Historic and golden: The Mother Lode cafe opens in Baker City

Published 1:00 pm Monday, August 8, 2022

The history of the Oregon Trail was always, in part, intertwined with the allure of finding glittering treasure. Inseparable from the mythos of the Wild West, in fact.

So if you’re rolling down Campbell Street toward the interstate and see the newly opened Mother Lode Cafe, you can expect they’ll indeed have something golden to share.

The location, 791 Campbell St., has seen more than a few owners in the city’s history, and the dining train cars themselves have seen more than a few cities in their traveling lifetime.

Since their retirement, parked there some time in the 1960s, the dining cars have been the launchpad for so many restaurateurs that for Baker City it’s almost tradition to see a new face in the window.

The faces you’ll see today are Matt and Sarah Heiner, and while the building itself is nearing a century old, Sarah brought history of her own to match, and it’s delicious. She maintains a sourdough starter, or “mother,” that’s been in her family for four generations, passed down from her great-grandmother.

“We have Americana diner food, fresh made sourdough bread, and we also have sourdough pancakes,” Matt said. “It’s our specialty.”

The sample pancake they brought out was true to form, crispy with a sour tang and served with Grade A maple syrup, in itself all part of a century old design.

There was, though, a singular stumble as the couple prepared to open.

Hoping to keep the pancake recipe safe as they set up shop, Sarah had pulled its card out intending to put it somewhere secure.

Instead she accidentally lost it.

“I had to call my grandmother,” said Sarah, laughing. Fortunately, her grandmother chuckled as well and still had the original recipe handy. Sarah re-copied it and put it to good use.

Matt and Sarah decided they wanted to focus on early morning diners, setting their hours from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. every day.

“Even in the winters there’s working crews that go off to work before daylight, by the time most restaurants open they’re all at work,” said Sarah, hoping their breakfast availability will fill the niche others haven’t.

As well, the easy distance from the interstate will have its benefits among all-hours truckers.

“Also it gets way too hot here during the summer,” said Sarah, noting that they’ll be saving on AC when other restaurants will be baking throughout their shift. “It’s a metal box.”

The two say they’ve considered selling the sourdough bread itself, but they have limits to mixing equipment and baking space.

“Three loaves at a time, that’s all that’ll fit in my oven,” Sarah said. “If we did that we’d just run out.”

But don’t fret.

“We do sell starters!” she said.