COMMUNITY & CULTURE
IN AND AROUND HIGHLAND
Blue Springs Café
This time of year is the busiest for Blue Springs Café, when the piemakers
can crank out up to 50 to 60 of its famous “foot-high” pies a day (all from-
scratch and by hand) - and what a variety, with coconut cream, lemon
meringue, chocolate chip pecan, banana cream and apple, just to name
a few. But that’s not all. Blue Springs’ lunch and dinner menu offerings
are just what the doctor ordered if you’re homesick for home-cooking
like Fried Chicken, Meat Loaf or Lasagna - plus, dinner is family-style,
so the more, the merrier! The staff, led by co-owners Cami Rakers and
Brian Lammers, is super friendly and want to make sure everybody leaves
happy. Cash or check only; 3505 George Street, (618) 654-5788
Red Barn Farm Meats
When you pull up to the red barn at the end of Thole-Plocher Road,
chances are, you’ll be welcomed by one of John and Kiersten Schoen’s
children or their adorable pug, Chata. The Schoens put the “family”
in family-friendly, and live on the farm with their pigs, cows, chickens,
goats and donkeys; and conduct business in an Amish shed that’s stocked
with bacon, bratwurst, chicken, chops, steaks, burger patties and all that
you need for a good time on the grill. And when we say the entire family
is involved, we mean it: John grinds the feed, keeps the records and does
maintenance; Kiersten runs the store and oversees daily feeding; and
the younger Schoens help with watering, gathering eggs, taking care of
the animals, and are also de facto brand ambassadors. We can vouch for
the breakfast sausage links (the best we’ve ever eaten), the bacon and
pork burgers … and we’re still making our way through the rest of the
farm-fresh offerings. redbarnfarmmeats.com
Street Art Fest artwork
Nudge Coffee Roasters
Nudge’s enviable location on the town square is only a small portion of
its charm. Even bigger - and we mean it quite literally - is one-half of the
ownership team: Joe Ephrem, a former football player, who, along with his
fiancée, Maureen, are committed to serving organic, fair trade and micro-
roasted coffee. Other than his obvious devotion to all things coffee, Ephrem
is a gregarious sort, as evidenced by the “chalkboard Facebook” lining the
wall and the display of local art (available for purchase) throughout the shop.
Another plus is Nudge’s in-store playlist, a mixture of grunge rock, with some
Johnny Cash thrown in for good measure. nudgecoffeeroasters.com
Sammie’s Soft Serve
Sammie’s is just one of those go-to places for a midday pick-me-up, an after-
dinner indulgence, or a treat on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The ice cream is
rich and velvety, and the plethora of choices - from sundaes to shakes and
concretes - is enough to give you brain freeze. You can’t go wrong with an
honest-to-goodness soft-serve cone, or you can get fancy with Sammie’s
award-winning Old Fashioned Banana Split. And if you happen to stop by
when James is doling out trivia questions, you might get your cone for free!
304 Poplar Street,(618) 882-4918
Trish Muyco-Tobin with Red Barn Farm Meats'
Luke Schoen at his family's farm.
SAVVY I SOPHISTICATED I SASSY
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