Custard's first stand LESLIE BAKER is shown along with employees Laura Poppie and Kristin Siebold as Kewaunee Custard (photo by Lee Lawrenz). Kewaunee business's daily flavor of the day is probably area's most read list By Lee Lawrenz News-Chronicle "Life's uncertain. Eat dessert first." Kewaunee Custard, a summer business located on the north end of Kewaunee on Highway 42, owned by Joe and Leslie Baker, has the sumptuous custards to go with their sage advice. Their "Flavor of the Day," identified on their portable sign and printed weekly in the local newspaper, gets plenty of attention both from the locals and tourist traffic en route to Door County. "We probably have 50 different flavors. The 15 most popular we run each month," says Leslie, who handles the bookkeeping end of the business. "The most popular, which my husband calls the "A" flavors, we run on the weekends, although we also have them occasionally on weekdays for the regulars." Weekend flavors include Caramel Cashew, Creamy Heath Bar, Twisted Turtle, Pralines N' Cream and Caramel Fudge Pecan. Weekdays include the more exotic flavors like European Butter Fudge, Blue Moon, Mint Chocolate Ripple, Banana Cream Pie and Strawberry Cheesecake, which all have their niches. Kewaunee Custard also offers vanilla and chocolate daily. "Anything with a nut in is very popular, plus those with strawberry and raspberry seem to do well," Leslie said. "But, we have people who watch for other flavors and make an effort to come for them. When we have cherry bon bon, there's some people we know who will definitely come in." Joe Baker was pastor of the Congregational Church in Kewaunee in the 1980s. The Bakers wanted to come back to Kewaunee during retirement (Joe currently works part-time as a chaplain at the Green Bay Correctional Institution), and found the local custard business for sale, which had been started by Harold and Jean Ross 12 years ago. The log building, which houses the custard stand, originally was a sausage and cheese store. Ironically, the Bakers didn't know what custard was before they bought the business. "We came (back here) from California. We had never heard of custard before," Leslie said. However, custards are certainly popular in the dairy state. "They have a lot more flavor than ice milk and more butterfat than most ice creams," Leslie said. "We make them here, whipped in a machine, and they're very, very good." The restaurant also offers an assortment of sundaes - peanut butter cup surprise is August's Sundae of the Month - along with banana splits, shakes and malts, "plus a fairly extensive grill (menu)," which even includes items like buffalo burgers and chef salads as well as the usual deluxe burgers, double cheeseburgers, BLTs and grilled cheese with bacon. The hand-formed hamburgers and hot dogs all come from area businesses, while the buns are from the local bakery. The Bakers ran the business year-round for four years, before switching to seasonal. Kewaunee Custard opened for the season the last two days in April and will be open through the end of October. The Bakers' children all worked in the restaurant while growing up, but moved on after graduating from high school. "It's worked out really well," Leslie said. "We were afraid it would be hard to get good seasonal employees, but we've gotten great help and the kids come back year after year. One of our assistant managers has been with us six or seven years, and it's been nice to really watch him grow." A custard business is often weather-dependent. Custard sales probably have been down due to this year's cool, rainy summer, although that has been offset by more local business due to a popular restaurant closing downtown. "The weather is definitely a factor in how well custard sells," Leslie said. "But, when it's hot, it can get crazy with people lined up through the door and around. My husband says a lot also depends on the flavor of the custard."