Restaurant History & About Us
Eatery History
Gustaf’s on Main Eatery – or simply, Gustaf’s Eatery – opened its doors in July 2018, bringing to life the dream of owners Ed and Deannah Muha. They envisioned a locally owned and inviting restaurant that served flavorful and affordable food for breakfast, brunch, or lunch – as well as Scandinavian specialties, desserts, and premium ice cream!
The Muha’s much-pondered and prayed over vision for the Eatery started to take shape in early 2017 when they purchased Lindstrom’s well-known red brick house, the Gustaf Anderson House, a site on the National Register of Historic Places. Their personal investment of time and hands-on labor revived the Old World charm of the Gustaf House to create a venue for Chisago Lakes area locals and visitors to enjoy fresh, naturally good food served in a quiet and comfortable setting. A place to eat today, and again tomorrow!
The Eatery offers a pleasant spot for shoppers to enjoy a fresh lunch, for business people to meet for coffee or brunch, for hikers to grab a snack and go, and for road-tripping friends to stop for food and refreshments. And much like the Gustaf family that occupied the house in the late 19th century, Gustaf’s Eatery strives to be organic, farm-to-table, and locally sourced.
Often called the “crown jewel” of Lindström (properly spelled with the umlaut over the o), the red brick “Gustaf’s House” has a history of its own:
The house was built circa 1879 by Gustaf Anderson, a Swedish immigrant who farmed land just south of Lindström in the 1860s. The house was the Anderson family’s retirement home following Gustaf’s stint on the Montana gold fields in the 1870s where he struck it rich – forever giving him the name Guldgubben, Swedish for “gold man.”
The Italianate brick exterior and Victorian high style interior gave the house its iconic appeal for many decades as generations of Andersons called the house their home. Not until 1971 was it vacated for non-residential use to become home to various businesses, and then, a site on the National Register of Historic Places. It was later gifted to the Chisago County Historical Society, from whom the Muha’s bought the iconic red brick house.
The Muha’s have been part of the Lakes area community for two decades and are committed to the restoration and preservation of this historic landmark in Minnesota’s Little Sweden, Lindström. They have invested time, money, and much “sweat equity” to make Gustaf’s Eatery a longstanding locally owned restaurant, a place for good food, good fellowship, and making good memories.