No mo' Ole Rolls
- Wade
In case you hadn't heard, the Ole Store is closing.
In case you don't know what the heck an Ole Store is, allow me to acquaint you. The Ole Store is a restaurant in Northfield, located conveniently one block west of the Saint Olaf campus. Its specialty is something called an Ole Roll-- picture your standard caramel roll, double its size, triple its density, and there you have it. It was always a little too decadent for me to actually order one, but I happily ate portions of the ones my wife would order. Hee hee.
While "institution" may be too strong of word, the Ole Store definitely has a strong following. Although I'd guess I'm like most alumni-- my relationship with the place truly developed after I graduated. I went there a handful of times as a student, but since they had neither beer nor pizza, I generally found myself eating at other places. But since I moved to this bumbling metropolis, the Ole Store has become the somewhat-halfway meeting point for my parents and my family. We'd meet there on an early Saturday morning for breakfast and coffee, and leisurely spend the rest of the day in Northfield.
I guess we'll have to start meeting at Applebees now.
If you've been following the urban landscape of the south metro lately, the closing of the Ole Store shouldn't be a surprise. Northfield has been slouching towards suburbia for three or four years now. What Minneapolis transplant, who only regards Northfield as a bedroom community, would give a rip about the Ole Store? Not much parking... secluded... limited menu... servers don't wear any flare... It certainly doesn't stack up to Olive Garden, or Chili's, or Panera.
Have you been to Northfield lately? To the south side of town, by the high school, where hundreds of new homes are being erected? Or a little further west than that, where Rainbow, Target, and Sam Goody now stand? The sickness known as urban sprawl has spread further south, and what once was the town of cows, colleges, and contentment is now the town of condos, construction, and chain stores.
In case you didn't know, Sara and I put an offer in on a house in Northfield last spring. I'd been harping about moving to Northfield since before we were married. Tired of the noise and hassle associated with the 'burbs, I longed to go back to a place I remembered as quiet, small, and separated from the busy-ness of the Cities. As we got to thinking about living in Northfield, though... it wasn't the town that I knew. It's become the latest in a series of cities to be swallowed by the metro area, like Lakeville before it. Is Owatonna next?
We withdrew our offer, partially because of financial reasons, and partially because if Northfield is now just another suburb, we might as well live in one closer to my job. And, I can't seem to talk Sara into the joys of living in Faribault. Funny.
I'm sure we'll still meet my parents in Northfield-- it's too central to not meet there. I guess it'll be at Chi Chi's or Timberlodge or Macaroni Grill next time. (And I know those places aren't in Northfield yet, but wait a year.) I think it's ironic that one of the appeals of an Applebees restaurant is how they use local memorabilia (newspaper articles, photos, etc) on the walls to give what is ultimately a chain restaurant a more hometown feel. Here's to hoping they start serving Ole Rolls.
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