Eatdrink #43 September/October 2013

№ 43 | September/October 2013
cooker. “They come out nice and crispy, but
not greasy,” says Kropf. “But it’s not a typical
Mennonite dish. It’s just something Anna
Mae brought in that we became known for.”
“Mennonite cooking is basic country
cooking. Meat, potato, and vegetable,”
Kropf explains. “It’s the way people used
to cook years ago.” The simplicity is
reflected in the restaurant’s short dinner
menu, which offers a five-week rotating
meat schedule. Features include turkey
with dressing, farmer’s sausage, roast
beef, meatloaf, pork chops, pig tails, and
schnitzel, in addition to broasted chicken
and Monday’s all-you-can-eat fish and
chips. All are available in three portion
sizes — small, regular, and platter.
But no meal at Anna Mae’s would be
complete without a slice of homemade
pie. With more than twenty varieties to
choose from, it is difficult to eat just one.
Apple pie, pecan, and cherry are the top
sellers, says Kropf, although coconut cream
is also popular. The bakery also offers a
tempting selection of breads, muffins,
cookies, cakes, squares and sweet buns, as
well as apple fritters, donuts, and creamfilled
Little Janes. And the tasty treats
aren’t just popular with visiting city-folk.
“Mennonites are known for their baking,
but many of our Mennonite customers
actually buy our things too,” says Kropf.
After dining and stocking up on baked
goods at Anna Mae’s, it’s worth taking a
stroll through the village to the Millbank
Cheese Factory. Founded as a cooperative
by local farmers in 1908, Millbank Cheese
and Butter was producing 180,000 kg of
cheese per year by 1933. By the mid-1980s, it
sold $12 million worth of cheese and butter
annually and was purchased by Schneiders,
Millbank Cheese Factory
outlet store
A selection of some of Anna Mae’s famous pies
followed by Ault Foods and Parmalat. When
Parmalat shut down production in 1999 the
community rallied to buy back the factory.
“In September 2003 it became owned by
the local community again, and at this time
is owned by 90 families from the Millbank
area,” says Ed Bennett, board president of
Millbank Cheese and Cold Storage Inc. Of
those families, 80 are “horse and buggy
people,” he says.
Millbank Cheese is particularly well
known for its cheddar, which is made
from a traditional recipe and naturally
aged. “That means there are no enzymes
added to the cheese to age it,” Bennett
explains. “That is something that has been
consistent since 1908.”Mozzarella, havarti,
marble, Gouda, cheese curds, a selection
of flavoured cheeses, as well as goat and
sheep cheese, are all Millbank staples.
In 2004, the company launched an
organic line. It currently produces an
organic Swiss and organic mild, medium,
and aged cheddar — up to 8 years old —
all made with unpasteurized milk. “It’s a
more natural cheese,” says Bennett. “The
difference is in the rules. You can’t release
raw milk cheese to the market until it is
aged at least three months.” In
addition to selling Millbank
cheeses, the factory store carries
Mapleton’s organic ice cream
and frozen yogurt, drug-free,
free-ranged poultry products
from The Poultry Place, and
locally-raised beef and pork.
And while Millbank Cheese
can be found in specialty food
shops throughout Ontario,
Bennett says many cheese-lovers
make the trip to Millbank to
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