Hello everyone, I do hope your summer is going well, your garden is thriving and you’re getting ready for football weather. When I think of football season I think of food, fun and fellowship. Speaking of food, fun and fellowship, I thought I would talk to you about a place where I learned to drink coffee, eat a real breakfast and fellowship with some of the old timers. I’ll give you a brief rundown on this downtown Murfreesboro place of business I’m talking about and get you up to date on what’s going to be there next.
I know, you must get tired of me talking about my grandfather who was the sheriff and road superintendent of Rutherford County. Then my father was a county commissioner and the chairman of the county commission—in fact, there was a Wilson in office during the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. As a kid I would campaign, knocking on doors asking for votes. From a very young age I learned that I just love people and their stories.
There was no better place to go to hear stories than the City Cafe, which was founded in 1900. City Cafe was located in downtown Murfreesboro, Tennessee. It operated for 124 years, before closing in January 2025 as Tennessee’s oldest continuously running restaurant.
Henry and Dorsey Cantrell founded City Cafe in 1900. and it was actually first located at 11 South Public Square, on the Big B side of the Square today. It was promoted as “Rutherford County’s pride . . . City CALF A.” The Cantrells bottled the milk from their Salem Pike dairy in the upstairs area above the cafe.
After they moved the bottling from the upstairs area it became a gambling and drinking venue.
City Cafe would later relocate to 113 E. Main St.
I can remember going there in the early 1970s with my brother and my granddaddy Wilson and having my first cup of coffee as a 6-year-old. If you got to sit at the big table to the left as you walked in, man, you had arrived. You see, the City Cafe was the place where folks told their stories and did business. The telling of tales included politics and stories of everyday life, from who was getting married, or divorced, new additions to families and who had recently passed. You would hear about job opportunities, like at State Farm, the VA and GE, or a company laying off workers. You could hear about the stock market from the local stockbroker or hear about sporting events of the coming weekend. You would hear about MTSU activities. We would also hear about the weather, farmers and their crops, and who was getting arrested. The City Cafe was the MobilePatrol app of its time.
What’s going on with MTSU? Who’s gonna win the Celebration? If there was a war going on, you would hear opinions on that. These are just some of the things I remember. It always felt like a little fraternity and it was cool to be seen there. The food was good as well. City Cafe was a social barometer of its time. You could hear a plethora of information on just about anything.
Another thing I thought was cool was that it had names of dishes like the “Hearty Murfree”—two eggs cooked any style, home fries, a small pancake, biscuits and gravy or toast and grits. That was my go-to for breakfast along with some bacon. I’m getting hungry as I write this for a Hearty Murfree, a play on words referencing the man Murfreesboro was named after, Hardy Murfree.
It was 1936 when the eatery hired its first waitresses, sisters Audie and Sara Overall and Peggy Brown. The business changed hands numerous times over the decades; some of the other owners’ names included: the Manley brothers, Hall, Mason, McKnight, Watson, Cooper, Simpson, Perkins and Kelloggs, most recently.
City Cafe was part of Americana here in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for 125 years.
This September, Big Bad Breakfast will be going into business at the old City Cafe location at 113 E. Main St., starting a new chapter at the local restaurant space. Barbara Thomas, a dear friend of mine, will be managing the new restaurant, working with restaurateur Molly James.
They have big plans and intend to keep pieces of City Cafe still alive in the business. The new spot will also serve lunch and they will be open seven days a week. Many remember Thomas from her days operating B. McNeel’s.
Mr. Murfreesboro with Molly James
Thank you to City Cafe for all the memories. I look forward to making new ones at Big Bad Breakfast.
Look for the restaurant to open around the third week in September. You can hear my full interview with Big Bad Breakfast Managing Partner Molly James by going to the Mr. Murfreesboro Facebook or YouTube page.
Now go out and do something nice for someone. God bless!
