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Losing small-town cafes

Loyal customers lose popular hangouts in Tracy, Granite Falls

Photo by Mike Lamb The rolling digital message on the Tillie’s Restaurant sign advertises a funeral home will be taking over the building soon. Tillie’s, a long-time restaurant in Granite Falls, recently closed its doors for good.

When a small town restaurant closes, it might not make a big dent in the state or national levels. But on the local level, that closing can leave a crater-size void in the community.

The loss is felt in employment opportunities and property taxes as well as entertainment and hangout places.

Tracy residents trying to get over the void left when the popular Red Rooster Cafe closed in December of 2015, lost another favorite hangout when the Dairy Queen closed on Jan. 7.

“I had to close due to the unrealistic expectations from corporate and overtaxation on small businesses,” Dairy Queen owner Jessica Sheets said. “I enjoyed being able to work alongside family and also enjoyed having our loyal customers coming in every day.”

Another favorite aspect of owning the Dairy Queen, Sheets said, is the relationships made over the years with their many valued employees that she considered family.

“I did not enjoy all the fees and regulations that came along with having the corporate name,” she said.

The building is not for sale at this time, Sheets said.

When the Red Rooster closed, owners Robert and Donna Caron expressed some of the same frustrations.

“It’s gotten very expensive to run,” Donna Caron told the Independent after the closing. “Supplies and insurance. You can’t sell things for what you should in Tracy.

Caron also told the Independent that there was no formal announcement made to the regulars, because “it was easier” that way.

“When they locked up Wednesday, that was it,” she said.

The closings of small-town restaurants usually means fewer choices, according to John Edwards. He is a co-owner of The Caboose in Tracy.

When word got out that Sheets was closing the Dairy Queen, the owners of The Caboose stepped up to fill the void. They even called Sheets to verify that she was indeed closing before instituting a lunch menu at their restaurant.

“We’ve been offering lunches for three weeks now,” Edwards said. “We picked up some of the Dairy Queen’s customers, but not as many as we’d hoped. We’re going to give it a good three months and see how it goes.”

Tammara Schons, a waitress at The Caboose, also said she’s going to miss the Dairy Queen.

“We’re going to miss the Dairy Queen ice cream cakes,” she said. “They were a family favorite.”

Tracy resident Rosemary Martin already has noticed the emptiness the Dairy Queen closing left upon the community.

“It will leave a huge void in the community,” Martin said. “I was never disappointed whenever I ate there. I’ve never heard even one bad comment about their food or ice cream treats. My grandson will miss having summer ice cream treats there.”

Customers in Tracy still have Bonnie & Clyde’s, Subway and The Caboose for eating establishments. Casey’s and Tracy’s Food Pride also have sit-down eating areas for their hot food, Edwards said.

In Granite Falls, it was Tillie’s Restaurant that closed. Its owner also declined to comment, but sold everything on an online auction just prior to the holidays.

A funeral home will be taking its location, said Dave Smiglewski, mayor of Granite Falls.

“Tillie’s was a very nice, all-around breakfast, lunch and dinner restaurant that is already missed by area folks as well as travelers,” Smiglewski said. “Losing a restaurant is never good, especially a gathering place like Tillie’s was.”

Online reviews called it a “quaint, old-fashioned diner,” with “one of the best (breakfast) skillets I’ve had in a while.”

“We certainly have other very good restaurant options in and near Granite,” Smiglewski said, “but an early morning sit-down breakfast is sorely needed.”

Gaining a business, like Anderson TeBeest Funeral Service, is good too, Smiglewski said. But he said losing a restaurant is something every community wants to avoid.

Casualty Assurance Insurance Agent Scott Rassmussen has taken clients to Tillie’s in the past.

“It seems strange not to have it anymore,” Rassmussen said. “Also, a half dozen of us businessmen met there once or twice a week for breakfast for 20-30 years. We miss that. A town this size should have a restaurant like that so I hope we get another soon.”

Granite Falls still has Dallas II, Dairy Queen, The Rock, The Grinder Cafe and Gifts, Jake’s Pizza, Casy’s General Store, Jimmy’s Pizza, Hardee’s, Cenex Hot Stuff Pizza, Carl’s Bakery, Subway and the Meadow’s Buffet at Prairie’s Edge Casino.

Heading northwest out of Marshall, two other restaurant owners are hanging up their aprons. Rusty’s Corner Cafe in Taunton and Dalagers Service Station & Grocery in Minneota.

Rusty Rhymer decided he wanted more stable hours than a small town cafe offers and has put his cafe up for sale hoping to find a buyer by the end of the year and not have to just close the doors.

While the service station turning into a convenience store is not a typical restaurant, it does provide food. Owners Chuck and Linda Dalager accepted an offer from Jeff and Erica Vierstraete who took over Jan. 1, saving that establishment from closing. It’s now called Dalager’s Convenience Store, LLC.

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