Local business woman Olive McArthur is now serving traditional home cooking with a "First Nations flare" at the Broken Arrow Gas Bar and Convenience. Fried bread, Indian tacos, beef and chili stew with biscuits, homemade soup, beef and elk hamburgers- these are among the mouthwatering menu items that McArthur has selected for her Broken Arrow Junction Café. While this is the official name of her new business, MacArthur, who has a great-granddaughter, has nicknamed it "Granny's Nook."
Despite being busy with her new business, McArthur has been putting aside time to learn the Nakota language, which is nearing extinction, she explained. The language has many unique accents that are difficult to reproduce using standard word processing software. Nonetheless, Wahikpe K'sawaha Cani Wopeto is Nakota for the Broken Arrow Smoke Shop, which is a popular name for the site of McArthur's new café.
The story behind the Broken Arrow Gas Bar and Convenience is one of determination and resourcefulness. Twelve years ago, the business started out in a camper, believe it or not. The mobile home and former place of business now stands in the shadow its new home, a standard building, which was built in 2002.
In addition to being an astute business person, McArthur is also cancer survivor. After beating the disease in 2000, McArthur decided not to return to her profession as an educator and conducted a series of feasibility studies for starting her own business. After concluding that Highway 13 at Kisbey would be an ideal location for a gas bar, McArthur and her business partners decided to seize the opportunity. The business has been growing steadily ever since with the Broken Arrow Junction Café as its latest milestone.
Up until now, the gas bar has been providing locals with employment opportunities and McArthur anticipates hiring more of the area residents to help out with café side of the business. Eventually, she would also like to build an outdoor eating area for her customers.
Although McArthur's sharp business sense and can-do attitude must have played a large role in the business's success so far, something business partner Patricia Fleming attested to during our interview, she wished to send a thank you to her family for all their support.
The Broken Arrow Junction Café, or "Granny's Nook," opened for business on Monday, Nov. 19. Until the café's venting and propane systems are installed, McArthur will only be serving non-fried food items from the menu. In the meantime, she will also be working on sewing aprons and tablecloths for her café-a few final touches to complete the home cooking experience that customers can expect from Granny's Nook.
