Meeks Mill Cafe
138 E. Water StreetI spend a lot of time in St. Joseph County now that my in-laws moved to the Centreville/Sturgis area. I love finding new places to eat down that way because in the 11 years I’ve been writing this blog, we haven’t had much reason to go to St. Joseph County.
The Constantine/White Pigeon area is part of the county I never really get to though. We’ve gone out of our way a time or two to a restaurant but we just don’t go that far south on US-131 often.
I was in Constantine for work last week and wanted to make sure I found some place for lunch. My co-worker was all about Piper’s Grinders Galore but I had already eaten there and wanted to find some place else.
There are a couple of sit down diners/restaurants in Constantine but finding an online menu for them is really much harder than it should be in 2021. I did finally find a menu for the diner so that’s where I called in an order to.
Meek’s Mill Cafe is right off the US-131 Business Loop, or Washington Street, in downtown Constantine on East Water Street. The building is one of those old brick buildings that populate small town downtown areas across the country. The building stands out among the others in the area with a mural of what I can only assume is Meek’s Mill on the side. Fun fact, the village of Constantine was originally known as Meeks Mill after William Meeks who built the first grist mill in town. There’s a story in that mural of how the town came to be.
I called in my order while sitting in the parking lot of the Phillips 66 station just on the other side of the river. I kept it simple with a Bacon Cheeseburger and fries. The lady taking my order said it would be about 15 minutes. I just parked at a parallel spot along Water Street and checked my e-mail while waiting for the order to come up.
I walked in to Meeks Mill about 1:00 on a Thursday afternoon. There were a few people finishing up their lunch but it was getting pretty close to closing time so there weren’t many people in the restaurant.
The diner has that small town diner feel. The decor is dated. There’s a wooden chair rail that runs along the bottom of a yellow wall. There’s a small lunch counter with yellow plastic seats near the cash register as you come in. It’s one of those small diners you seek out on your travels for a delicious breakfast but if you find yourself lucky enough to have it in your hometown, you’re there three days a week…minimum.
My order had just come off the grill when I walked in. I paid the tab which was about $8 before the tip.
I really didn’t have any expectations when I ordered lunch from Meeks Mill. I just assumed it would be a simple frozen burger on a white bread bun with leather bacon and frozen crinkle cut fries. That’s not at all what I got.
The burger came on a soft, toasted brioche bun. The burger and bacon were both delicious juicy and tender. I was going to be eating this in the car so I didn’t get any condiments and this sandwich didn’t need it. It was far better than what I normally associate with greasy spoon diner burgers. This is a burger I would go back to often if I lived in the area.
The fries were frozen but they were of the battered variety. I don’t always like this kind of fry but these tasted particular good on that cold, rainy Thursday. There was a lot of them in Styrofoam to-go container. Again, no condiments because I was in the car but these would have been good with a little bit of mustard.
Meeks Mill Cafe was kind of a surprise. I was just looking for food but I didn’t expect to get something that was this good.
SW Michigan Dining 