The return of the Raider
By ANDREA FURLONG
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New owners of the Raider Country Cafe, James and Brenda Martin, stand inside the newly remodeled restaurant Friday, Sept. 4. Since purchasing the Raider from former owner Barb Grauer, the Martins have given it a country look inside and expanded the menu to include more homemade foods, including pies. |
The former Raider Drive-in is back open for business with a new name, new owners and a new menu.
Raider co-owner Brenda Martin, rural North English, has converted the largely fried food and ice cream joint into a sit-down family restaurant. The establishment is not eliminating these menu items — a wide variety of ice cream treats and fried sides remain on the menu — but Martin hopes in offering customers a selection of dinners and combo meals they’ll pull up a seat and stay a while.
“We want to focus on the eat-in dining area,” she said.
It was just a little over a month ago when Martin left her 16-year job as a receptionist at the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics to run the restaurant. When she saw the property for sale this summer, she just couldn’t turn her back on something she always wanted to do.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to own my own restaurant, so it’s the perfect opportunity and I just took advantage of it and didn’t look back,” she said.
So, Martin and her husband, James, took a chance and purchased the property from Barb Grauer, whose family had managed the business for 40 of its 49 years in Williamsburg. In the next four weeks, Martin set out to personalize the business, starting with a new name, the Raider Country Café, and remodeling of the dining room.
Matte, pale blue-gray walls complimented by rooster-themed curtains and wall hangings were used to transform the fast food environment in a homey, country diner.
“It’s a hometown restaurant with home-cooked food,” Martin said.
Martin, who has 20 years of experience working at restaurants, is the main cook, turning out everything from ribeye and grilled chicken to soup and patty melts. Another cook is responsible for baking the daily selection of homemade pies and desserts, which vary widely from cookies and cream ice cream pie to turtle cheesecake.
Other new options available to customers include a children’s menu, soup and salad bar and homemade tenderloins measuring about 10 inches across.
While Martin has expanded the menu, she’s not opposed to keeping old favorites. Due to customer requests, the Raider Country Café will continue to serve Raider-rites, the Raider’s version of the Maid-Rite, a loosemeat sandwich.
A WARM RECEPTION
By Martin’s account, people seem glad to have the Raider back. She recalled when the cafe opened Sept. 1, customers were clamoring to get in.
“Word of mouth had traveled that we were opening, so we had people waiting in the parking lot when we opened,” she said.
Since reopening nine days ago, Martin said business has steadily increased, especially with carry-out orders.
“The other night within two hours I had 30 to-go orders, and with one person to cover the dining room, we got blown away,” she said.
Martin advises customers with to-go orders to call their meals in ahead of time, in order to prevent pile-ups, which affect customers dining in.
“This isn’t all fried food anymore. It takes time to prepare,” she said.
A LONG HISTORY
The Raider first opened in 1960 as a Tastee Freez under John Buell, according to the Williamsburg Historical Commission. Jesse and Dorothy Smith picked up ownership of the business in 1961, selling it in 1962 to Dale, Ruth and Larry Mayberry. The following year Joe, Esther and Gary Evans purchased the business.
The Evans sought to set the restaraunt apart from other Tastee Freez business, and were responsible for naming it the Raider through a naming contest in 1966.
In 1969, the Evans sold the business to George and Rita Stahl, who ran the business with the help of their six daughters. During the Stahls' time, the Raider was a white building with two service windows, one employee restroom and no indoor seating for customers.
After purchasing the business from her parents in 1993, Barb (Stahl) Grauer built a new Raider to include enough room to seat 38 customers inside. She also expanded on the Raider theme through displays of Williamsburg Raider memorabilia, like high school band uniforms, sports jerseys and photographs.
Grauer closed the business permanently prior to the beginning of this summer, after she realized other commitments left no time for her and her family to run it any longer.
CURRENT HOURS
The Raider Country Café is located at 817 S. Highland St., Williamsburg. It is open year-round, Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Its phone number is (319) 668-2369.
UPDATED September 9, 2009 4:31 PM