Rural Foodies
Home | View all Foodies
Town Talk Restaurant is a Cambridge tradition...and it’s easy to see why
by Betty Sayers
The road to Cambridge is like taking a scenic tour of the set of a John Wayne movie: tall, azure skies arc over the land; sandstone cliffs cascade into deep canyons; cottonwood trees alive at the time of the great buffalo herds shade the ancient Republican River as it curls through its fertile valley.
We aren’t in any hurry. My friend and I have dinner reservations at the Town Talk Restaurant in Cambridge, and our scenic drive takes us over central Nebraska farmland and into western Nebraska ranchland. We pause for a refreshment at the charming Take Five in Arapahoe, a former ice-cream stand remodeled and repurposed into an appealing café and coffee shop. We sip a steaming, rich Espresso before stopping to admire sculptor Sondra Jonson’s, “Rachel Crying for her Children” at St. Germanus Catholic Church a few blocks away.
When we arrive in Cambridge, the Town Talk is easy to spot on Cambridge’s main business street. It’s a Cambridge tradition, and although the “new” owner, Richard Barnes more than doubled its size, hungry customers first fill the booths in the old section. The restaurant can seat 170 people with a banquet room for an additional 65 guests. It is Thursday night and the tables are filled as is every seat at the bar.
Where the locals go.
Our waiter guides us to a booth in the first section of the restaurant, and we nestle in to listen to the conversations around us and enjoy the smell of good food in the air. In a way, the atmosphere is reminiscent of the camaraderie of an English pub. Diners greet one another and the servers know the customers by name.
Old brick and bead-board wainscoting present a rustic look in the original section; in the new section, wood floors, chairs and booths with pine trim and green Formica table tops evoke a decor that appeals to the recreational boaters, fishermen and hunters often in Cambridge.
The evening specials change, but tonight its Kansas City strip steak for $14.95, cheese tortellini with chicken and apple sausage for $10.95, chicken fettuccini alfredo, $10.96 or the Town Talk Pizza, a 16-incher, for $12.95. The waiter offers us a printed menu as well and we ponder the choices as we sip a glass of the house wine. My friend, more of a gourmand than I, scans the menu and uncovers an intriguing appetizer: artichokes Italiano, a lightly breaded, sautéed, heart of artichoke served with a lemon butter sauce and Parmesan cheese.
A well-deserved reputation.
Soon after we order our main course, our artichoke hearts arrive on a sizzling hot plate, tasting fresh with just a hint of garlic and lemon. The day slips away as we sip, talk, taste and appreciate the chef’s original recipe until the waiter invites us to the salad bar. Well-stocked with the basics, the fresh lettuces, vegetables and condiments are well-chilled, and the dressings and variety of side salads are fresh and appetizing.
Quite soon, the main courses arrive. The Town Talk has earned a well-deserved reputation for its walleye fillet, and as I bite through a tender morsel of the delicious fish I am reminded of the hours and hours I spent in a fishing boat on Rainey Lake on damp, chilly mornings in Manitoba to catch a walleye. The Town Talk serving of walleye meets my high standards for a well prepared and very fresh product. My friend ordered the strip sirloin special, and she was well pleased with a tender, marbled and seasoned steak.
We lingered over our dinner, and the crowd thinned. When the pace had slowed enough, chef and business owner, Richard Barnes joined us to inquire about the service and the food.
Back from the big city.
“I don’t consider myself a chef because my formal training involved baking,” Barnes said. “I graduated from the American Institute of Baking, and I also have a business degree and worked for the Tony & Luigi Restaurant Corporation in Lincoln and Los Angeles.
Owning, managing and serving as a chef in my own restaurant, though, is a challenging new experience for me.”
Barnes purchased the Town Talk seven years ago. He grew up in Cambridge, left for college and career, saying, “I was determined never to return.” When his parents died, he sold all of the Cambridge property, yet when the Town Talk business opportunity presented itself, he came back from Los Angeles.
“I wanted a new challenge, and I wanted to own my own business,” he said. “I get a lot of support here, and I enjoy the spirit of the community.”
We asked him to describe his concept. He said, “I want the Town Talk to be everything for everybody in the region. We serve breakfast, lunch and dinner six days a week. Our banquet room sits 65 people, and we cater meals and hors d’oeuvres. We make our own pizza dough and buy all fresh meats and fish. We serve quality steaks and 10 different fresh fish entrees and we make all of the menu items here in the restaurant. I try to offer a variety of meals because some people are here every day.”
A broad appeal
The restaurant draws customers from a 50 mile radius around Cambridge. “Some of our customers drive from northern Kansas, Curtis, Lexington, Elwood, Holdrege and McCook because they like our specials,” said Barnes. Guests flock to the restaurant on hamburger basket night because they like the entree, the price is right, and Barnes bakes cream pies for the dessert. The restaurant clientele has grown as Barnes has expanded the service and the space. In the future the Town Talk may offer live music and keep the lounge open later on weekends, he said.
Barnes is candid about himself and his way of working. “The restaurant business is demanding,” he said. “I plan everything, do it all, and often feel shorthanded because I need to do more. But the advantage is that I do it my way.”
And when Richard Barnes does it his way, that’s not a bad thing.
Who to Contact
Town Talk Restaurant, Bar and Banquet
Richard Barnes
606 Patterson
Cambridge, NE 69022
phone: (308) 697-4600
Email: towntalk@swnebr.net
Website: www.towntalkrestaurant.com
Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday-Thursday; 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday
back to top