Gussy’s brings alligator, pub favorites to Lone Tree

By Molly Roberts
Posted 12/15/20

Ask Stephanie “Gussy” Ineichen about alligator and her eyes light up. Ask her about her pork tenderloin sandwich and her eyes burn even brighter — She’s proud of it, hand-cut, …

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Gussy’s brings alligator, pub favorites to Lone Tree

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Ask Stephanie “Gussy” Ineichen about alligator and her eyes light up. Ask her about her pork tenderloin sandwich and her eyes burn even brighter — She’s proud of it, hand-cut, hand-pounded and hand-breaded.

Ineichen, the owner and operator of Lone Tree’s new bar, Gussy’s, wants to provide the community with good, fresh, homemade food. And introduce them to something new, like alligator or frogs’ legs.

“I just want to bring business back to Lone Tree. It’s been so dead,” Ineichen said. “Everybody says there’s just nothing to do anymore. We’re hoping to change that.”

Gussy’s opened on Monday, Nov. 30 and promptly went through 150 pounds of hamburger in the first week. The burger meat, never frozen, is pattied by hand to create unctuous burgers. Since opening, Ineichen has gone through two cases of alligator meat a week, which she serves in fried bites and as an entree. It’s true what they say — it does taste like chicken.

Ineichen said the alligator is her favorite thing to prepare.

“We were in Wisconsin and we found this little dive bar, which are the best places ever to go to, and they were serving alligator bites,” Ineichen said. “I told the cook I had a couple of places in Iowa and she brought me back into the kitchen and taught me how to break down the tail, how to prepare it and I said, ‘I’m taking this to Iowa.’ So, now it’s here.”

Ineichen said the first few weeks of her business have been crazy, but in a good way. She operates with a small staff — usually just one waitress or a cook.

“I tried, in the first couple days, to do it all myself and it was overwhelming. There was no possible way one person could handle it,” Ineichen said. “Friends have been helping me out, people in town are pretty awesome about it, too. They tell me to just call, then I call and they answer.”

“I kind of throw them under the bus, though. Cause I’m stuck in the kitchen and I’ve got about 15, 16 tickets and the phone is still ringing and people are still coming in. I tell them they’ve got to try to figure out where everything’s at on their own. They do pretty good!”

Business is about 75% carry out right now, but Ineichen looks forward to the day, once the COVID crisis has passed, that she can offer events like karaoke, darts and cornhole.

But for now, Ineichen and her staff are focusing on providing great food. Cook Adam Sparrow said he has yet to receive a single complaint about a burger he’s prepared — despite the fact that the kitchen at Gussy’s is smaller than anywhere he’s worked before. He and Ineichen call it their “one-butt kitchen”.

“Right now we’re getting more business than our kitchen can handle,” Sparrow said. “Which isn’t a bad problem to have. Things have been crazy so far, but they’ve been good.”

Gussy’s is open at 11 a.m. every day and open until about 9 p.m. (under the governor’s proclamation, restaurants must close and be empty of customers by 10 p.m.). Carry out orders can be placed at 319-629-4444.