Small Town Diners: The De Graff Creamery

De Graff Creamery serves up typical American diner fare

By Kevin Williams

When I was in De Graff, (I have seen it spelled Degraff and De Graff, so take your pick) Ohio recently visiting the area's Amish settlement I had the chance to indulge in some small-town diner food.

America's culinary culture was once a rich mosaic of flavors that varied greatly by region.  Chain restaurant America and grocery stores with cases of frozen, trucked in food have largely laid waste to what once was.  But I'm convinced that, tucked away in small towns far from the interstate, that those local flavors can still be found.   I suppose a dream job someday would be to go around searching for these lost flavors of America. Flavors like buttermilk pan-fried chicken, tender midwestern meatloaf and true Cajun spices hiding in the bayou.

So it was with some enthusiasm that I saw the Degraff Creamery about 10 miles south of Indian Lake in Ohio.

The place was OK.  Part of the problem is that I chose to get grilled cheese. You can't really experience the flavors of America through grilled cheese. Although my Mom did get a cheeseburger and I think she liked it.  Sometimes I like company on my travels.   Since Rachel wasn't feeling well, she and Aster stayed before and my mother joined me for an afternoon of exploring Amish country.  So, do you have any small-town non-chain diners you'd like to recommend? I still travel a fair bit and am always looking for those lost American flavors...Here are some scenes from the Degraff Creamery.

My mother's cheeseburger...I'm not a cheeseburger expert, but it looks good and my mother liked it...

My grilled cheese, dwarfed by a pile of monster-sized waffle fries...It was all very good: crisp fries, perfectly toasted grilled cheese...

I was most excited at the prospect of locally made De Graff Ice Cream produced onsite at the creamery...but, alas, I was told that sign was just for nostalgia's sake from the creamery's earlier days..it's just a diner now, not a creamery (Maybe they should put that ice cream sign away from the ice cream)

16 flavors of ice cream, I am sure they are all tasty, but I was bummed that they were not made on site...