IGNACE – As a kid, Miriam Cook would stop in with her parents to The Burger Scoop in Ignace on a regular basis.
“It was the spot that you’d always go into when you were driving down the highway,” Cook said.
“I just always had this dream in my head that ‘I wonder if I’ll get to run this one day.’ I really don’t know what drew me to that, but I’ve always pictured myself running the place.”
That dream is now a reality as Cook is the owner of the restaurant, which re-opened last summer.
“When I saw that it was for sale, I had a couple of meetings with the then-owners,” Cook said. “It was a bit of a process to get everything done, but everything kind of fell into place and we opened back up last June.”
As she prepared to re-open the doors last summer, Cook learned just how much people were looking forward to eating at The Burger Scoop again.
“People kept coming to the door wondering if we were back open yet,” Cook said.
“I remember one individual who stopped in as he was heading down south to see if we were open – and he was telling me how he had family close by and he would always stop in here. Having people like that come in showed me that people in the region were really excited to have this open back up.”
Cook – who also owns The Cook’s Stop & Shop in Slate Falls – said things went as she expected last summer after The Burger Scoop welcomed back customers.
“You had a lot of travellers coming in along with people from the area,” Cook said.
“Obviously with the new ownership, people were getting used to that idea, but I’m looking forward to having everyone back this year and some new faces stopping by.”
As one might expect by its name, burgers are the most popular item at the restaurant.
The Iggy Burger – which features two four-ounce homemade burger patties – is the favourite choice for customers, with the cheddar and mozzarella burgers following close behind.
“The menu is pretty similar to what it was before,” Cook said. “I cut it down a little bit to start, but I’m looking to add to it as we go further.”
After closing up for the winter, Cook is now preparing to open things back up this spring for the 2024 season.
“I’m hoping to have things back open in May if the weather co-operates,” Cook said with a laugh. “If it doesn’t . . . the doors will be open in June.”
Cook is currently looking for anyone who is interested in working as a cook, kitchen helper or server at The Burger Scoop this summer.
She can be reached at the restaurant’s e-mail or on the Facebook group.