DECATUR — The only problem with the made-from-scratch pies and cakes at Gallery Cafe is having enough room left in your stomach come dessert time.
The food fest starts early, with breakfast options ranging from omelets and pork chops to plate-sized pancakes. Order the biscuits and gravy, and make it a large. We dare you.
“We have to use a bigger plate, and most people can’t finish,” says owner Carol Thompson. “A few times, some little old lady asks for the large, and I won’t let them order it, because I know they don’t need that much.”
Even the three-pancake stack will put a much bigger dent in a healthy early-morning appetite than in the wallet.
Come lunch and dinner times, the menu’s pretty much a free-for-all, or maybe a slightly condensed version of a cookbook. Ravioli, quesadillas, shrimp, subs, loaded potatoes, salads, burgers, barbecue, et cetera, et cetera.
Still got room for dessert? If so, you’ve still got a decision to make.
Peach or blackberry cobbler?
Maybe German chocolate or pineapple upside-down cake?
Or the fried cheesecake? One of the 16 kinds of pie?
Oh, and if your craving just happens to be for a different kind of pie, there’s the adjoining Gallery Pizza, also owned by Thompson.
Gallery Cafe has been a Decatur staple for more than two decades. Thompson worked there for nine years before buying the joint in January, and she still waitresses the morning shifts. Allthe waitresses wear shirts proclaiming them “Gallery Gals,” while the kitchen crew gets a similar “Gallery Guys” motif.
“There’s not much I’d want to change about this place,” Thompson says.
One addition on the horizon, though, includes a salad-bar lunch buffet. Exactly when that will debut is still unknown.
“It’s a simple thing that people seem to enjoy, and it’s easy because we already have so many of the ingredients already,” she says.
Takeout is an option, and might be the way to go Saturday mornings or midday Sundays, when the 150-seat restaurant is typically packed full with long waits, Thompson says.
So bring the family, bring the appetite. But leave the ego at home, and take a glance around when ordering before assuming you want the large.
Whats Up, Pages 21 on 03/23/2012