Country Corner Cafe burned Sept. 1, 2021.
“It was pretty traumatic—it was our livelihood,” said owner Michelle Nelson, who operated the business since its purchase seven years prior.
“I’d just lost my step-father two days earlier,” she said. “It seemed like just one thing after another.”
“I was worried about my employees. I wanted to make sure they were all okay,” said Nelson.
Nelson said that she often tells her employees that, without them, she couldn’t work at the restaurant in the same way that they wouldn’t be able to work without her.
“I didn’t just lose my business, I lost contact with a lot of people [who] I consider family,” she said.
“I missed my regulars—over [seven] years you build up a customer base,” she said. Nelson described the feeling of loneliness of missing her customers as losing her whole family. “I love my regulars; I love my customers,” she said, her voice echoing genuine care. “These are the people I saw every day,” Nelson said.
“Without seeing them, I just felt like something was missing,” said Nelson.
Nelson said that she is blown away by the way the Salem community reciprocated that feeling since Country Corner Cafe burned. “I can’t even go to Walmart without someone stopping me and asking me if we're going to reopen. I used to be able to go in and out in 30 minutes with a full basket of groceries, but now I have to make sure that I have time to stop and talk,” she said.
“I guess it’s made me feel pretty good that people miss us,” she said. “It kind of gave me a big head to know how many people missed my cooking!”
Nelson recently purchased Main Street Cafe from Lori Plank and Shala Sheppard. She said that prior to the Sept. 1 fire, she already approached the owners about purchasing their business.
“After the fire, I called [Plank] and she priced it and we just sort of went from there,” said Nelson.
“Now we’ll be Main Street’s Country Corner Cafe,” said Nelson when asked which title the business would retain.
Nelson purchased Main Street Cafe Jan. 26 and took over operation Jan. 28, after which they spent long hours preparing the business for how Nelson wanted to operate things and reopened Feb. 1. “We wanted to incorporate it all together. We didn’t want to get rid of either name or reputation.” They even have staff from both businesses.
“We will remain nonsmoking,” said Nelson, something they adjusted at Country Corner Cafe two years ago when they remodeled. Main Street was also already nonsmoking when Nelson purchased it.
They’ve been off to a bit of a rocky start, according to Nelson. They opened and that same day the computers crashed. They had to do cash only and ring up tax by hand.
“People have remarked that we all look tired,” said Nelson. “That’s because we are tired.”
“We also have a bit of a challenge with wait times,” she said. Nelson said that she has employees from Country Corner Cafe who aren’t familiar with Main Street’s kitchen layout and equipment. On top of that, employees from Main Street Cafe aren’t familiar with the menu that Nelson brought with her.
“Currently we’re running a temporary menu and we will be adding more options now that we have more space,” said Nelson.
The party room is also still available for reservations, said Nelson. “I actually had my first party Tuesday (Jan. 28), and they were all extremely pleased,” she said.
Starting Feb. 7 Main Street’s Country Corner Cafe hours are 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. seven days a week.
“Hopefully, once we get more staff we’ll stay open ‘til eight, but right now we just don’t have enough people,” she said.
Nelson also said that they have plans to offer weekend breakfast and lunch buffets.
Nelson asks that the community be patient with them during this time of transition.
“We are all learning and we’re all trying to do the best we can,” she said.
Nelson said that it's extremely important to her that her business retain that “down-home charm” that she believes is essential for a good business.
“I’ve always been down to earth,” said Nelson. “I come out into the dining room and personally build relationships with my customers.”
“It’s really getting to know people that makes it all worth it,” she said. Things like keeping track of when folks have a new baby in their families or knowing when people have lost a loved one is important to Nelson. “Which is something that she encourages her employees to do as well.
“We want that down-home feeling,” she said. “I think that’s something that’s being lost in time. Owners need to come out and address their customers,” said Nelson. After all, customers are what make it all possible. “And you never know, you might make their whole day—you might make their whole month,” she said.
“When people walk through our door, I want everybody to feel welcome,” she said.
