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Recently, on more than one occasion, I have heard about the small town of Dorset, in the Minnesota Lakes country, as being a restaurant mecca.  In an earlier life when I had a more active -er-uh social life I used to hand out in the Dorseet area with my significant(?) other.  Dorset, by the way, is five miles east of Park Rapids on Minnesota Highway 34.  It was a stop on the rail line from Park Rapids to Walker.  I’m told that during the golden age of railroading one could take a train from southern Florida to Dorset, no doubt with many transfers and taking several days.  One would do this to get to the resorts in the area of Dorset.
In my aforementioned youth, I, or maybe I should say we, had several favorite restaurants in the area.  One of my favorites was the Red Lantern in Park Rapids which doesn’t seem to be there anymore.  Another was the Dorset Cafe, which I still maintain is one of the best restaurants I’ve ever experienced.  The others may be subjects for other reviews on this site.
Back in the day, the Dorset Cafe was the only restaurant in Dorset.  Now there is Mexican, Italian, pizza, ice cream, and the typical Lakes Country night spot, Chateau Paulette, is now a Zorbas.
Since I haven’t been to the Lakes for a while, I decided to drive out for an evening and a meal at the Dorset.  it’s still there and hasn’t changed much, although the inside has been mostly redecorated with sort of a modern art deco motif, along with some of the original knotty pine or knotty birch.  The couple that came in behind me was asked by the person that seated them if they wanted their usual table.  More about them later.
I thus concluded that likely a significant part of their clientele were local people as opposed to tourists.  Turns out I was right, but their famous breasted chicken does attract a fair amount of tourists.
Used to be they served a sirloin steak, broiled in a cast iron skillet, which they bring to your table with the steak sizzling in it.  I always loved this offering, but the waitress told me the special: hamburger steak grilled with onions and mushrooms with swiss cheese on top.  Now it must be 25 years since I’ve had a hamburger, but this sounded too good to pass up.  It did not make a mistake: this was the best meal I’ve had in a few months, at least.  I’m also a sucker for salad bars that have lots of fresh crisp vegetables, and theirs fit the bill.  Besides the steaks and chicken, they also have a nice selection of burgers, sandwiches, and naturally, fish.  They also have a selection of appetizers, including a relatively new one: deep fried green beans with onions.  I’ve seen this before, but have never tried any(one can only eat so much).  However, I had introduced myself to the couple referred to earlier in order to get information for this review, and they offered me some of theirs(Minnesota nice).
This was a great dining experience.  There is a bar in the restaurant, but it was civilized, as I remember it.  Later at night, I don’t know.
When I travel, I try to look for where the locals eat.  In Dorset, this is it.  And it’s open twelve months. I hope this won’t be my last trip there.
It’s where the locals eat.  It’s not particularly cheap, expect to pay between $15 and $20 for a meal without drinks.