Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Brian Riecker from Norman, OK on 10/08/2018 09:19 AM:
Dotty has retired and sold the building to a trained chef from out west. They are open under the name 35th on Main and their hours are seasonal (feb-dec) 11-9 wed-sat, and 11-8 on Sunday. We were there on a Tuesday so we couldn’t try it. Locals say it’s good!
Anonymous on 10/31/2018 01:03 PM:
Glad Dotty finally got to slow down. She provided great food and service for a long time.
Looking forward to trying to the new place for lunch tomorrow.
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
RTV from Louisville, KY on 09/13/2017 02:43 PM:
This is another great and very friendly place for lunch. The food was good and satisfying. The waitress even sat down at our table and talked to us for awhile. The place is right off the trail. They put up a closed sign as we left at 2PM.
K Brand from Missouri City, TX on 09/14/2017 06:14 AM:
Happy to hear that Dotty's is open for lunch. Last year when we passed through, she was on a reduced schedule because of a health issue.
Sarah from Hartsburg on 09/14/2017 09:17 AM:
Dotties is a great place to eat. Currently, she is open for breakfast and lunch Thursday, Saturday, and sometimes Sunday. She serves supper on Friday evenings. As far as I can see cars... these are the days she is open.
Dotty from Hartsburg on 01/16/2018 08:36 AM:
We are always open on Sat and Sunday. 7am til 2pm. For the winter we are open for breakfast on Thursdays as well. I will post more hours when they change. I am looking forward to all our bikes as soon as we warm up. Brrrr
OCtandem from OC, CA on 06/19/2018 05:58 PM:
We had a nice lunch at Dotty's! It's a cute place and a great location for a break from the trail.
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Andy from Wichita, Kansas on 10/09/2016 08:32 AM:
Does anyone know if Dotty's Cafe is open on Thursday? I've tried calling a few times during their posted hours but haven't got an answer. I also read on Facebook that they are not yet back to regular hours.
Recent KT cyclist on 10/09/2016 11:17 AM:
I was at Dotty's Cafe last week. It is my understanding that she is going to be open on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. She was closed the weekend of October 8 and 9 because of Hartsburg pumpkin Festival.
Andy from Wichita on 10/10/2016 04:22 PM:
Awesome. Thank you!
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Katherine and Andy from Kansas City on 05/04/2016 10:28 AM:
We have fallen in love with riding the Katy Trail over the last year. At Dotty's we experienced some of the best hospitality we have received so far. The people of Hartsburg were so kind and took time to share their stories with us. What a fun time! You gotta stop here!
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Seaview from Missouri on 09/17/2015 03:23 PM:
Dotty's was the greatest. Great food served by an enthusiastic Cook/Waitress/Cashier : Dotty!! Homey atmosphere, comfortable, and clean. Plenty of seating. Make sure you know when they are open(limited hours). Highly recommended.
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
bicytcling nurse from Missouri on 09/17/2015 02:34 PM:
Delicious breakfast, large servings, reasonable prices, and heaping amounts of great hospitality!. Dotty provided it all.
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
JR from Ky on 09/14/2015 07:33 PM:
Worth the time to stop and eat there. The biscuits and gravy I ordered hit the spot. The morning I stopped I was having leg cramps and the waitress (who is a nurse) gave me an extra large serving of dill pickles to ward off the cramps.
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Andrew K from Kansas City on 07/21/2015 06:22 AM:
Every time we are in Mid-Missouri, we stop at Dotty's (usually three times a year). Always excellent food, friendly service and great prices. On our last visit on 7/18, we found out they are now taking debit cards instead of cash only. This is one of the best restaurants on the Katy Trail and I look forward to stopping there. If you are ever nearby, you should check out Dotty's.
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Keith from Columbia on 03/27/2015 04:57 PM:
Dotty's is great! I love to see Dotty back. She has the best food on the trail. Heck all of Missouri!
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Anonymous from Jefferson City on 03/22/2015 10:59 AM:
Biked the trail to Dotty's this morning. So nice to be back on the trail after the cold winter. We always loved breakfast at Dotty's. Friendly, nice people and good food. It's like when you go to your mom's house and she fixes you breakfast.
Dotty's Cafe open fall 2013?
Micah from Lee's Summit, MO on 09/24/2013 01:24 PM:
My wife and I are staying at the Katyrest over a weekend cycling excursion in October and would like to catch breakfast at Dotty's famous Cafe. Does anyone know if they are still operating? I hope so.
Brett Dufur from Rocheport on 09/25/2013 07:51 AM:
Yes Micah, Dotty's Cafe is still open. There's also a new place down in Hartsburg nearby. So you'll have a few options. Dotty's number is 573-657-9750. Have a great trip!
Mrwhiskers from Memphis on 09/29/2013 07:47 PM:
Had lunch there last week! Still great food and pie.
Debbie from Centralia, IL on 10/24/2013 11:36 AM:
Good food and pie. A blast from the past!!!!
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Susan from Columbia MO on 12/02/2011 04:36 PM:
We went here because we had purchased a discount certificate through our local AddSheet. We weren't impressed at all. The waitress was pretty short with us (until she brought the check and then she was all smiles) and the food was ok but over priced for what you got and nothing fabulous. It wasn't bad but we definitely won't be driving 30 minutes to go back. We probably wouldn't drive 5 minutes to go back, just not impressed at all. The memorabilia was pretty cool to look at. That was probably the highlight of the meal.
Cathy from Jefferson City on 12/02/2011 09:42 PM:
If you had bicycled there in 98 degree heat you'd be singing a different song sister.
Don't get me wrong, it's ok to give a less than positive review. But those of us that love this place, and want Dotty's to stay open are happy with the food and service. A hamburger, ice water and the cobler of the day topped with ice cream is soooooooo good when you're hot, tired, sweaty and were not sure if you'd get there before she closed at 2 pm.
Billy from Mokane on 12/03/2011 06:42 AM:
It hurts my heart to find out anyone has negative things to say about Dotty's. I love this place and like Cathy it is an Oasis on a long bike ride.
Darrell from Jefferson City, MO. on 12/03/2011 03:26 PM:
I went there once and it wasn't fabulous.
But for probably a hundred other times in 7 or 8 years it was pretty darn good, and friendly, and enjoyable.
The time it wasn't fabulous was when I shared the picnic table out front with a scarecrow and a pumpkin and ate while the Pumpkin Festival parade went by. My bacon,egg,and cheese sandwich lasted longer than the parade, but it was fun, not fabulous, but fun. I sat outside because it was TOO CROWDED INSIDE!
Susan's critique is not my experience.
Billy from Mokane on 12/03/2011 04:28 PM:
Darrell... Wished Susan would have critiqued it after a 50 mile bike ride in the summer.
Darrell from Jefferson City, MO. on 12/03/2011 07:59 PM:
You've got that right Billy! The appreciation level for Dotty's being there would probably be a tad higher wouldn't it. Susan is entitled to her opinion, it's a matter of perspective, as you suggest.
Really, that is what bothers me sometimes. Businesses all along the Katy Trail have had better times than now and a myopic critique from a one time visit to any business, dining establishment, bike shop or whatever need not be broadcast on the internet machine as a consistent negative condition. It is our right to do that but,,,.
"A bike ride to Dotty's for breakfast" sounds pretty good to me.
El Toro on 12/04/2011 01:06 AM:
I've been to Doty's 8-10 times (always on a bike) and have found the food (especially the cobbler) to be quite satisfying. I would agree it is not low-priced but certainly reasonable. Like several others, I am VERY happy to pay the price and support a small local business along the KATY. I hope Doty's is there for a very long time. Never had a problem with the service either. That's my experience.
Dotty's on 12/05/2011 08:33 PM:
Thank you all for your good comments. As for Susan, she got 16 dollars worth of food for 6 dollars.she was treated like all our customers with good service. As for prices being too high; we have not raised our prices for almost five years and the price of food has doubled since we opened. We appreciate all of you and hope you continue to eat with us. If you have a problem while you are here all you have to do is tell me, there's hardly a time I am not there. We are trying very hard to stay open, anyone else would have already given up. :)Dotty
Dotty on 12/05/2011 08:40 PM:
P.S. As you all know some people just aren't nice in the first place haha I have never read a negative comment about us before. Jesus loves you anyway susan:)
Good Place to Stop on 12/07/2011 11:13 PM:
I believe Doty you got more people interested in your place who have not been there yet from these posts than not. Keep up the good food and service. We will be back.
Dotty on 12/21/2011 08:53 AM:
Haha I think you're right. Thank you!!!
Skyguy9999 on 12/24/2011 11:29 PM:
I haven't gotten to make it that far east yet, but I think one of the highlights from what I read would be to pay a visit there. What you do is appreciated, all of you who provide service to those on the trail!
Dotty on 01/02/2012 03:48 PM:
Well thank you!! We hope to see you soon. Hope the weather stays nice, we are looking forward to a good 2012, thanks to all of you!!!!
Team Fohty Bike Club from Springfield,Mo on 01/03/2012 01:37 PM:
Im not sure what some folks expect in these super tiny towns were most buissness has long since closed years ago.I have ridden the trail by bike for over 8 years each year 3 or 4 trips.We drive 100 miles to enjoy the Katy and after 50 miles on the bike Im glad to find place like Dottys or the small bars to eat a good burger and cold beer,I never thought much about the price,if that was an issue go to freakin wal-mart and satifaction at a everyday low price!Hang in there Dotty and all the other local joints,TEAM FOHTY will be back many times to spend our dollars with you. mg
Dotty on 01/15/2012 09:18 AM:
Thanks so much!! We appreciate all of you guys out there,looking forward to warm weather and a good 2012 Such nice comments mean so much to us:)
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Sharon from Sarasota, Florida on 05/14/2011 03:01 PM:
It was our very good luck on May 13th when we biked into Hartsburg for lunch and decided to stop at Dotty's Cafe. Our lunch was great and
the homemade pie was the best we have ever eaten! Knowing that the very kind lady who served us had made the pies herself made them
taste even more delicious! Wish I lived closer to Hartsburg........to ride the Katy Trail and treat myself to lunch at Dotty's whenever I felt like it!
Anonymous on 10/28/2011 11:39 AM:
I have tried repeatedly to fix my hours on this website but it stays the same. Right now we are open 7am to 2pm. wed. thru Sun Im not sure yet if we will change to hours for the winter. we stayed the same last year and nobody came so i don't know if we will change to just weekends. It will be January if we do. I will try to post it if I can find the place lol dotty
El Toro on 10/28/2011 11:12 PM:
Had a wonderful breakfast and delicious blackberry cobbler w/ice cream last Saturday. Oh so good. Wish I was a closer and I would ride back over tomorrow. Thanks Dotty!
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Kim from Independence, MO on 08/22/2011 07:15 AM:
Would like to know the days/hours Dotty's will be open on Labor Day Weekend. We are doing some riding and have found previously that the hours posted here do not necessarily apply on holiday weekends...
Anonymous on 08/22/2011 12:59 PM:
Call them and let us all know.
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Jeff from Lee's Summit on 07/27/2011 08:09 PM:
Dotty's is wonderful. She took great care of us. Amazing omelets. Plenty of cold water. A great diner on the trail.
http://trozzolopassinglane.wordpress.com/2011/07/27/without-a-goal-there’s-no-arrival/
Dotty's Cafe in Hartsburg
Griffin from Overland Park, KS on 06/12/2011 03:07 PM:
Love Dotty's, and wanted chicken fried steak special with cobbler, but her hours vary from this website posting. We were just there, 6/11/11, hours are 7-2, no dinner, Bummer. Eating dinner at Muddy's is just not the same.
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
Jennifer from Omaha - on 08/31/2010 12:47 AM:
Good food and she opened earlier than posted on the door sign - a bonus for us cause we had a long day ahead of us.
Anonymous on 09/01/2010 02:02 AM:
My favorite place to eat on the trail. Dotty is a sweet heart...
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
Curt and Kathy from Silex, MO on 08/22/2010 02:16 PM:
June 23, 2010- On our journey to ride the entire Katy Trail from St. Charles to Clinton, we had a great breakfast at DOTTY’S Café. The Katy Trail was partially flooded from Hartsburg to McBain so we needed transportation to get around. Dotty and her sister went out of their way to help us figure out a way to get a ride out of town. Gary Caldwell, a very sweet gentleman volunteering a Dotty’s café that morning, offered to take us around the flood, which was about an hour’s drive by car. We were so grateful, what a blessing! We really enjoyed Gary’s company on the trip up and around to McBain. Thank you again GARY and Dotty for loaning him to help us out! We will be back to DOTTY’s Café again!
Great Place to Stop
George from Lebanon, IL on 08/14/2010 01:23 PM:
Stopped here for lunch on July 21 on day two of a four day ride. Great service and food, even was able to plug in my smartphone for a quick carge while eating. They even offered to fill my water bottles with ice water.
barf on 08/15/2010 08:51 PM:
where was it?
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
Jean S. from St. Charles on 10/25/2009 12:01 PM:
Biked from Clinton to St. Charles with my daughter and several friends
and 4 of us had lunch here! It was a needed rest and very needed hot
meal. Good food, good service, clean restroom, most delicious cheese
sticks ever and we were so glad we ate here! ONLY drawback, they do not
accept credit cards.
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
fred bain from johnston city on 08/07/2009 07:42 PM:
had lunch at dotty's thursday....had the meatloaf dinner which is iffy at any diner.....but i definately won that gamble because it was very good......tasted just like my mom's!!!!...great service with a coke refill 4 times!! best food i ate on the trail hands down
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
Ann and Pete from St. Louis on 04/27/2009 05:44 PM:
We rode hard and fast on a 98 degree day in July 2008 to get here by 2, in time for lunch. When we arrived, hot, thirsty and hungry, we found they had closed early (not enough business). What to do? Fortunately, the nice owner took pity on us and brought us huge glasses of lemonade and homemade cobbler and ice cream to enjoy on the front porch swing. This is a great place!
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
C_Bunch from Lake of the Ozarks on 04/26/2009 09:47 PM:
We had Dottie's for lunch today! Very friendly service and fast food! I will visit Dottie's again!
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
Darryl from St. Louis on 09/16/2008 08:42 PM:
My son and I had lunch at Dotty’s while on a trail ride the first week of September. Good food and friendly service. A fun place to stop, rest and eat. Awesome chocolate pie!
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
Tony & Sharon from Beaman on 09/30/2007 07:34 AM:
My wife and I stopped in to "Dotty's" yesterday. After we sat down we had glasses of water in front of us quickly and then without even requesting it our water bottles were filled with ice water! The food was great, great atmosphere, and the service was the best we've seen in a long, long time. We plan on taking some of our cyclist friends there soon. But either way we'll be back. It was good enough we bought a pair of "Dotty's" mugs.
Anonymous on 09/11/2008 01:58 PM:
Make sure you call ahead. Dotty's was closed when we passed through despite their posted hours. Would have loved to try their food. Ended up at the Hitching Post...pretty good food, great atmosphere.
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
Jason from Huntsville, AL on 10/16/2006 04:41 PM:
Had dinner here a couple weeks ago and all I can say is...GREAT! The service, the food, the price...everything was great! I would eat three meals a day here if I could! I can't say enough good things!
RO on 10/18/2006 12:11 PM:
I agree, Dotty's was only second to a great great place in Rochport called Abigales. Best meal I have ever had, start to finish.
Chuck from OP, KS on 04/05/2007 09:58 AM:
We eat at Dotty's everytime we trail thru Hartsburg. Great place. Home cooked, comfort food. Have bought a couple nice little knick-knacks there too. We were sorry to see that the cyclery in Hartsburg closed down last fall. The people who ran it were good folk. The proprietor said he was moving the business to Jeff City(?) or Sedalia or somewhere else along the trail. Good luck to them.
MAH from Blue Springs, MO on 04/05/2007 05:36 PM:
We've also eaten at Dotty's and found it to be a great place. Nice people, great food.
savage24 from KC,MO on 04/05/2007 10:09 PM:
Add my name to the Dotty's fan club! Unfortunately, I don't get to visit there much since they are closed on my days off. If you are reading this and planning to visit Dotty's, please remember that they are closed on Monday & Tuesday. Be sure and check business hours when planning a ride on the Katy. This website is a great resource for that.
Bruce from O'Fallon, IL on 09/06/2007 06:02 PM:
Ditto on the good comments about Dotty's Cafe. Extremely nice folks, place was very clean, great food. They'll give you ice and water for your bottles as well. There is also a small park under large shade trees to wait out the heat after lunch. Nice little town.
Trek Biker & Co. from St. Joseph, MO on 09/06/2007 10:27 PM:
Bruce,
The park in Hartsburg is also a good place to dry a tent, eat a snack, or visit with an "old" trail friend. We hope you enjoyed your trip. We did make it back to Boonville and completed our Century ride. Steamboat Junction is a good stop, but I hear the hostel in Tebbets works too.
Linda from Bolivar on 09/22/2007 09:40 PM:
I wished we could have eaten at Dotty's last Tuesday. After we gave up on a lunch, we ate our trail mix at the trailhead. Then as we were leaving, they opened just for a group--wish they could have put a sign out that they would open at noon that day to serve others, too. Our 'lunch' was ice cream at Jeff City later that afternoon. We weren't the only ones looking for lunch that day either--it would be nice if the businesses got together to make sure someone was open each day.
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
Brian from Murfreesboro, TN on 10/07/2006 05:47 PM:
Great spaghetti and the price is right. Bicycle friendly town.
Dotty's Cafe (Hartsburg)
JD from Joplin on 09/24/2006 07:57 PM:
A nice 50's style dinner. Great place to eat if Hartsburg is one of your stops.