Mickey's Lakeside Café

My favorite solo lunch spots are those that are not crazy-busy, have both healthy and decadent options, and have a laid-back atmosphere where I can read, people watch, or just check out the scenery. Mickey’s Lakeside Café offers all of the above.

This charming café located at Lake Ella offers two rooms of indoor seating and outdoor seating just feet away from the lake. The indoor seating in the back room is quiet and has a nice lake-view window and the minimally decorated café is scattered with wooden tables and chairs. It is not the chicest place in town, but it is warm and welcoming.

Mickey’s menu offers an array of soups, salads and sandwiches made with Boar’s Head meats. The salad selections were nothing to write home about, however, the sandwich and quiche options were a bit more diverse. Sandwiches range from the Cuban to the Mickey’s Roast Beef with grilled onions, sweet red peppers and mozzarella on pressed Ciabatta; and the Real Chicago Dog made with an all-beef hotdog, mustard, onion, relish tomatoes, peppers and celery salt. The quiche selection includes a spinach quiche or the quiche-of-the-day, which was a choice between tomato-basil or artichoke and goat cheese during my visit.

 I was in the mood for something on the lighter side, so I went with the Grilled Veggie sandwich. The first bite – heaven! The warm Ciabatta was crisp and paired well with tender eggplant, zucchini, peppers, onion, mozzarella, and pesto, creating a great combination of textures and flavors. The second bite brought me back a little closer to earth, revealing the need for just a pinch of salt on the eggplant. The sandwich was served with a choice of chips or coleslaw. I’m usually hesitant about coleslaw, but I decided to be adventurous and give Mickey’s a try. The coleslaw had a nice crunch, but lacked the zippy flavor my server promised. However, it was not over-dressed, which is something I appreciate, especially with mayonnaise-based dressing.

 My overall experience at Mickey’s was good. Enjoyed a good book, watched the walkers go by, and ate a good meal. I will definitely visit again.

 Mickey’s Lakeside Café is located at 1611 North Monroe Street in the Cottage of Lake Ella. Its lunch hours are Tuesday through Saturday 11:00 a.m.-3 p.m. with extended hours and food/drink specials on Friday until 7 p.m. The phone number is 850-222-9709.