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    The Dam Store Cafe

    4.1 (33 reviews)
    Closed 6:00 am - 3:00 pm
    Updated 3 months ago

    The Dam Store Cafe Photos

    THE DAM STORE CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Outdoor seating
    Dogs allowed
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - The Dam Store Cafe

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    Eggs Benedict
    Ryan S.

    So I decided to stop in and try breakfast at the now re-located Dam Store. Some of those folks reading this that are old-school and remember the former Wagon Wheel Cafe, will appreciate a visit to the Dam Store. Most of the styling and decor are Wagon Wheel-esk. Not a ton done on the interior, but a very familiar feel. I would describe the menu as homestyle and what you would expect from a cafe. I decided to go with the Eggs Benedict ($8.50) with coffee, and it was mostly your typical bene. If I had a critique I would tell them they don't need to drown the dish in hollandaise sauce. Speaking of the sauce, it was exactly what a typical hollandaise should be. A no frills sauce that delivers on taste. The eggs were spot on, and the ham and English muffin was very average but still tasty. It is exactly what i would make in my home kitchen. The coffee could be a little stronger, but very typical of MN cafe coffee. I also grabbed a couple cinnamon rolls to go and they look great! The service was very friendly and quick. So, if you want homestyle, The Dam Store is the place to go.

    Get the banana cream- you will not regret it. All are good but bc is the best.
    Rod S.

    5 stars for the pie and the business. Gotta put a 2 for the service I had that day. There when they opened and ordered three slices to go. I realize they just moved in and the new volume of support people are giving them is overwhelming, I get it. But it took 30 minutes for me to get my pies. Apparently none of the pies had been sliced yet. I recommend starting employees before you open-it seemed all the workers show when they opened. Will I go again? Of course.

    Front of restaurant

    Super local find off the beaten path near Mankato! Small, family run place with great food. Onion rings had a perfect amount of coating and were nice and crispy. Burger was very tasty. A piece of pie is a must! Amazing variety of pie flavors! CASH only!!!

    Dan burger & onion rings (Follow my food instagram @everyday_bites)

    Fast service & excellent food. Everything was fresh and has the old school diner feel.

    The damn

    Finally made it here. I ordered a cheeseburger, fries and a piece of strawberry cream pie. The pie was definetly as good as I've read about. The burger and fries was ok. I thought the burger was a little small. Good portion of fries. The place only has about 6-8 tables with counter seating. I probably would go back. Everything is ala carte. Cash only.

    the interior of a fast food restaurant
    Crissy R.

    Great hidden treasure I found while looking for a place to grab lunch. Just as an FYI beforehand, make sure to keep cash handy, as they do not take electronic payment. Walking inside, I loved the vibe of the hometown feel this place brought. The menu is posted on the wall along with the numerous selections of pies to choose from. There is plenty of seating to choose from depending on the time of day you choose to come. I opted for a fish sandwich and fries, my fella chose a burger with onion rings. We happen to come on an occasion where it wasn't to crowded and got the opportunity to chit chat with the owners. We got to catch them in the midst of making a rhubarb pie and they let me try some of the rhubarb which I've never had. Overall, great experience, friendly owners, and tasty food. My pie of choice was the coconut cream. Definitely light and fluffy and full of flavor. The experience was great, looking forward to making a return trip.

    Great Breakfast
    DL K.

    Great little hole-in-the-wall place to stop for breakfast this morning. We had eggs, toast, bacon, hash browns and coffee all were great. for dessert after breakfast we had the strawberry cream pie. Loved it so much we bought a whole one to take home.

    The Menu
    Dave G.

    I was working in Mankato and scanning Yelp! for a breakfast spot when I saw the magic word: pie. Yes, this place was a little ways out of town but I'd ride through the desert on a horse with no name for good pie. So off I went. Pulled into the lot about 10:50 am and walked into an empty "store". Time certainly forgot this place as I would guess it hasn't changed in 50 years. Having never been here I wasn't sure if they served food all day so I asked the guy behind the counter if they were cooking food yet. "Yup" was as much as I got. While any idiot could see that the menu was up on the wall, I'm not your average idiot and scanned the tables and the counter for a menu. Not finding one I went with plan B..."where is your restroom?". During a quick trip to the john I spied the menu...see, a perfect plan. Now as I said, I was in search for breakfast and the since the menu only had the following reference to breakfast "Breakfast $4.00 & $5.00" I asked was the breakfast options were. "No breakfast - we stop doing breakfast at 11:00". It was 11:02. ELEVEN Fing OH TWO. No one else in the place. WTF? Ok, no problem...there's pie, right? So a cheeseburger it was. As I ordered, a mom and three boys came in and sat down in the booth next to me which was enough to distract my host enough to forget about my iced tea. No problem....there will be pie. Cheeseburger and fries arrive in about 10 minutes. Now other reviews as well as numerous newspaper clippings on the wall trumpet the praises of the burgers here. While it was good, it was nothing special. Yes, it was on a nice, fresh bakery bun and obvious hand formed and well cooked. Fries were also just ok. I did finally get my iced tea as well. Pie. By 11:30 the place was starting to fill up. A steady stream of customers came in while I ate. Some looked as lost as I was, some were obviously regulars. The owner came in as well and started helping my "happy" server with the new guests. These were apparently father and son - father having much better people skills but not necessarily better customer service skills. Luckily, an actual waitress arrived to assist shortly after and soon I was able to order some pie. There were 8 or 9 pies on the pie board and I had trouble narrowing it down to my selection(s). Luckily I had decided that driving 20 minutes out of my way gave me full authorization to order two pieces. So, a raspberry rhubard to eat here and a chocolate carmel pecan for the road. So was it all worth it? You're f'ing right it was. The raspberry rhubard was a perfect blend of sweet and tart and the crust was incredible. The chocolate carmel pecan initially looked suspect as it appeared that the bottom layer did not completely set but one bite and I forgot how it looked. I actually tore into it so fast that I forgot to take a photo. It was also incredible. It truly was "DAM PIE" as they call it. Would I drive down from Mankato again? Hell, I'll probably drive down from the Twin Cities for that dam pie. This time I'll make sure I order breakfast BEFORE I hit the men's room. PS - bring cash, no CCs accepted here. Oh, and there's a dam.

    The best burger ever.
    Rowena N.

    Came here with our main guide from kayak trip. We originally didn't realize it's a diner as it appears like a tackle/bait shop right by Rapidan Dam. But it turns out to be small family owned joint. People here are so welcoming and nice. Walked in here and totally could sense it is a local favorite Burgers here are ON POINT. Comes with grilled/fried onions. Can add bacon with extra charge (please do yourself a favor AND DO ORDER THE BACON). After 4 hours of kayaking and sitting in the sun, this hit the spot. Onion rings are perfectly seasoned and fried. Batter is crunchy but not to thick and they used the right cut of onion without the extra stringy film. Dam pies. They are literally called Dam pies, and damn they are good. There are multiple types you can choose from - our guide insisted we try the coconut cream and he had the chocolate pecan, and just shared. I loved the coconut cream but that chocolate pecan was out of this world. These pies were featured in magazines and such, and recipes were passed down. Cash only. Quick service. Overall, loved the local feel. Glad our guide persuade us to join him for dinner here. Will be back again.

    Panglewood ..

    PUNS GALORE! Who knew the Mankato area had such beautiful scenery? Surrounded by kid-friendly park and great campsites complete with fire pits and water pump, the Rapidan Dam Store is a facilitator for a great destination. If you need fishing supplies or firewood, they've also got you covered for a very reasonable price. Burgers are hearty and were welcome when our catfish-catching exploits failed for breakfast. The burgers come with plenty of options to cater to your tastebuds. While we were there, there were over a dozen orders over the phone and in-house for slices of pie -- if we didn't have a lengthy drive in an unairconditioned car, we would have brought some home. We took home a souvenir T-shirt and a bunch of great photos of our stay. Owners were highly welcoming and made us feel right at home! P.S. Bring cash or check, as they don't accept cards (and ATMs are scarce in this neck of the woods/cornfields).

    Chicken salad andwich on toast and homemade potato salad--delicious!

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    2 months ago

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    6 months ago

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    5 months ago

    Best pie in the area and amazing service! Cozy vintage midwestern interior! So happy to have another local diner in downtown again

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    7 months ago

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    2 years ago

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    7 months ago

    Great food and service. Eggs Benedict was great. Hot coffee, relaxed atmosphere and great service.

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    8 months ago

    We had three different pies, banana cream, strawberry rhubarb crumble and raspberry cream cheese. They were delicious!

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    2 years ago

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    4 years ago

    I'm not sure if they supplied all of the pie for the River Ramble but every time we ride it, the pie is great!

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    3 years ago

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    7 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    9 years ago

    They ignored two of us for more than five minutes. The food smelled good, though. We never got any service.

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    9 years ago

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    7 years ago

    Great food, friendly service and the pie was delish. So much history in this little slice of heaven!

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    8 years ago

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    8 years ago

    This place is a throwback (maybe two generations). Friendly staff--good food--low prices. I recommend the experience.

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    10 years ago

    Great burgers. Nice park area to sit outside if inside dining is full. Really good pie! Fun place for the whole family.

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    9 years ago

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    Bakers Square - Baker Square in Mankato

    Bakers Square

    3.4(29 reviews)
    2.9 mi
    $

    Food 3 star. We ordered 3 chicken stir fry pitas. Pitas were luke warm but still had good taste…read more French fries weren't hot but crispy. Other one ordered salmon which was pretty good. I should have made a comment on our sales receipt but didn't. All 4 of us appreciated the friendliness of the hostess that seated us and the server who was friendly and attentive. We did compliment them when we left. Customer Sevice was 5 star! My suggestion to the owner is check on the kitchen staff and heat up the food. Thank you

    My wife and I go there every few months for breakfast. Since Covid we rarely find good food or…read moreservice. We rotate between three restaurants in Mankato and they have all gotten worse since Covid. This time at Bakers Square our food arrived in a timely manner. I had the four square breakfast. The scrambled eggs were different than usual and just tasted a little off. They were not very warm. The hash browns were a smaller portion than they used to be and were under done and cool. The sausage links were hot and excellent. The 2 pancakes were good but not great and were on a cold plate so they quickly were too cold. Why do the handles on the syrup pitchers always have syrup on them. Quickly my hands, fork and coffee cup have sticky syrup on them and the meal is ruined. The coffee was hot, a urn with more was on the table and it was excellent. I have been following the society forced tipping mantra of 20% but have decided to stop that nonsense. You can read the reasons why on Reddit, The restaurant is now pay at the table with a tablet held by the waitress. I was forced to check the no tip box while she was staring at me. I could not believe how much it cost.

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    Cheese scrambled eggs

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    This is a piece of Carmel Pecan Silk Supreme and it's so delicious!

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    The Dam Store Cafe - tradamerican - Updated May 2026

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