November 15, 1997

Nothing’s changed at Sutliff and that’s good.

By: Tom Fruehling; Gazette staff writer

Things are so relaxed at the Sutliff Tavern that a group of regulars opens up the place in the morning before the owner even gets there.

"Archie Brannaman and some other local boys open it about seven, " says proprietor Chuck Coon, "so the coffee’s on when I get here at 8. There’s six or eight of ‘ em who get together most every morning."

By noon the place is usually packed, mostly with nearby farmers who cotton to the abundant food at cheap prices. And the down-home hangout gives them a chance to get together and fib to each other about harvest yields and cattle weights.

"The place is a gold mine," says Gary Ciha, who lives just down the road and eats there at least once a week.

If Coon, who bought the bar and short-order cafe seven years ago, and his manager Joan Baxa are rolling in dough from selling big, fat $1.75 hamburgers and $1.40 bottles of beer, they’re sure not putting it back in the business.

It looks much the same as it must have looked back when it opened in the early part of the century, and Coon says customers like it that way.

Located across a gravel road from the famous Parker High Truss Bridge over the Cedar River in a tiny burg next to nowhere, the Sutliff Tavern’s charm comes mostly from its out-of-date atmosphere. It’s as unique as the 1,500-or-so dollar bills which are plastered all over the ceiling.

"Some girls started that years ago," says Coon of the odd decorating touch. "They wanted to leave money to buy a beer when they came back. The thing just escalated."

It’s a clean, dimly lighted place. The menu is limited, but the food is good and guaranteed to be greasy.

"All we’ve got is a grill and deep fat fryer," notes Coon, a retired lineman for IEA Utilities, "so everything’s gotta be from one or the other."

Besides burgers, there’s a plentiful tenderloin, shrimp and chicken baskets, a $6.75 rib eye steak and a $4.75 hamburger steak with potato and salad. Also available is a wide assortment of crispy appetizers.

Coon says the clientele at night and on weekends comes from all over the area thanks strictly to word-of-mouth marketing. The historic little town draws a lot of visitors in the summer, some of them boating in on the nearby river.

On a busy summer day, the wait for food might stretch to an hour. "It’s strictly first come, first served," says Coon.

"Folks seem to like to come here to have a good time," he adds. "The prices are right. It’s a family place too. Nothin’ rowdy goes on."