September 29, 2023 - Long Drive for a Late Lunch at the "Lil Black River Cafe" in Grandin, Missouri

Friday, with friends Bob and Ronnie, we took a two-hour drive to the "Lil Black River Cafe" in Grandin, Missouri, to order their famous crab cakes.  It was a beautiful day for a drive. We drove over there last year about this time of year for the crab cakes. Unfortunately, the chef was out so we they weren't available to get them, but we still had a delicious lunch. This time Bob called ahead to make sure the crab cake dinner would be available when we got there.  

Grandin is a small town in Carter County, Missouri, which is a sparsely inhabited county of rolling hills and dense forests in the middle of southern Missouri. Grandin was once the home of the largest sawmill operation in Missouri. All that is now gone and the town is down to a population of 236 people as of 2020, probably less now. Here is a picture of the restaurant which sits on the Black River.  There is virtually nothing left of the town of Grandin so the restaurant is supported by people who come from miles around to dine here, as we did. 

The restaurant is only open Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The Chef provides truly gourmet meals at very reasonable prices, as well as home-made cinnamon rolls and fresh-baked bread.  The crab cake meal consisted of garden salad, two large crab cakes, potato of your choice, mixed vegetables or corn, and bread. The crab cakes were outstanding and everything on the plate was delicious. We couldn't eat it all and brought some home for another delicious meal. We also purchased several cinnamon rolls and a loaf of rye bread to enjoy at home as well.

The Chef and owner of the restaurant is from Florida. He got tired of the rat race down there. Through a real estate agency he found this old building for sale in Grandin around 2014. When he purchased it there wasn't even any plumbing in the building. You can get on their website and see the pictures of the renovation. The building was totally rebuilt and added on to for the restaurant. In addition to a regular breakfast, lunch, and dinner menu the restaurant is available for private parties.

Across the street from the restaurant is a little church with this sign out front. We thought how it was painted was hilarious so I enlarged it.

On the way home we drove by the "Royal Oak" charcoal factory. I was only able to take one picture because my camera locked up for some reason. Here is a picture of the domed concrete furnaces that burn the wood in the background and the wood slabs piled up in front for burning. I would love to tour this place sometime and learn the entire charcoal making process.

It is amazing what all is out there when you drive around the country. I will leave you with this.