Chickadee Cottage Cafe — Restaurant in Lake City

We were delighted to stumble upon this fine family-owned café in Lake City, MN. Trent Tingblad and Laure'n Kann, owners and long-time Lake City residents certainly know how to provide a stellar dining experience and run a business that genuinely serves the local community and individuals who are traveling through. We traveled six days over seven states between destinations – the welcome was so warm and genuine here, it totally struck us as outstanding.

Everything on the menu looked inviting to try. And in the end, everything that we tried exceeded our expectations and tasted fabulous! Rarely can one say that. I had the Shrimp Scampi Shrimp sauteed in butter and garlic, served with a baked potato and coleslaw. An unusual and exceptional combination. I’m not sure of the sauce’s secret but it is very tasty! The bean chili with onion on top also pleased us with exceptional flavors and seasoning. Every bit was savored.

Nancy Ann Storybook Dolls, tea cozies (hard to find and highly sought after living in London), books, cards, teacup and saucer sets, and so much more, are available as gifts for the discerning giver.

I plan to go back and try the Ginger Lime Tuna and Bloody Mary Grilled Cheese when time permits for traveling again. Also, few places offer Devonshire cream, homemade jam and fruit with your scone. I’m a true scone fanatic (ate them daily on Noting Hill Gate Street), and was not surprised to find the whole plate GONE in the showcase by the checkout counter! I should have ordered one with lunch.

From the front when driving by, it’s hard to appreciate the multiple dining spaces they offer and how exceptional the food and service are. Patio table are provided on the lawn as well as in the back garden. It has lovely front porch dining, too.

This is the place to go for an English Tea.

Handicap access. Large, clean, stylish restrooms. Street-side parking just across...

One would be hard pressed traveling down Hwy 61 through the rolling hills not to be awed inspired by the postcard picturesque of Lake City. The mighty Mississippi flowing and expanding into the beautiful Lake Pepin with its miles of walking trails, 635 slip Marina and birthplace of waterskiing in 1922. Not to be outdone, the city itself is a treasure trove of shops, stores, restaurants and seasonal rentals and motels. All tastefully done and intermingled with the homes of year-round residents. If Norman Rockwell had painted this town the vibrant color of the Chickadee Cottage Café on Lakeshore Drive would have been his focal point. And once inside he would have been delighted to see this decade old home turned eatery/gift shop offering home-cooked meals with simple ingredients. First opening it’s doors in 1991 as the Chickadee Cottage Tearoom and Restaurant and fulfilling the dreams of Donna Hawkins’. Her passion of cooking and traveling would set the tone of the owners that would follow. The latest of longtime employees to take the helm was Laure’n Kann, who worked for over 14 seasons, and her culinary partner Trent Tingblad who purchased the cafe in 2016. The interior is tastefully restored and decorated offering a gift shop and a number of rooms for dining. Menu offers a variety of breakfast classics, flapjacks, french toast, omelets and porridge. Lunch a choice of sandwiches, wraps, salads, bowls and daily specials. Baked goods are also available to enjoy or take with you. My Mac Bowl was a delicious entree of Cavatappi in a Cheddar Cheese sauce, topped with pulled pork and Roasted tomatoes. Cheese sauce was not overbearing and simply blended with the hearty slow cooked, saucy layer of pulled pork. Temperature was spot on, presentation appealing and taste rewarding. Service friendly and...

We’ve ridden past the Chickadee Cottage dozens of times en route to other destinations. Today, curiosity and good reviews piqued our interest and we made it our lunch destination. We should have, once again, ridden past.

We walked in and the ambiance is confusing – it wasn’t altogether clear this was a restaurant but is it a souvenir shop? A retro room in a museum? Despite many available tables in more scenic places we were seated in a dark corner uncomfortably close to another couple. The woman who seated us said the other tables were for bigger groups.

We all started with soup which turned out to be the highlight of our meal. The beer cheese and tomato bisque were pretty good but unlikely to have been homemade.

I had the signature muffin meatloaf and was disappointed. It’s small. Meatloaf mix pressed into the bottom third of a standard muffin tin then covered with a dollop of cheesy hash browns and brown gravy. It was sided with a few leafs of lettuce, one grape tomato, and 2 baby carrots which comprised the side salad. The highlight on the plate was a house-made biscuit.

The signature OctoberFest schnitzel was right off the Sysco truck and utterly indecipherable as schnitzel as we’ve come to know it at the Winzer Stube in Hudson, WI. The highlight on that plate was a salty pretzel bread stick.

A cheese burger and fries were just OK but the bun was exceptional.

Our server, Lauren, did a great job! She answered our questions, anticipated our needs, and took...