Looking for an old-fashioned Christmas? Then this is the story for you. In Historic Mantorville, Minnesota, there's a special project/treat for parents and kids together - DIY Cookie Kits from the Old School Café.

We are now accepting orders for December DIY Cookie Kits! Linda is putting together a festive package that the whole family will enjoy this holiday season! We ask that you have orders in by 5 p.m. on Wednesday, December 22nd, and pickup arrangements can be made through December 23rd. (Easiest to order via Facebook Messenger).

How cool is that? Just click "Facebook Messenger" above for the link to their Facebook page.

How Much Are the Kits and What Comes In Them?

Photo by Sarah Evans on Unsplash / Cookie kit by Old School Cafe
Photo by Sarah Evans on Unsplash / Cookie kit by Old School Cafe
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Kits are $15 each and include:

  • 1 dozen baked cut-out cookies
  • Several colors of frosting
  • Assortment of candies and sprinkles

The Story of the Cookies

The story of the cookies begins with Old School Cafe's owners, Doug and Linda Schmidt. He was a construction worker, she worked at Mayo in Rochester (WHAT? What's this Mayo you speak of? lol). They got close to retirement and knew they really wouldn't rettire...so the Old School Café came to be.

Doug and Linda Schmidt
Doug and Linda Schmidt
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According to Doug and Linda's daughter, Holly,

My mom, Linda, has been baking cookies for years now, and was building a large fan base! When we had to shut down at the start of the pandemic, we made changes to hours, offered take-out and all that, but obviously things weren't the same.

My mom and I started brainstorming ideas, and I suggested these kits as a family-friendly activity thing and she thought I was crazy, because who would want to do all the work of decorating them?!

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I explained that the whole process making the dough, chilling it, cutting out the shapes and baking, was way too time consuming for most, but the frosting was the fun part! (James here...YES! Exactly!) So I posted on our Facebook page asking if it would interest people and the response was overwhelmingly positive.

Old School Cafe/Rabe Art
Old School Cafe/Rabe Art
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We started selling Halloween-themed boxes in October of 2020 and have made them over the holidays since! Now daycares order them and we also do individually packaged frosted ones for events, birthday and Valentine's treats at school, and have had orders for nursing homes too!

I met Linda and Doug a few years ago when I visited their restaurant for the Breakfast Chronicles (Read More: The MN Breakfast Chronicles - Old School Café in Mantorville). They're good people.

As always, if you have a comment, complaint, or concern about something I wrote here, please let me know: james.rabe@townsquaremedia.com

YEMS WITH JAMES AND JESSICA FOR PODCAST
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Listen On-Demand with the Y105FM app, and on the following podcast platforms: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify

Photos From the Breakfast Tour Story

Old School Cafe

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