MUKWONAGO, Wisconsin – A word to the wise: It is dangerous to arrive hungry at The Elegant Farmer.
The word tempting does not do justice to what awaits visitors inside the former dairy barn, which once housed a herd of Guernsey cattle. Brothers Dave and Elmer Scheel sold the cattle in the late 1950s, deciding to concentrate efforts on growing the farm market and pick-your-own apples. The spectacular growth attests to the wisdom of their choice.
Ownership has changed over the years. Elmer’s son Dan Scheel took over in 1970 and renamed the operation The Elegant Farmer. In 2006 employees Keith Schmidt and John Bauer, along with John’s brother Mike, acquired the business.
The Bauers retired and Keith Schmidt is moving in that direction. Next up is daughter Katie Schmidt, the fourth generation of owners. Katie is like the wind. She never stops moving. We tried to keep up on a recent visit.
“My dad is slowly starting to think about retiring,” she told us, explaining when asked that the only title she carries is jack-of-all-trades. “I’m in the hand-off process. I’ve worked in almost every department,” starting out bagging, then spending time in the produce department, bakery, deli and now running the back end of the business.
The shop is open seven days a week – closed only on New Year’s Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas – which surely explains her stay-on-task persona.
The Elegant Farmer is a destination with a national reputation. Visitors come from far and wide, some by car, others by tour bus, and lots more when the historic East Troy Railroad trolley makes one of its daily stops. We asked Katie how many people visit in a month?
“Thousands,” was her answer.
The store’s signature item is “Apple Pie Baked in a Paper Bag,” so good that the name is a registered trademark. The Wall Street Journal calls it the best apple pie in America. They’re not wrong.
But why limit your taste buds? We didn’t.
The bakery is almost sinful. There are giant fruit muffins, big enough for two mouths. We tried a cinnamon twist that did not disappoint. The cookies are huge. The selection of items is enormous and tasty.
We asked the secret to make it all so good.
“You don’t want to know how much butter we buy at a time,” Katie said.
Our response: “Yes, we do.”
She said they buy butter by the pallet, at least 70 pallets last year, and each container on the pallet holds 70 pounds of butter.
The deli serves up fresh slices of pie, and you can get it with ice cream. We also lunched on home-baked cider ham sandwiches, with a side of potato salad. Wonderful.
Next to the pies, the cider-baked ham is a close second in popularity with customers, Katie said. Take-home orders make backyard parties or family events easy – just warm and serve.
Other popular items are brats, bacon, ribs, giant pot pies, gourmet popcorn, a broad selection of cheeses, several ice cream flavors, delectable breads and bakery items.
The shop also carries – often under its own label – an eclectic mix of seasonings, sauces and other kitchen necessities. The Wisconsin connection is evident throughout.
“We really try to focus on products that are near and dear to Wisconsin people,” Katie told us. “The focus is on made-in-Wisconsin. We’re not out here trying to get everything you can find in a grocery store. We want things that are original, because this is a destination place.”
It certainly is, and the reasons for visiting are expanding.
The Elegant Cork – located in an adjacent building at the corner of highways ES and J – is a relatively new and growing operation. It specializes in Wisconsin wines and beers, with tasting opportunities every day along with scheduled special events.
The big announcement for 2026 is the addition of a large event space.
“We are tearing down the greenhouse as of November 1, and we are building a permanent structure. It will house an event venue,” Katie said. “All total it will be able to seat up to 250 people. It will have two levels, a full catering kitchen and a full bar.”
She said the space will be available for weddings, Christmas parties and any community events.
“There’s nothing that size in the village (of Mukwonago).”
Before letting her go we had to ask the question people will surely want to know. Where did that paper bag pie thing come from?
“Karen, Dan’s (Scheel) wife, started fussing around, saw this recipe in a book and thought this is an interesting concept to bake a pie in a paper bag. She tried it and loved it. They brought it down here to their bakery people and they loved it too,” Katie answered.
Apple and caramel apple are considered their classics, but there are other flavors like peach apple and blueberry apple.
Pies can be shipped across the country, going out frozen and ready to be warmed up.
Nifty idea, though we’d rather eat the pies than share.
For more information go to the website (elegantfarmer.com).
