Old School Cafe

Old School Cafe

Student-run restaurant wins a gold star from the community

BY JEN CALHOUN

A few years back, Metcalfe County Schools Superintendent Benny Lile met with a co-worker to brainstorm for solutions to a couple of problems. For one thing, he needed to find a way to keep the old Metcalfe High School cafeteria and gymnasium building from being demolished.

Too many people had fond memories of the space to let it go easily. But in order to keep it standing, those sections of the building would need to serve a purpose.

Soon enough, plans started falling into place. The gymnasium, for example, could be worked into plans for the new Metcalfe County Elementary School, which is located near the site.

But the old cafeteria portion of the building? That needed to be something special. It’s something good for the community, and something everyone can support.

“So, I sat down with Chris Huffman, director of pupil personnel, and I kept asking the question, ‘What is something we can’t get in Metcalfe County?’” Lile says. “Finally, one of us said, ‘A fresh doughnut.’”

SWEET BUSINESS IDEA

From there, Lile and Huffman fleshed out the idea for a doughnut shop that could be run almost entirely by students. The Donut Shop, as it was known, opened

in February 2017. Ultimately, the shop morphed into the Old School Cafe, a popular restaurant that serves breakfast Mondays through Saturdays and lunch Mondays through Fridays. On weekends, the school system also rents out the space for special events.

In addition to doughnuts, there are breakfast items like eggs, sausage, bacon and French toast sandwiches, croissants, muffins, and cinnamon rolls. The lunch menu offers grilled cheese sandwiches, wraps, soups, chilies and a salad bar. Prices are inexpensive, running from about $2 for a half-sandwich to $5 for the unlimited salad bar. Breakfast plates start at $3.

LEARN AS YOU EARN

“We have one adult who manages the program for us, but by and large, the student workers run the cafe,” Lile says. “Each morning, one of the students will show up between 3 and 3:30 to get the process started. Other students get there around 4 a.m., and they start the doughnuts. It’s on a rotational basis, so the same students don’t have to do it every time.”

Students earn minimum wage and work in shifts. Before or after their shifts, they return to classes on campus. The job also offers them a chance to gain skills and build confidence, Lile says. “They gain a work ethic from getting up early in the morning and showing up day after day to put out a quality product,” he says. “It’s something that will stay with them no matter what field they go into.”

Brette Eddy adds topping to a salad for a teacher at lunch.

Students Anna Whitefield, Brette Eddy and Haylee Samuels gather a dozen doughnuts for a customer.

Old School Cafe info

Old School Cafe is open most of the year Monday through Friday for breakfast and lunch. It’s open Saturdays for breakfast only. Because the cafe is student-run, it closes during fall and spring breaks, a portion of Christmas break and the week of the Fourth of July. The cafe is in the old Metcalfe County High School cafeteria at 701 W. Stockton St. in Edmonton. For more information, a menu, hours and carry-out information, visit the Old School Cafe’s Facebook page. To rent the space for special events on weekends, call 270-432-0168.