Millie's Cafe

Millie’s Cafe is Stephanie Springer’s KCK diner at 553 Central Ave in Strawberry Hill — named for her late grandmother Millie Favac Springer, a native Croatian who lived in the neighborhood. The cafe has been serving Croatian heritage food (povitica, stuffed cabbage) alongside American diner fare since May 2013, occupying the same space where Sophie’s Deli operated for nearly three decades before it.

Description

Millie’s Cafe & Catering is Stephanie Springer’s tribute to her grandmother and to Strawberry Hill’s Croatian immigrant heritage. Springer — a former teacher turned pastry chef and caterer — opened the diner in May 2013 at 553 Central Ave, taking over a space that had been home to Sophie’s Deli for nearly thirty years before it. She named the cafe after her late grandmother Millie Favac Springer, a native Croatian who lived in Strawberry Hill, and built the menu around her grandmother’s recipes alongside American diner staples. The result is a neighborhood diner where you can get povitica next to a bacon cheeseburger — and both belong there. The signature Strawberry Hillbilly (bacon cheeseburger, onion rings, BBQ sauce) is named for the neighborhood. Red woodwork throughout gives the space its warmth.

Tier classification

Tier 1 — KC-metro born and raised. Stephanie Springer is from the Kansas City area with deep family roots in Strawberry Hill, KCK.¹ Her Croatian grandmother was a Strawberry Hill resident; the restaurant is a homecoming as much as a business. Tier 1 on KC-born/raised grounds.

[!warning] Website misattribution — millies-cafe.square.site is NOT this business A Firecrawl capture of millies-cafe.square.site (2026-07-24) returned a California-style brunch menu (Maynard’s Special, Devil’s Mess, California Benedict, machaca/chilaquiles; entrées $15–$32) whose pickup address resolves to 1399 E Washington Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91104. That storefront belongs to a different “Millie’s Cafe,” not the KCK Strawberry Hill Croatian diner documented here. The website: frontmatter and the infobox link were backfilled from a MenuPix listing² and are wrong. Do not verify this page’s menu from that Square site. “ correct or remove the website field; the KCK Millie’s true web/social presence is unconfirmed (Facebook legacy handle @sophiesrestaurantanddeli only). Menu stays partial.

Menu

Last verified: 2026-07-14 (menu content) · 2026-07-24 (Firecrawl website check) · Source: The Pitch KC (2013) and Urban Hikes KC Strawberry Hill guide (2021). The Square storefront previously cited (millies-cafe.square.site) is a different, out-of-state business (see warning above) and must not be used. · URL(s): https://www.thepitchkc.com/millies-cafe-brings-back-polish-croatian-food-to-kck/ · Confidence: Medium (dishes named in press; the KCK Millie’s publishes no first-party itemized online menu, so this list is not exhaustive and no prices are published)

Croatian heritage cooking from grandmother Millie’s recipes served alongside down-home American diner plates, burgers and breakfast. Millie’s does not publish a full itemized menu online — the following are the dishes documented in press coverage.³

Croatian Heritage

• Povitica — traditional Croatian walnut roll, from the family recipe³
• Stuffed Cabbage Rolls — grandmother’s recipe³

Diner Plates & Sandwiches

• Strawberry Hillbilly — bacon cheeseburger topped with two onion rings and barbecue sauce³
• Spaghetti and Italian Sausage³
• Chicken-Fried Steak Sandwich³
• Burgers — a large selection³
• Breakfast — classic American diner breakfast³

Catering

• Full catering service available²

Sources

Footnotes

1. The Pitch KC — “Millie’s Cafe brings back Polish, Croatian food to KCK” (May 9, 2013) — https://www.thepitchkc.com/millies-cafe-brings-back-polish-croatian-food-to-kck/ — Confirms: Stephanie Springer owner; opened May 2013; 553 Central Ave; named after grandmother Millie Favac Springer (native Croatian, Strawberry Hill resident); former teacher/pastry chef/caterer; family roots in Strawberry Hill; building previously Sophie’s Deli for ~3 decades; menu (povitica, stuffed cabbage, Strawberry Hillbilly burger, spaghetti/Italian sausage, chicken-fried steak sandwich); red woodwork design. ↩

2. MenuPix listing (Aug 2025) — https://www.menupix.com/kansascity/restaurants/380219759/Millies-Cafe-and-Catering-Kansas-City-KS — confirms hours (Mon–Thu 11am–9pm, Fri–Sat 11am–10pm, Sun 11am–5pm); 553 Central, KCK; Facebook @sophiesrestaurantanddeli; millies-cafe.square.site. Phone. Recent review activity confirms open as of August 2025. ↩ ↩²

3. Millie’s Cafe — dishes documented by The Pitch KC (2013), https://www.thepitchkc.com/millies-cafe-brings-back-polish-croatian-food-to-kck/, and the Urban Hikes KC Strawberry Hill food guide (2021); no itemized online menu is published on millies-cafe.square.site (accessed 2026-07-14). ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸