Cafe Indiana: A Guide to Indiana's Down-Home Cafes [Paperback]

Joanne Raetz Stuttgen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 9, 2007

Cafe Indiana is both a guide to Indiana’s hometown mom-and-pop restaurants and a reclamation and celebration of small-town Midwest culture. The hungry diner looking for adventure and authenticity can use Cafe Indiana simply as a guide to the state’s quintessential eats: the best fiddlers, macaroni and cheese, soup beans, and beef Manhattan. But Stuttgen also captures the spirit of the locals, bringing to life the people whose stories give the book—and the food—its soul.
     Over plates of chicken and noodles, fried bologna sandwiches, and sugar cream pie, folks are crafting community at the Main Street eatery. In Cafe Indiana, Hoosiers and out-of-staters alike are invited to pull out a chair and sit a spell.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Exploring Indiana's back roads and small towns, Joanne Stuttgen has found a feast of food as well as food lore. We love this book’s roster of dozens of cafes we want to visit, but even better is its appreciation for the people who work in them and eat in them. So much more than a guide book, here is a loving ode to American food’s humble folk artists who keep traditions alive and are the soul of small town life.”—Jane and Michael Stern, Roadfood.com

“I need two copies of Cafe Indiana! One for home, when I am planning my trips, and one tucked in my glove box as I crisscross the state. This book provides friendly recommendations and cultural insights for when you need a tenderloin sandwich, a piece of homemade pie, or just an alternative to the annoying sameness of fast-food restaurants. While readers might be looking just for a place to eat, they will find Indiana.”—Jon Kay, Traditional Arts Indiana

“Joanne Stuttgen’s Cafe Indiana left me, The Hungry Hoosier, hungrier than ever! I’m ready for a progressive meal across the heartland with stops for biscuits ’n gravy, a beef Manhattan, and coconut cream pie. As I travel Indiana in search of food, family, and community, Cafe Indiana will be my road map.”—Scott Hutcheson, founder of HungryHoosier.com

About the Author

Joanne Raetz Stuttgen is a folklorist who has lived in Martinsville, Indiana, since 1990. She is the author of Cafe Wisconsin and Cafe Wisconsin Cookbook (with Terese Allen), both published by the University of Wisconsin Press.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press; 1 edition (July 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0299224945
• ISBN-13: 978-0299224943
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,067,731 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #40 in Books > Travel > United States > States > Wisconsin

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for anyone traveling through the state and looking for something good to eat, September 1, 2007

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cafe Indiana: A Guide to Indiana's Down-Home Cafes (Paperback)

Joanne Raetz Stuttgen is a folklorist and the author of "Cafe Wisconsin" and co-author of "Cafe Wisconsin Cookbook". "Cafe Indiana: A Guide To Indiana's Down-Home Cafes" is her latest compilation and a superbly presented guide to Indian's hometown mom-and-pop restaurants in celebration of small-town Midwest culture. A perfect travel guide for anyone seeking authentic local cuisine, "Cafe Indiana" is organized into sections showcasing home-town cafes in the North; West; East; Central; South Central; and South regions of Indiana. Each entry includes directions, address, phone numbers, hours, and a descriptive and personable anecdote. Combining recommendations with cultural insights, "Cafe Indiana" is a must for anyone traveling through the state and looking for something good to eat and an intrinsically interesting place in which to have their breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

5.0 out of 5 stars Valuable Travel Book, May 31, 2009

By 

L "L" (Indy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cafe Indiana: A Guide to Indiana's Down-Home Cafes (Paperback)

Cafe Indiana is good resource for independent (therefore unique) family dining. Typically in small off the beaten-path locations. Provides great destinations for those Sunday afternoon rides.

3.0 out of 5 stars Cafe Indiana, May 9, 2008

By 

Marjorie H. Overleese (Lynn, Indiana United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cafe Indiana: A Guide to Indiana's Down-Home Cafes (Paperback)

I found this book interesting but I couldn't relate to so many of the hometown eateries as there weren't many in my area.