‘What’s for lunch?’ Beloved Northern Minnesota burger joint opens for 65th season
A sure sign of spring has come to northern Minnesota. After weeks of preparation, Gordy’s Hi-Hat Restaurant and Drive-In opened Wednesday for its 65th season.
The iconic Cloquet burger joint gained a cult following from serving the same onion rings, shakes, hand-dipped fish and burgers to guests from all over northern Minnesota since they opened in 1960.
Sever Lundquist and his father Dan Lundquist have co-owned the business since Dan’s father Gordy, the restaurant’s founder, died a couple years ago.
Sever Lundquist joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer from the lunch rush up in Cloquet.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: A sure sign of spring has come to northern Minnesota. After weeks of preparation, Gordy's Hi-Hat Restaurant and Drive-In has opened today for its 65th season. The iconic Cloquet burger joint has gained a cult following because of their onion rings and their shakes and their hand-dipped fish and burgers. Guests come from all over the state since they opened in 1960.
Sever Lundquist and his dad, Dan Lundquist, have co-owned the business since Dan's father and the restaurant's founder, Gordy, died a couple of years ago. Sever's on the line from the restaurant in Cloquet. Sever, how's it going up there?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: I am doing great. It's the first day of spring. We are happy to be back open and seeing some friendly faces.
CATHY WURZER: Did you have a line? You usually have a line waiting for you guys to open.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: We did. Usually we have a line outdoors, but since it was like five below with windchill this morning, we let everybody hang out inside the building.
CATHY WURZER: Nice.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: But yeah, we had a line of customers ready to go right when we opened.
CATHY WURZER: What's happened so far today?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: So far today, it's been a great start to our season. We are so lucky to have a community up here that supports us. And you know, Minnesotans in general love supporting small businesses, and places like ourselves benefit from that. So we have had a great turnout so far. We're just in the middle of our lunch hour right now, and we have a packed restaurant. Nobody's sitting outside, obviously, good but our indoor seating is nice and warm, and we're happy to be serving.
CATHY WURZER: What goes into opening up Gordy's for the season?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Well, we get started a couple of weeks ago kind of cleaning the place up. Because after six months of just sitting all winter, we got to make sure everything's working. And then we get our staff in here. We have a very incredible, experienced staff of people that have been working with us. Some of our cooks have been with us for over 40 years, some of them 20-plus. Some of our front staff help has been with us for over 20 years too.
And they come in, and we just get to work. Everybody knows what to do. It's like a well-oiled machine, and everybody just kind of fills in and gets things ready.
CATHY WURZER: What did you learn from your Grandpa Gordy when it comes to getting everything going, being with the customers? What lessons did he pass along to you?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Yeah, so my Grandpa Gordy and my Grandma Marilyn started in 1960. And they had more work ethic than anyone you've ever met. They worked into their 90s, standing on their feet all day, working in the kitchen. And really, that's kind of what they passed on, not just to me, but to all of our employees.
And everybody that steps foot in our kitchen is-- it's time to get to work. And they put in the work for 65 years, and they had a couple restaurants even before that, too. And just the old-fashioned work ethic that is hard to come by these days.
CATHY WURZER: I saw on Facebook before you guys opened, you had a really cute little video which I think was the next generation getting ready to open. And it was pretty cute, too-- a little boy and a little girl. Now, who are they?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: That is my son and my daughter. That's my son, Wilk-- he's four years old-- and my daughter, Kennedy. She is two years old. And they run around, act like they own the place. But as of right now, pretty much all they do labor wise is it's like they're social media influencers to help us with cute posts. And people love to see them.
CATHY WURZER: I know you keep track of your customers. How far away do some of your customers come to get the burgers, the fries, and the onion rings and all of it?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Well, we are so lucky to be located on a highway that is running up to the great Northern lakes in Minnesota here. So we have-- all summer long, we have people coming from all around the country that are-- say they're on their way up to the Boundary Waters or they're on their way up to fishing in Canada or just their cabins. So we really are fortunate to have people that stop on their way North.
And a lot of those-- a lot of those customers are actually-- Boy Scouts is a big part of our business, because Boy Scouts come from all over the country. They go all the way up to the Boundary Waters to do their camping trips. And luckily, they stop in and see us. So we'll get them from Texas, Florida, Hawaii, California, the East Coast, everything.
CATHY WURZER: I mentioned the onion rings. Do you think the onion rings are the most popular thing on the menu? I don't know. What's your feel on that one?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Oh, yeah. They're definitely one of our most popular items. They are-- it's the exact same recipe since 1960 that my that my grandparents started with. So that's a very, very popular item, followed by-- our blackberry shakes are a huge item for us. We use just real whole blackberries blended into ice cream. And even on a day like today, when it's only 10 degrees out here, that's one of our number one sellers.
CATHY WURZER: Now, what do you like best?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Well, that's a good question. I've been eating here my entire life.
CATHY WURZER: Right.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: So yeah, so I would just say a classic double cheeseburger. Ketchup, mustard, pickle, fried onions-- can't be beat.
CATHY WURZER: There's nothing wrong with that. The Big G burger is kind of in the same thing, you know, because that same line there. It's kind of basic, but it's good.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Yeah, that's right. We don't do anything fancy here. We're not doing fancy gourmet burgers. It's just classic Americana-- thin patty burgers, American cheese, made hot off the grill. And the busier, we are the tastier the burgers are, because our grill is filled with meat. It's a process that is unrivaled.
And our cooks do an incredible job of getting everything out. We're very lucky to have the employees that we have because they're the reason that this machine keeps turning, that we can get so many customers in and out quickly.
CATHY WURZER: Sever, I hope you've had a chance to grab lunch.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: No. No, no, no.
CATHY WURZER: No.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: We're too busy for lunch for me today.
CATHY WURZER: But you were--
SEVER LUNDQUIST: I had--
CATHY WURZER: Go ahead.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Go ahead.
CATHY WURZER: Go ahead.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: I had all winter to hang out and eat as much as I wanted. And now we're back to work. It's time to eat light so I'm lighter on my feet. I can move quicker.
CATHY WURZER: All right, Sever. Thank you for taking time to talk with me. You might not have had lunch, but you're talking to us. So thank you so much, and all the best to you.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: It was a pleasure to be on live with you. Thank you very much for being interested in talking to me.
CATHY WURZER: Absolutely. Sever Lundquist has been with us, co-owner of the iconic Gordy's Hi-Hat restaurant in Cloquet. They open today for their 65th season.
Sever Lundquist and his dad, Dan Lundquist, have co-owned the business since Dan's father and the restaurant's founder, Gordy, died a couple of years ago. Sever's on the line from the restaurant in Cloquet. Sever, how's it going up there?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: I am doing great. It's the first day of spring. We are happy to be back open and seeing some friendly faces.
CATHY WURZER: Did you have a line? You usually have a line waiting for you guys to open.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: We did. Usually we have a line outdoors, but since it was like five below with windchill this morning, we let everybody hang out inside the building.
CATHY WURZER: Nice.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: But yeah, we had a line of customers ready to go right when we opened.
CATHY WURZER: What's happened so far today?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: So far today, it's been a great start to our season. We are so lucky to have a community up here that supports us. And you know, Minnesotans in general love supporting small businesses, and places like ourselves benefit from that. So we have had a great turnout so far. We're just in the middle of our lunch hour right now, and we have a packed restaurant. Nobody's sitting outside, obviously, good but our indoor seating is nice and warm, and we're happy to be serving.
CATHY WURZER: What goes into opening up Gordy's for the season?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Well, we get started a couple of weeks ago kind of cleaning the place up. Because after six months of just sitting all winter, we got to make sure everything's working. And then we get our staff in here. We have a very incredible, experienced staff of people that have been working with us. Some of our cooks have been with us for over 40 years, some of them 20-plus. Some of our front staff help has been with us for over 20 years too.
And they come in, and we just get to work. Everybody knows what to do. It's like a well-oiled machine, and everybody just kind of fills in and gets things ready.
CATHY WURZER: What did you learn from your Grandpa Gordy when it comes to getting everything going, being with the customers? What lessons did he pass along to you?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Yeah, so my Grandpa Gordy and my Grandma Marilyn started in 1960. And they had more work ethic than anyone you've ever met. They worked into their 90s, standing on their feet all day, working in the kitchen. And really, that's kind of what they passed on, not just to me, but to all of our employees.
And everybody that steps foot in our kitchen is-- it's time to get to work. And they put in the work for 65 years, and they had a couple restaurants even before that, too. And just the old-fashioned work ethic that is hard to come by these days.
CATHY WURZER: I saw on Facebook before you guys opened, you had a really cute little video which I think was the next generation getting ready to open. And it was pretty cute, too-- a little boy and a little girl. Now, who are they?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: That is my son and my daughter. That's my son, Wilk-- he's four years old-- and my daughter, Kennedy. She is two years old. And they run around, act like they own the place. But as of right now, pretty much all they do labor wise is it's like they're social media influencers to help us with cute posts. And people love to see them.
CATHY WURZER: I know you keep track of your customers. How far away do some of your customers come to get the burgers, the fries, and the onion rings and all of it?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Well, we are so lucky to be located on a highway that is running up to the great Northern lakes in Minnesota here. So we have-- all summer long, we have people coming from all around the country that are-- say they're on their way up to the Boundary Waters or they're on their way up to fishing in Canada or just their cabins. So we really are fortunate to have people that stop on their way North.
And a lot of those-- a lot of those customers are actually-- Boy Scouts is a big part of our business, because Boy Scouts come from all over the country. They go all the way up to the Boundary Waters to do their camping trips. And luckily, they stop in and see us. So we'll get them from Texas, Florida, Hawaii, California, the East Coast, everything.
CATHY WURZER: I mentioned the onion rings. Do you think the onion rings are the most popular thing on the menu? I don't know. What's your feel on that one?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Oh, yeah. They're definitely one of our most popular items. They are-- it's the exact same recipe since 1960 that my that my grandparents started with. So that's a very, very popular item, followed by-- our blackberry shakes are a huge item for us. We use just real whole blackberries blended into ice cream. And even on a day like today, when it's only 10 degrees out here, that's one of our number one sellers.
CATHY WURZER: Now, what do you like best?
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Well, that's a good question. I've been eating here my entire life.
CATHY WURZER: Right.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: So yeah, so I would just say a classic double cheeseburger. Ketchup, mustard, pickle, fried onions-- can't be beat.
CATHY WURZER: There's nothing wrong with that. The Big G burger is kind of in the same thing, you know, because that same line there. It's kind of basic, but it's good.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Yeah, that's right. We don't do anything fancy here. We're not doing fancy gourmet burgers. It's just classic Americana-- thin patty burgers, American cheese, made hot off the grill. And the busier, we are the tastier the burgers are, because our grill is filled with meat. It's a process that is unrivaled.
And our cooks do an incredible job of getting everything out. We're very lucky to have the employees that we have because they're the reason that this machine keeps turning, that we can get so many customers in and out quickly.
CATHY WURZER: Sever, I hope you've had a chance to grab lunch.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: No. No, no, no.
CATHY WURZER: No.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: We're too busy for lunch for me today.
CATHY WURZER: But you were--
SEVER LUNDQUIST: I had--
CATHY WURZER: Go ahead.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: Go ahead.
CATHY WURZER: Go ahead.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: I had all winter to hang out and eat as much as I wanted. And now we're back to work. It's time to eat light so I'm lighter on my feet. I can move quicker.
CATHY WURZER: All right, Sever. Thank you for taking time to talk with me. You might not have had lunch, but you're talking to us. So thank you so much, and all the best to you.
SEVER LUNDQUIST: It was a pleasure to be on live with you. Thank you very much for being interested in talking to me.
CATHY WURZER: Absolutely. Sever Lundquist has been with us, co-owner of the iconic Gordy's Hi-Hat restaurant in Cloquet. They open today for their 65th season.
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