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First impressions aren’t everything, but opening his new Neosho eatery has owner Don Eiken remembering his first visit to Neal’s Restaurant.
Eiken, former food service salesman, said the first time he came calling at Neal’s, it was a Saturday morning. He took away a hometown impression from the visit.
“I remember thinking, ‘This is the kind of place you stop on the way to your fishing trip,’” Eiken said.
Now he hopes the newly opened Big Spring Café, located in the former Neal’s building, will be a café with a family feel. Children, Eiken said, are welcome. The 10 and under menu choices are all under $3 a plate and coloring pages are beginning to fill a back wall.
“The idea I envisioned was a family restaurant,” Eiken said. “Mom and dad can come here and they don’t have to order an adult meal and break the bank.”
The café serves breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday and dinner Friday and Saturday nights. The name, he said, was in honor of Big Spring Park and something he figures will outlast him.
“I love the spring and I like the town of Neosho,” he said.
Eventually the building will have its own mural painted by Leo Bridgeford of Seneca.
“He’s got the spring done and he’s going to do about seven scenes from the history of Neosho,” Eiken said.
A former English teacher and 14-year restaurant manager, Eiken, a former Carthage resident, retired in December from a 25-year career of restaurant sales. A month later, the Neosho location opened.
“We spent a solid month just remodeling and cleaning,” Eiken said.
The walls are lighter with red trim to offer more of a diner feel. Eventually he hopes to have the narrow shelf around the café filled with Coke memorabilia to add to the diner feel. He plans to purchase locally for as many items as possible and can hardly wait for the farmer’s market to get started again. He plans to offer grilled trout, in honor of the nearby fish hatchery, and affordable “home cooked” meals. Salad bar will also be a staple, he said. As a former heart patient himself, Eiken hopes to offer some heart-healthy alternatives, but many of his customers want the fried food. Apple pie is his favorite and initially he thought that would be the favorite dessert, but diners voted otherwise.
First impressions aren’t everything, but opening his new Neosho eatery has owner Don Eiken remembering his first visit to Neal’s Restaurant.
Eiken, former food service salesman, said the first time he came calling at Neal’s, it was a Saturday morning. He took away a hometown impression from the visit.
“I remember thinking, ‘This is the kind of place you stop on the way to your fishing trip,’” Eiken said.
Now he hopes the newly opened Big Spring Café, located in the former Neal’s building, will be a café with a family feel. Children, Eiken said, are welcome. The 10 and under menu choices are all under $3 a plate and coloring pages are beginning to fill a back wall.
“The idea I envisioned was a family restaurant,” Eiken said. “Mom and dad can come here and they don’t have to order an adult meal and break the bank.”
The café serves breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday and dinner Friday and Saturday nights. The name, he said, was in honor of Big Spring Park and something he figures will outlast him.
“I love the spring and I like the town of Neosho,” he said.
Eventually the building will have its own mural painted by Leo Bridgeford of Seneca.
“He’s got the spring done and he’s going to do about seven scenes from the history of Neosho,” Eiken said.
A former English teacher and 14-year restaurant manager, Eiken, a former Carthage resident, retired in December from a 25-year career of restaurant sales. A month later, the Neosho location opened.
“We spent a solid month just remodeling and cleaning,” Eiken said.
The walls are lighter with red trim to offer more of a diner feel. Eventually he hopes to have the narrow shelf around the café filled with Coke memorabilia to add to the diner feel. He plans to purchase locally for as many items as possible and can hardly wait for the farmer’s market to get started again. He plans to offer grilled trout, in honor of the nearby fish hatchery, and affordable “home cooked” meals. Salad bar will also be a staple, he said. As a former heart patient himself, Eiken hopes to offer some heart-healthy alternatives, but many of his customers want the fried food. Apple pie is his favorite and initially he thought that would be the favorite dessert, but diners voted otherwise.
“I thought it’ll be easy to serve Neosho’s best apple pie,” Eiken said. “But nobody cares, they want that coconut cream.”
A meringue-topped coconut cream pie in pecan crust is the signature item at the restaurant with customers already calling ahead to make sure they have a slice of the new favorite.
“People just go nuts over it,” he said. “It’s really, really good.”
Credit for the perfect pie goes to business partner Lee Evans, Eiken said. Evans tweaked a recipe from his sister-in-law and has more than 20 years of experience in the kitchen.
“He’s been cooking for family, churches and friends for years,” Eiken said. “He’s a wonderful partner and a hardworking individual and a good Christian man.”
The café also processes their own country fried steaks, chicken and burgers. They fry chicken on Thursdays and Saturdays and have a different lunch special each day. Saturdays see a good breakfast crowd.
The storms have hurt business. The new café was closed for three days during the blizzard and with only one customer last Wednesday they shuttered early. By Friday, however, people were coming again.
“We had a great day today,” Eiken said Friday. “Our first two weeks were pretty good.”
The Big Spring Café is open 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 4-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. It is closed Sunday. For more information, please call the café at 455-9351.
