Hays House 1857 Restaurant and Tavern on Main Street in Council Grove, Kansas. Seth M. Hays, a grandson of Daniel Boone, was the first white settler in Council Grove in 1847. In 1857 he opened the Hays House Tavern and Restaurant, making it the oldest continuously operating restaurant west of the Mississippi River. Its customers have included Jesse James and George Armstrong Custer. The ownership and management at Hays House has changed a number of times over the years and the building was restored in the 1970s. It last changed ownership in 2002, and the current manager, Daniel H. Doerge, took over in 2004, but the food and service seem unchanged. Hays House serves mostly country food with generous servings. House specialties include skillet fried chicken, crunch chicken salad, bone-in Beulah's Ham, prime rib, and great pies. My last visit to Hays House Restaurant was on a Sunday. The server took my drink order, brought my drink, then abandoned me without every offering a menu. So I assumed that the small buffet was the only thing they offered and settled for it. There were only two meats on the buffet: skillet fried chicken and beef stroganoff. I didn't care for the stroganoff, and the chicken was only average (it may be better when it is fresh instead of sitting on a steam table). I was impressed with the rolls (and I don't even usually eat rolls), and with the mashed potatoes with possibly the best chicken gravy that I have ever had. But I was miffed when the people in the next party seated in the Hay's House Restaurant were offered menus. The Hays House Restaurant is open Monday through Sunday, but closed Sunday evenings.
copyright 2006-2009 by Keith Stokes |
