The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
by David Grimes for The Quill
There's good food at good prices in Dallas City and Grandma's Cafe is where you'll find it.
Owner Nellie Hellemeyer.
The retired respiratory therapist knows that a well-prepared meal can be like a breath of fresh air for restaurant patrons and she keeps a close eye on what goes out of the kitchen at Grandma's Cafe.
She makes sure orders are prepared from the freshest food available and served hot and in good time.
Appearance is important to Nellie, too.
"I tell my staff not to serve an order if it doesn't look good enough that they would eat it themselves," she said.
Omelets are a breakfast selection favorite among Grandma's Cafe regulars, and served up fresh to order by cook Marty Gockel.
Favorite omelets are the Veggie, the Fiesta and the four-egg Meat Lovers.
And what's breakfast without freshly prepared and acceptably browned hashed browns?
"We go through at least 50 lbs. of potatoes just for hashed brown orders each week," Nellie said.
And if you enjoy breakfast a little later than ten o'clock in the morning, that's okay.
The staff at Grandma's Cafe is willing to cook your breakfast order anytime.
Diners usually can enjoy breakfast and a drink for about $5 or less.
All cooking at the cafe is done from scratch, with Marty's homemade pies always selling quickly. From the butterscotch, chocolate, coconut and banana cream pies to an assortment of fruit pies, it's difficult to pick a favorite.
At $2.25 a slice, whatever kind you choose is a mountain of culinary delight.
A lunch or dinner favorite among Grandma's Cafe patrons is the Tenderloin Pile-up, consisting of a large tenderloin combined with a salad and topped off with a half order of curly fries.
At $5.95, Nellie says its a good deal and a good deal to eat.
"If you can eat all of it, you''re doing really well," she said.
And speaking of tenderloins, Nellie and Marty make their own hand-breaded loins, complete with their own secret seasoning, each day.
Remember that special tenderloin taste you experienced at drive-in restaurants in the 1950s and 1960s?
You'll now find them at Grandma's Cafe.
The small tenderloin is a challenge to finish. The large version will last you two or three days.
Specials are offered every day of the week at Grandma's Cafe, including Sundays, for between $5 and $6.
"The daily specials go really well and we get a lot of carry-out orders," Nellie said.
Regular patrons include a local motorcycle club, the local Lions club and a couple from Monmouth, that makes a regular weekly pilgrimage to Grandma's Cafe for tenderloins.
Local customers provide about half of the business at Grandma's Cafe, but out-of-towners, out-of-staters and even visitors from other countries have sampled the home cooking at Grandma's since Nellie took over the ownership in August 2004.
"Right after we opened, a couple from Germany came in to eat," Nellie recalled. "They kept commenting on how impressed they were with how clean the cafe is."
Other regular patrons travel to Grandma's from Burlington, Quincy, Mount Pleasant, IA., and Missouri.
Cafe staff includes Nellie's son and daughter, Tim Grant and Stacy Lebeck, Lori Rea, Carmen Leonard and Cody Lebeck.
Cafe hours are Monday, 5 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. and from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday.
The cafe has seating for about 40 diners.
"We have a lot on our menu for a little restaurant in a little town," Nellie said.
To place an order to go or check on a particular day's special, call (217) 852-3562.
Grandma's Cafe is located in Dallas City along Ill. Highway 9 East and near the intersection of Ill. 9 and 96.