Photo: Cheryl Forster

New owners are now in charge at the Wooden Nickel Cafe in Lake Country. They will host a grand opening on Saturday, June 10, 2023.

Her plans were put on hold by the COVID-19 pandemic, but this month a long-time employee of the Wooden Nickel Cafe in Lake Country realized her dream to take over ownership of the restaurant.

Cheryl Forster and her husband Travis Forster became the new owners on June 1. They are planning a grand reopening this weekend.

Cheryl says the pandemic delay was actually a blessing in disguise, and it wasn’t until recently that the timing was right. Previous owner Diane Solski’s husband passed away a couple of months ago and she was ready to move on to the next chapter of her life.

“Travis and I kind of talked and she came up with a price and we said, you know what, we thought it was fair and so we said well, let’s do it,” said Cheryl, who has been a server at the Wooden Nickel for almost eight years.

This is her second foray into restaurant ownership. Shortly after moving to Lake Country, she and her former partner bought the Greek House and owned it for a couple of years. She’s been in the food service industry since she was 13 years old.

The Wooden Nickel Cafe has been in its current location, off Highway 97 just north of Lake Country Town Centre, since at least 1990. The new owners will be making a few changes.

“We’re going to bring out some more modern menu dishes. We’d like to get a liquor license. Those are the plans, and kind of attract a little bit more of the younger clientele as well as our regular, older clientele,” said Forster.

They are also considering holding an open mic night once a month and hosting special events. All existing staff will be staying including cook Toni Polik, who Cheryl calls "absolutely fabulous."

The grand opening celebration takes place on Saturday, June 10 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.. It will feature live music by local rising country music star Hiedi Hyacinth, and reservations can be booked for three seatings at 8:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.

In a post on a community Facebook group Forster wrote that she hopes to keep building the business and make Diane proud.