Something Special in Waldo; Classic Cookie has daily deals to savor.

by Lauren Chapin, The Kansas City Star, December 21, 2006
GOOD & CHEAP —CLASSIC COOKIE AND CAFE

When a reader took the time to send a handwritten letter encouraging me to check out one of his favorites, the Classic Cookie and Cafe in Waldo, I could only oblige.

Leslie Stockard has been chef/owner of the Classic Cookie for eight years now. Her mother, Joan Munagle, and niece Krista Stockard help her run the 30-seat eatery. Every order is made from scratch, Stockard says. No frozen products, no shortcuts.

I checked out the Classic Cookie twice for lunch, nibbling on a companion's Classic Cookie salad, a medley of greens, veggies, nuts an a schoop of homey chicken salad. On another day my vegetarian friend ordered the vegetarian sandwich made with lots of veggies, including sprouts.

I opt for each day's homemade specials: a simple but filling chicken, broccoli and rice casserole one day, the meat loaf on another. I especially liked the meat loaf.

It was tender and comforting, topped with spoonfuls of Stockard's famous "secret sauce." She won't divulge the ingredients, but the creamy, slightly sweet sauce tasted of herbs and sun-dried tomatoes.

As a treat and a sweet thank-you, each table is served a basketful of mini-muffins and cookies.

The monthly specials menu is poste on the Web site. It's a fun, enticing read: putting on the Ritz casserole, chicken almandine, cowgirl quiche, etc.

The Classic Cookie does weekend breakfasts, too, and according to the letter writer, the place is mobbed.