Baxter's new restaurant provides hometown feel

BAXTER – Blue Ribbon Cafe opened for business last week and gave Baxter its first sit-down restaurant in three years.

The cafe, located on Highway F17, is now open from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. offering breakfast and lunch specials. It’s the first cafe-style restaurant in Baxter since Mona’s Off Main closed at the same location a few years back.

“Baxter needed a restaurant real bad and people wanted it. The last couple days we’ve realized we have real good support,” Blue Ribbon Cafe owner Jeanne Conover said. “They will support us and hopefully continue to support us. It’s been three years since we had a restaurant in town and people are really missing it, so they’re ready for some good home cooked meals.”

Conover owns the business with her husband, Al Conover, and said they have been learning as they go since they purchased the property one year ago.

In the past year the two have done a lot of interior and exterior work to create a hometown restaurant with a local menu. The long wait came to an end Aug. 26 as the restaurant opened and began serving fresh meals to the community.

However, there was plenty of planning that went into opening day with this being their first restaurant. Jeanne and Al held a test run Aug. 24 to work out any last kinks and gather a feeling on how the cafe will run.

“It’s a new venture for us. It’s very different from what we’ve done in our lives,” she said.

The married couple also owns Conover Auction Service in Baxter, where Al is an auctioneer and Jeanne is a livestock insurance agent. They also manage livestock and even incorporate that certified angus beef and certified berkshire pork in their menu at Blue Ribbon Cafe.

Jeanne said the community is responding well to the menu and customers have already packed the restaurant on multiple occasions.

As for the name of the restaurant, Blue Ribbon Cafe comes from their families’ lifetime involvement in 4-H. Both Jeanne and Al grew up on farms and participated in 4-H, along with their kids and grandchildren. However, they decided on the name Blue Ribbon Cafe due to Al’s family history.

“When the Iowa State Fair started giving awards out – it was called the Blue Ribbon Family – they were the first family named for the blue ribbon. So that’s why we call it the Blue Ribbon Cafe,” Jeanne said.

Blue Ribbon Cafe has been open for one week and Jeanne said she can’t thank Baxter and the surrounding communities enough for all the support the restaurant has received.

“There have been a lot of, not just friends, but business people here in town and farmers. Just the whole community and the surrounding areas are supportive. They’ve been looking for a place to eat for lunches and breakfasts rather than just stopping by the convenience store and grabbing something quick. We’ve had tremendous support so far.”

Blue Ribbon Cafe will host its grand opening and ribbon cutting Saturday where gift certificates will also be given away.

Contact Alex Olp at aolp@jaspercountytribune.com