The Gateway Store has New Owners
The Gateway Store and Café is a great destination for any day of the week. If you are looking for an excellent hamburger, a beautiful drive out Highway 71 for about 22 miles will take you to Gateway.
Gateway Store and Café was purchased on August 17, 2024, by John and Ann Tucker. They moved here from Elko, Nevada, where they had both been working in the mining industry for about 30 years. They love the Brownlee area and over the years had frequently visited here to hunt and fish. John had started coming here in the early 80’s with his dad, who built fence for John Dyer, of the OX Ranch. Last spring they were in the area and saw that the Gateway business was for sale. Though they had never owned a business, they had been talking about it. They decided to give it a try and retired from mining and purchased the store.
The store and café are open 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m., seven days a week. On their slower days, John or Ann make a trip to Cambridge or Ontario to buy supplies. They work about 14 hours a day, but they live close to the store and so their commute is about 30 seconds. A definite improvement from their hour and a half commute each way to work, while living in Nevada.
Many of the items needed for a family on a picnic for the day or a recreationist out for the weekend, are available in the store. They carry a nice selection of fishing poles, tackle, bait, Interstate Batteries of different sizes, snack foods, and countless other items. If you plan to fish and realize that you are in need of a fishing license, they don’t sell hunting or fishing licenses, but offer free Wi-Fi and will help you to get on the Idaho Fish and Game app, so that you can purchase your license.
The store also carries propane along with non-ethanol gas for boats and ATVs. They sell bundles of wood for your campfire and ice for your cooler. Local honey is available for purchase and goes quickly. They like selling local products in their store. If local people are interested in marketing their products through the store, reach out to John and Ann and they will do their best to offer the items in their store.
The café’s menu has changed slightly from previous owners, since so many customers loved what the café already had to offer. On the menu there is a great selection of specialty hamburgers including the Swiss Mushroom Burger, which is Ann’s creation. All of the hamburgers are made with a third of a pound of burger, not frozen, handmade, and cooked fresh each day. There are seven different types of hamburgers and numerous other sandwiches. The burgers and sandwiches are served with fries and beans.
If you are interested in a sweet treat, they offer malts, milkshakes, and waffle and sugar cones with a variety of ice cream to choose from. They are thinking about adding a salad bar this summer on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and seeing how that goes.
If you are a person who enjoys a good breakfast, the menu has a nice array of breakfast foods. Those choices include biscuits and gravy, breakfast sandwiches, breakfast burritos, French toast, and other hearty choices.
The business also provides several services beyond the store and café. There is a motel, with four rooms with bathrooms, two fifth-wheels that they will be renting out, as well as boat and fifth-wheel camper storage. They have a venue for weddings, with a wedding coming up in April. They also have an area for dry camping, with room for about five to six spaces. They want the campers to have enough room to move around, without being crowded.
Since purchasing the store, John and Ann have made some improvements. These include a large deck on the front of the store, they painted the motel, redid the lighting, purchased a new ice machine, and are working on several other upgrades.
When asked what the toughest part of running their business is, their answer was “time.” They have always been hard workers, but having the store open seven days a week and putting in their 14-hour days leaves little time off. Another difficulty is in finding workers for their business.
John and Ann love the area and would like for everyone to know how grateful they are for all of those who come into the store each day. They appreciate all of the local people, the hunters, fishermen, and those who come from Council, Halfway and other places.
