Longtime eatery will shut its doors

After 41 years of food, fun and community conviviality, the White Leghorn Cafe in Westhoff is going on a permanent vacation.

Owners Ruby and James Dickerson have decided that it’s time to close the shades on this beloved rural haunt and enjoy some peace and quiet.

“The White Leghorn Café started out as the White Leghorn Inn in 1936,” explained owner Ruby Dickerson. “The cowboys used to drive their horses from Victoria and lodge here overnight. From there, they’d travel to San Antonio.”

The Dickersons took over the business in 1970, and over the years, the “Inn” developed into a restaurant and lounge as they recognized their patrons’ need for food and recreation.

“We started serving food and beer, and the place kind of morphed into a restaurant,” said James. “Eventually, they did away with the rooms.”

James noticed that a lot of people drove by without stopping, and suggested to Ruby that they drop the “Inn” and add “Cafe.”

“After we did that, we started to get a lot more business,” said James.

Unbeknownst to the Dickersons, the customer demands they now enjoyed began to skyrocket with the recent oil boom in Gonzales County.

“In August of 2010, the folks from the oilfield came,” said James. “Up until then, we didn’t have a credit card machine. Since all they had to pay with were credit cards, we set up a credit card machine. After that, our business tripled.”

Without a backup of helping hands, the Dickersons soon found themselves overwhelmed by the huge increase in business.

“The needs of the oilfield people required James and I to expand our days and hours of operation,” said Ruby. “We really wanted to do that, but we couldn’t find people in the area to help us out. We can’t take all that on ourselves.”

With that realization, the Dickersons decided to hang their hats after four decades of providing good ol’ down home service to their community.

“Our next objective will to be to clear out 11 acres of brush on a piece of land we own,” said James. “With the exception of the bulldozer, we’re looking forward to some peace and quiet!”

The White Leghorn Café will celebrate its last night of food and entertainment on Friday, June 4.