Relax and unwind with a meal at Waters Edge
By Renae B. Vander Schaff
news@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 05/08/2012 9:55 AM
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The Waters Edge — A Bed and Breakfast Home and Event Center
Address: 4419 Waters Edge Drive, Sioux Center, Iowa
Telephone: (712) 567-5111
Open: By appointment only
Most requested menu items: Chicken and white wine sauce $18. Seasoned Pork Loin $18. Both entrees are served with choice of soup or salad, potato, vegetable, roll and dessert.
Located in the country surrounded by soybean and corn fields, The Waters Edge Bed and Breakfast is just as the name implies — a place to retreat, to reflect and to leave refresh.
Kim Hoogland and her husband purchased the house that is built at the water's edge formerly called Hyman's Pit.
"Yes, our home is located next to a refurbished, glorified sand pit! We remodeled the house adding an event center room, with the intention of renting it out to others to use."
It wasn't long before requests began coming in asking if the Hooglands would consider making food for their events. After a bit of contemplation, Kim Hoogland invited her mother, Bernice Vander Stoep, to join her in the new venture. After all, she knew her mother was an excellent cook with plenty of experience cooking for her family as well as being the dietary supervisor at a local hospital.
"Kim knows her way around a kitchen, too," said Vander Stoep. "The meals we serve are just good home cooked meals. Not in a restaurant-type setting. We strive to have everything be as homelike as possible."
Their most requested meals are the seasoned pork loin and chicken with white wine sauce. The entrees are served with a choice of potato, vegetable, soup or salad and dessert. Beef stuffed turnovers, chicken Florentine and barbecue pork are some luncheon menu choices. Dessert selections include crepes, pie and cheese cakes.
Guests dine at round tables adorned with cloth table coverings, cloth napkins and ''company'' dishes. A wall of windows overlook the water. Decorations are chosen that are appropriate for the event's theme and will match the bride and groom's colors if it is a rehearsal supper.
It's also the place for many birthday and Christmas parties. A local business regularly schedules meetings there. Scrapbookers plan retreats, often for more than one day. The Waters Edge provides all the meals.
A grandma once chose The Waters Edge to host a "Fancy Nancy Party." She invited her daughters and granddaughters for a tea party. They dressed in hats and frilly dresses for the occasion.
Kim Hoogland's 14-year-old daughter Martina is the server, bringing food to the guests. Another daughter, five-year-old Madison, helps with the clean up.
"Laughter is what we hear," said Vander Stoep. She takes special joy in knowing that the work the three generations do is blessing others. They hear complements often because the quiet solitude is just the change guests need from their busy lives
All menus are chosen ahead as The Waters Edge is only open by appointment. The food is prepared the day of the event often using vegetables from their gardens. In the summer the sweet corn comes from a local producer. "Our guests do notice the fresh from the garden taste," said Kim Hoogland.
The bed and breakfast has also designed a quiet, relaxing spot in the backyard. Chairs surround a fire pit. Long-needled pine trees provide shelter from the wind and privacy. The gentle slapping of waves can be heard.
"Magical things happen here," said Martina.
— Renae B. Vander Schaaf