Worley couple opens the cafe in Oakesdale

Brandy and Andrew Davis

Their commute is 38 miles one way. They are tag-teaming a full-time schedule of hours, and they are trying to manage care for their three children.

When the couple who opened Oakesdale Café last week was asked how they were going to keep this all together, Brandy and Andrew Davis both had the same answer.

“With God standing behind us, who can be against us?” Andrew responded quickly in an interview with the Gazette Sept. 11.

They opened for business last Wednesday, Sept. 9.

The duo said they will serve home cooking for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Hours are 10 a.m. through 8 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

They will offer all-American dishes like pizza, hamburgers, biscuits and gravy and omelets.

Their specialty, Brandy adds, is a stuffed burger; two patties sealed together around a pocket full of stuffings chosen by the customer.

The morning of Sept. 11, their full-time chef, Paul Baird of Rosalia, was finishing a steamy batch of clam chowder and dunking raw chicken into a batter.

Brandy and chef Paul Baird

“People who live out here in this area-that’s what they are used to - grandma’s cooking,” said Baird as he scooped out dripping cuts of chicken.

“No can opener here,” he said.

The first night they served dinner, Sept. 10, they saw a crowd of over 20, Brandy said. They were serving “chili verde”, with rice and beans.

The couple said they will each work a half week at the café, spending their nights in a trailer they moved into Oakesdale. While one person works at the restaurant, the other will take care of the family back in Worley.

They will only get to spend time together on Sundays, Brandy said. Depending on how business in the café goes, they may consider moving to Oakesdale.

Brandy and Andrew, both originally from California, met in Post Falls 10 years ago. They have since lived in Coeur d’Alene, Spokane, Blanchard, and bought a house in Worley in 2007.

Last year, he worked as a heavy equipment operator in Worley, and Brandy stayed at home with the children.

They had been talking casually about running their own restaurant when one night at dinner, some friends mentioned the café in Oakesdale was up for rent.

The building is owned by Rick Kuykendall of Grand Coulee, and the Davis couple rents from him.

The two prior renters also used the building as a restaurant, For a Song Café and Nighthawk Café.

The couple is aware of the recent café track record in Oakesdale, but say this too falls under their list of things God will take care of for them.

“We plan on staying open on God’s grace and God’s help… and good home cookin’,” Andrew said with a laugh.