Gathering place
Ruby’s Café and Dairy Bar meets a community need
RUBY’S CAFÉ AND DAIRY BAR is one of two places to eat for miles in rural Greenup County. For owner Maria Grimes, that makes it more than just a restaurant. She sees it as a way to serve her neighbors.
Maria, 25, stresses that running the restaurant is a family effort. Her parents, Matthew and Kimberly Maggard, helped clean and restore the space before it opened in 2021. Her nieces, Maddy and Sophia, help on busy days and are always eager to test cookie and cake recipes.
“My whole family is so at home here, and it’s just a gathering place for us to serve our community as a family,” Maria says.
The regular menu includes staples like burgers, sandwiches and wraps, along with soft serve in the summer and hard dip ice cream year-round. On Wednesdays and Thursdays, Maria cooks homemade specials like chicken and dumplings or soup. Fridays and Saturdays are pizza days, featuring Kimberly’s homemade pizza dough recipe. Homemade baked goods, like bread, cinnamon rolls and cakes, are offered daily.
“It’s very much a ministry to our community,” Maria says.
James Imel is a regular customer who lives near the restaurant. Maria says he doesn’t have family nearby and doesn’t like to cook for himself, so he comes in nearly every day the restaurant is open. He’s regular enough, now, that whenever he’s going to be late or absent, he lets Maria know so she won’t worry. “Because I will call him,” she says.
Served by Grayson RECC, Ruby’s Café and Dairy Bar is located at 24239 State Route 7 in Greenup, open 11 a.m.–7 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
