No frills, no fuss—Just good biscuits and a side of ‘Hon’

When The Paper asked me to consider doing restaurant reviews, I jumped at the chance. I mean, what a fantastic excuse to eat out. It also seems only fitting that the follow up to my last article about a livestock farmer is a review of a cozy little diner called “Heifer’s”.

Last Saturday morning, we drove over to Nebo/Marion/Dysartsville (depending on which map or social media source you reference) to try a hometown breakfast in an otherwise unassuming, stone-facade building.

THE ATMOSPHERE

The interior is simple, white cinder block and small enough to hold only about 30 or so customers. And true to its name, cow-themed art adorns the walls. For sure, the atmosphere is down home. And what it might lack in frills, it makes up for in friendliness.

THE SERVICE

Heifer’s is a place where either everybody knows your name or the cook and waitresses call you “hon”. This is a place where the cook comes out to say, “hello” and asks about your meal. Better yet, you can expect that the service will be fast and delivered with a smile.

OUR ORDER

Because this is simple country cooking, keep in mind that Heifer’s doesn’t pretend to be anything else. So the food works in that context.

To get a feel for what Heifer’s offered, we ordered a variety: a pancake, cinnamon apples, hashbrowns, eggs over medium, and a pork tenderloin biscuit. The egg was perfectly cooked over medium, and the hashbrowns could compete with Waffle House.

THE FOOD

I’m not sure Heifer’s is known for their pancakes, but ours sufficed once we topped it with the cinnamon apples (which were tasty enough, in spite of their almost muddy plaster color).

And look, not every item on a menu is going to be a home run. Still, if you can find one thing that you would tell a friend about, consider it a win. For us, that was the pork tenderloin biscuit.

It presented as a flaky, fluffy, homemade biscuit with a well-seasoned and moist tenderloin. After talking with the cook, I am certain my assumptions about the origins of the biscuit were incorrect, but no bother. It was a solid, tasty, meat-filled biscuit for $4.00. It was really good, regardless of who made it.

I think our favorite part was that our entire meal, including coffee and orange juice, was just $18 and change. You can’t beat that.

THE VERDICT

Sometimes a meal out is about more than the food. Sure, maybe you and I can make better pancakes at home, but some Saturdays don’t you just want to roll out of bed and have someone else do the cooking? Perhaps you can also appreciate a stranger making you feel welcome and calling me “hon”.

For the price, friendly staff, and solid food, you’ll appreciate a breakfast at Heifer’s Diner.