Local restaurant Mimi’s Market & Royal Cafe recently hosted a visit from America’s Best Restaurants.
America’s Best Restaurants, a national media and marketing company focusing on bringing attention to local, independently-owned restaurants, brought its ABR Roadshow to the restaurant on Nov. 15. Popular dishes were highlighted, along with an extensive on-camera interview with owner Leigh Morgan about the restaurant’s special place in the community. The episode will be aired extensively on social media channels at a later date.
Mimi’s Market & Royal Cafe offers an upscale and unique menu, warm and homey atmosphere and a gift shop in downtown Poplar Bluff. Although the gift shop has been open since last September, the cafe side just opened earlier this year.
Morgan’s previous career was as a police detective, and as she felt burnt out in that industry she set her sights on a career based on two of her favorite things — eating and shopping.
Ironically, as a detective Morgan had investigated a burglary in the very space her restaurant is now in. Although she obtained the space in 2015, she admits it has been a long journey to get to where she is now. Her brother Lucas passed away in 2018, which Morgan says “kind of got us off track,” and with some financial issues and then the pandemic to contend with, the opening of Mimi’s Market & Royal Cafe kept getting pushed back. However, Morgan sees that it was all part of a bigger picture.
“I think that God had a plan for us to open when the time was right,” she said.
Morgan focuses on employing people who are on probation or parole. She recognizes the difficulty people with a checkered past can have in gaining employment. She tries to make the environment fun, comfortable, and homey, with brick walls and cabinetry in the kitchen. She also emphasizes customer service. There is even a neon sign above the doorway from the kitchen to the dining area that reads, “If you’re not proud of it, don’t serve it”.
The cafe serves breakfast on Saturdays and lunch daily, and is closed on Sundays. While Morgan had trouble narrowing down the choices she wanted to feature on the episode, popular items include the famous crispy Brussels sprouts, the Crazy Cuban sandwich, and maybe Bobo’s Hot Lettuce Salad, which features grilled kielbasa and vegetables over lettuce.
“I love everything so much,” Morgan said of her food, adding that her goal was to offer something different than typical bar food. “I wanted something you can’t get anywhere in town.”
Mimi’s finished episode premiere date will be announced on their Facebook page and will be featured on America’s Best Restaurants’ website at https://americasbestrestaurants.com/rests/missouri/mimi%E2%80%99s-market-and-royal-cafe.