present. Some were very decent and just did not realize how loud they were but others were just low class. Once we were half way through breakfast and had to leave. I refused to pay for the meal and the owner just accepted it. I think I was not the first to walk out with kids in tow.

Txrider · #54 02/21/12, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Freya

Just curious... but what makes a cafe GOOD to you? What makes one bad? What are your favorite items that you think are key to a good cafe?

So far all the guys I have asked have all answered "pie/cobbler and good fried chicken".

Good pie..

Good coffee.

Good breakfasts (eggs bacon biscuits sausage gravy hash browns), good chicken and chicken fried steak, good steak and a good hamburger. Good ingredients not SYSCO garbage.

But good vs bad is a matter of good friendly service, a CLEAN place including a spotless kitchen.

The biggest thing that will run me away from a eatery is a dirty kitchen that doesn't get completely scrubbed down in a pull the equipment and scrub under, behind, over, scrub the walls kind of way.

And tables and such that aren't kept clean and nice looking and replaced when needed, you can smell it, see it and feel it.. Next is really good friendly timely polite service. Fall down on those once or twice and I'll never darken your doorway again.

geo in mi · #55 02/21/12, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kenworth

I love Teapot Dome for breakfast. YUMMY! And, it's down to Teapot Dome, LOL.

Well, former Hoosier, you know.......but those guys, even Paul, are my friends and neighbors....

geo

geo in mi · #56 02/21/12, 03:38 PM

Where are all you Southerners??? Not one mention of grits!

geo

Bearfootfarm · #57 02/21/12, 04:20 PM

Here's my favorite one:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Bum...t/174757229208
What do you think makes a good "country cafe"? - Homesteading Questions

geo in mi · #58 02/21/12, 05:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kenworth

I love Teapot Dome for breakfast. YUMMY! And, it's down to Teapot Dome, LOL.

Just occured to me....are you talking about Teapot Dome East, or Teapot Dome WEST? East is the one that had a big fire last summer, just re-opened.....West is the one I'm talking about.

geo

Our Little Farm · #59 02/21/12, 06:44 PM

A very long time ago I went for the first time into a Ihop restaurant. My silverware was dirty, so I asked politely for some more. The second set arrived dirty, along with my glass with a lipstick stain clearly visible.

I walked out, and have never gone back to any of their places. Ugh.

For me, cleanliness everywhere needs to happen. Mess up and I am gone.

kenworth · #60 02/21/12, 08:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geo in mi

Just occured to me....are you talking about Teapot Dome East, or Teapot Dome WEST? East is the one that had a big fire last summer, just re-opened.....West is the one I'm talking about.

geo

East and West. These are the ones I love best. I've been to East more than West, but both are yummy.

I like that East has a daily special. If I don't hurry, I get left out.

Only been to West for breakfast.