Hamburg Inn No. 2, Iowa City, Iowa 

Hidden in the depths of downtown Iowa City, the Hamburg Inn No. 2 looked like most other diners – but when Ronald Reagan stopped in for the meatloaf special, everything changed.

“He had been an announcer for sports radio in Des Moines, so there was a history there,” said Dave Panther, owner of the Hamburg Inn. “Unfortunately I wasn’t here when he stopped in – I was out making a balloon delivery as a court jester. By the time I came in, he was out.”

That’s right, Panther also works part-time as a professional clown.

His restaurant started out modestly enough, but it has grown into something of an exception in the world of family-owned, mom-and-pop-type establishments. Its reputation was built by countless appearances in travel magazines, newspapers, even a TV show or two and as local destinations go, it’s a little slice of Midwestern Americana with a twist – part of it due to political star power.

Former President Reagan’s brief appearance in 1992 set the precedent for future politicians to drop in, pay their respects and enjoy cheap, heaping plates of traditional diner fare. Since Iowa holds the first caucuses in the nation, would-be candidates hit the state hard before the vote. With its location in the midst of politically-minded Iowa City and one famous face under its belt, the Hamburg Inn became a natural stop-over for White House hopefuls. Election candidates, including Barack Obama, John Edwards and John McCain, have all made the Inn a campaign destination — and that’s not counting a visit four years ago by another past president, Bill Clinton. Naturally, Reagan and Clinton generated enough star power at the tiny diner to have their own booths named after them, enshrined with their pictures and time of visit.

  David Hutson of Kansas City, Missouri knew a little of the political hype surrounding the Hamburg, even as a visitor. The hungry traveler dropped by the restaurant for an early breakfast, after it was recommended at his hotel.

“I assumed with the Iowa caucuses and stuff it would be pretty popular,” Hutson said.

While Hutson and his son Noah waited for their waffles, Noah spotted Bill Clinton’s picture hanging above their booth and came to his own conclusion that the restaurant was something special.

“I’m sitting where Clinton sat!” Noah Hutson said.

To take advantage of his establishment’s popularity in the election world, Dave Panther created the Iowa Coffee Bean Caucus in the fall of 2003. This simple, user-friendly voting format only requires that participants place a coffee bean in the jar of the candidate for whom they are voting.

“We had Kucinich and some of the other candidates come in, as well as reporters from Canada and the Netherlands,” he said. “Now we have [the coffee bean caucus] online and it’s getting more formalized.”

The coffee bean caucus has received ample press coverage since its creation and was even featured in an episode of “The West Wing.” Today, the restaurant’s visitors can cast their vote via beans for the upcoming 2008 election, but anyone who can’t make it to Iowa City can go online to hamburginn.com and complete a virtual version of the ballot.

“With the caucuses, we just try to make it a win-win for us and for [the candidates],” Panther said. “It’s a lot of fun.”

However, some customers, including Randy McClanahan of Iowa City, pay little attention to the media frenzy and instead focus on the food.

“I don’t care – I’m never here when a presidential candidate is here,” she said.

McClanahan might choose to bypass politicians, but that hasn’t stopped her from visiting the Hamburg Inn for the past 20 years.

“They’ve got the best hamburgers and home fries in town, and I love the ambience,” she said. “I like the diversity of people; it’s a good representation of Iowa City.”

Another reason for McClanahan’s appreciation of the restaurant lies in the friendliness of the staff. She said she enjoys it when the cook, Sam Maynard, takes the time to step out of the kitchen and chat with her while she eats. Maynard, like his boss, has his own unique story.

“I work here and as a tattoo apprentice,” he said. “It’s nice to have an accommodating schedule.”

Maynard works at the Hamburg Inn five days a week, whipping up everything from hamburgers and milkshakes to massive omelets and pancakes.

“I like the old nostalgic menu because you can see how expensive food has gotten,” he said. “It’s a pretty sweet job.”

Employees like Maynard have helped the Hamburg Inn enjoy impressive longevity. Panther said his father started the restaurant in 1948, and it’s stayed in the family ever since, after Dave and his brother took over in the late seventies.

“When my dad got out of the Navy this place was for sale,” he said. “I joined my dad in 1974 and bought it in ’79. I was joined by my brother, but now I run it on my own.”

The Panther family owned several businesses at one point: three locations of the Hamburg Inn and a motel called the Big Ten Inn. However, all that remains today is the Hamburg Inn No. 2.

And that site was almost lost as well. In 1994, a fire destroyed part of the original building. However, the disaster gave the business a chance to expand from its original five booth, 12 counter seat layout. The restaurant was resuscitated, but since the building is surrounded by other businesses, there are no further plans for expansion, Panther said.

Any discussion of the Hamburg Inn would not be complete without mentioning their most popular non-edible item – the T-shirts.

Beneath the single register at the front of the restaurant is a glass case filled with the colorful clothing, each proclaiming “Hamburg Inn, No. 2 Incorporated, Iowa City, Iowa.” People can be seen all over Iowa City wearing the vintage-looking shirts, but they don’t always stay within city limits.

“It’s almost like you’re a minor celebrity,” Panther said. “When you travel once in a while you’d run into someone with our T-shirt. One of the more bizarre ones happened when someone was on a wilderness trek in Peru and saw a guy coming down the trail with our shirt on.”

Through all of the burgers consumed, T-shirts purchased and candidates hosted, the Hamburg Inn has built a deserved reputation as a can’t-miss Iowa destination.

“I think we’ve been fortunate,” Panther said. “We’ve been in several travel books and people come because of that, but we also get a lot of travelers through word of mouth.”

Consistency has also helped, especially since ownership has remained in one family for all of the restaurant’s 59 years of business.

However, the Panther’s tenure might be ending when Dave retires.

Although he recognizes the perks of keeping the Hamburg Inn in the family and has children of his own, he said that none of them are really interested in taking charge of the establishment at this point.

“I think staying in the family is part of the draw,” he said. “But right now, it looks like it may be the end.”

Even if the family tradition that built up the place ends, it shouldn’t diminish the success that the quirky little diner has had – and its importance as an Iowa landmark. The Hamburg Inn will continue on, and it owes much of its success to the Panther family.

“We’ve tried to stay loyal to our roots, following diets and technology but still keeping what made us a success,” Panther said. “We’re trying to keep reinventing ourselves.”