This morning our friends Wayne and Leah invited us to join them for a breakfast dining experience in the northwoods of Wisconsin. Wayne’s texting function on his phone was not working quite right, so Skip and Wayne ended up connecting as Wayne and Leah were nearly through Mountain. There is nothing like the hurry up wake up call on Sunday, but Skip jumped in the shower; I jumped out of bed and dressed; fed the ponies and dogs quick and we were off. Our destination this Sunday morning was The Timberline in Lakewood Wisconsin.

Jill ( owner of Timberline) did not disappoint. This morning’s special was Door County Cherry Crepe’s with small ham. Mouth watering delicious start to the day does not do them justice. They were awesome, along with some hot coffee with a little french vanilla creamer in it we were all set. There were many other regulars in Timberline enjoying breakfast as well.

After breakfast Jill was kind enough to share some tidbits about the Timberline. She has owned the Timberline since 1982, but it has been owned by other members of the family since the 1930’s. In the beginning, it was named ” The Pantry”. Betty Betts who owned it back then, had a clean-up bucket, which is still used in the restaurant today; and called the “Betty Bucket”. Jill’s dad who served in the navy and was stationed in Honolulu, Hawaii years ago was taught by a Phillipino cook how to make “SOS”  which remains one of the Sunday Specials to this day.

Jill proudly shared with us that working in the restaurant has put 3 kids through college; a brother-in-law through graduate school; they have had 9 love connections through the years with employees and patrons. She is also proud of the fact that they have participated in every Mardi Gras parade in Lakewood since 1982.

One of the most touching stories Jill told, was that when her mom and dad opened the restaurant in 1982, that was the year that the state chose to rework HWY 32, which runs right past the restaurant. She said her dad would take free coffee to the road workers every morning; and the workers would come in everyday and eat breakfast or lunch. It kept them going in the beginning. The head of that crew went on to become Mayor of Oconto Falls. He still comes into the restaurant, (they still call him mayor even though he no longer holds the job) from time to time, her dad never charged him for his meals when he stopped by after that because it was the road crew that kept him going that first year.

She was highlighted in the Wisconsin Journal in the 1990’s for her chili, cheese omlet and American Fry Breakfast . She has also been a guest on cooking with Amy with her fried Oatmeal. For a breakfast dining experience in the northwoods of Wisconsin I would recommend looking for The Timberline on HWY 32 in Lakewood, Wisconsin. It is open Thursday through Sunday during the winter. Hours are 7:00 AM – 1:00 PM, if the lights are on you are welcome to stop in for coffee earier than that. Thanks Jill for a great Sunday morning.