Scott Williams, swilliams@wolfrivermedia.com
Leader Photo by Scott Williams Wes and Karen Fredericks enjoy some soup at Farm Inn on Main before heading to other destinations on the Shawano Business Improvement District’s Dine on Main, tour of downtown eating establishments.
Leader Photo by Scott Williams Kayla Logan of Bubba’s BBQ gets ready to serve up a couple of the restaurant’s barbecue roll appetizers Thursday during the “dine-around” organized by the Shawano Business Improvement District.
It was perfect weather for dinner on the town Thursday evening, so Wes and Karen Fredericks headed to a restaurant in Shawano.
And then another. And another.
Before they were through, the Fredericks planned to sample, snack and sweet-tooth their way through nine establishments during the Dine on Main event organized by the Shawano Business Improvement District.
The event allowed participants to pay $15 each and take a tour of the city’s downtown dining spots, each of which served up a special treat for the occasion.
The Fredericks, who live near Legend Lake, are frequent patrons of Shawano eateries, and they were drawn to the chance to spend a pleasant spring evening strolling their way through dinner and desert.
“We’ll go from one end to the other,” Wes Fredericks said. “We’ll try them all.”
Known as a “dine-around,” the event started in 2011 and 2012 under the name The Main Event, conceived by the group Leadership Shawano County. It was revived last year, and then returned this year under the new name Dine on Main.
Dining continued from 5-8:30 p.m., followed by a celebration and prize giveaway at Tom’s Tap.
Wendy Crawford, program manager for Leadership Shawano County, said the relaxed and fun atmosphere not only promotes local restaurants, it also draws a diverse crowd that might not otherwise come together at what she called “community tables” that seem to form spontaneously.
“Strangers will sit next to each other,” she said. “They’re joining other people and having conversations.”
Proceeds of the event support the business improvement district’s facade improvement project.
Among the menu choices Thursday were homemade soups at Farm Inn on Main, barbecue roll appetizers at Bubba’s BBQ, chicken salad sandwiches at Angie’s Main Cafe, baked bread and desserts at Fannita’s Bakery, and other treats at Luigi’s Pizza and Pasta, Old Glory Candy, Domino’s Pizza, Tom’s Tap and ‘Til the Cows Come Home.
Sunny skies and temperatures in the 60s made for ideal weather for the occasion.
Business owners made a special effort to welcome the crowd, hoping to introduce themselves to some new patrons or reacquaint themselves with old friends.
Kayla Logan, service manager at Bubba’s BBQ, said managers there decided to cook up a batch of the restaurant’s eggroll-style barbecue rolls, which are the restaurant’s most popular appetizer among regular customers.
“Everybody who tries it really likes it,” Logan said.
At Fannita’s Bakery, diners could sample a strawberry meringue dessert.
Farm Inn on Main served up homemade potato soup, steak and wild rice soup, and cinnamon bread sticks. Manager Tom Lundt said he was happy to be part of the event, and he hoped it would attract some new restaurant goers to Main Street.
“The weather is great,” Lundt said. “I hope they make some fun out of it.”