FEBRUARY 19, 1992
Big chunks of carrot, wide slices of celery and lean, tender meat make up the vegetable beef soup at Gramma Butterwicks Family Restaurant on South Washington Street.
On a scale with 10 at the top, I would say the cup of soup at Butterwicks last Wednesday could rate at least an eight. It was a tad salty, but not nearly as salty as some restaurant soups. The soup came with the club sandwich I ordered, for a total of $4.15. And the triple decker with bacon, lettuce and tomato and my choice of ham or turkey—ham, please—was the best sandwich I have eaten for a while.
But then, I expected it to be as good as the club sandwiches served at the Dacotah Restaurant downtown. After all, Terry and Ruth Jensen operate both places. They also have Gordy’s Diner on Gateway Drive.
Constant Companion met me at Butterwicks for lunch and ordered his favorite sandwich—the Philly Steak, for $3.40. This is sliced roast beef on a hoagie bun with mushrooms, onions, Swiss and cream cheese. CC took a couple of bites of his Philly and nodded his approval. “Good,” he said.
The nice thing about the menu at Butterwicks is that you can get the sandwich alone at one price.
Or you can make your choice of soup, salad or fries for 85 cents more. Too many restaurants make you buy something with your sandwich whether you want it or not.
With our sandwiches, we drank coffee. It’s 65 cents a cup. It’s strong. You don’t have to worry about it keeping you awake.
Lunching at Gramma Butterwicks is an entirely satisfactory experience. The service is good. The food is basic and wholesome. The management makes no pretext of being fancy. They serve the kind of food that brings you back. Breakfast is served beginning at 5:30 A.M. and you can have breakfast items all day. There are daily luncheon specials, including casseroles. And there are supper specials.
The restaurant has been through a series of managements since it opened here originally as Sambo’s in the 1970s. Terry and Ruth Jensen bought Gramma Butterwicks four months ago, and have been putting a lot of energy into running it. All they need, he says, is more hours in a day. “We’re happy with the business. It’s more than we expected, but we would hope for more.”
Terry Jenson started out in the food business at the old Ritz Cafe on Main Street in Fargo. He was chef at the F-M in Moorhead, when it first opened. Then he came to Grand Forks to work for the Westward Ho Motel. Here, he met his wife when she was working at the former A&W Drive In. She has worked as his partner in operating their three restaurants in Grand Forks.
Ruth and Terry Jensen continue to operate Gramma Butterwicks.