West Central Wisconsin is in a ‘pickle’
Verns Cheese under new ownership after 59 years
June 8, 2026
AMHERST – At just 21 years old, Maria Kildahl said entrepreneurship has been part of her life for as long as she can remember.
With a strong family tradition of small business ownership, Kildahl – the owner of Maria’s Tomorrow River Supper Club in Amherst – said that background helped give her an early start.
“I grew up in a restaurant – my grandparents owned one,” she said. “I’ve done this since I was very little. I also have lots of family members who have owned businesses. My parents and my uncle each own two.”
Kildahl – who recently graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (UWGB) – said when she initially went to college, she wanted to be a small business lawyer.
She said she was drawn to that path because small businesses and entrepreneurship were a major part of her family background.
“It was something I was very passionate about – I love small business,” she said. “I understand them well, and I know the work that goes into starting them and how to keep them running. On top of that, I also had a passion for law.”
During her senior year in high school, Kildahl said she began working at a supper club in Wautoma – an experience that ultimately prompted a shift in her career goals.
“I fell in love with that place – absolutely fell in love with it,” she said. “After working there for a while, that’s when I began talking about maybe changing my career path and starting my own business, because I also have a drive for the service industry.”
Though she had a knack for having “positive interactions with customers,” Kildahl said it’s one thing to want to start a business, but it’s another thing to bring it all to fruition.
“I said to my parents, ‘I just don’t think it’s possible, because I have no money,’” she laughed. “When I said that, they chuckled and said, ‘Anything is possible if you put your mind to it.’ I started looking at small business ownership while I was finishing out my degree.”
When a building became available in Amherst last fall, roughly 10 minutes from where she grew up, Kildahl said she saw it as an opportunity she just couldn’t pass up.
She said working at the supper club in Wautoma throughout college allowed her to save money to help support the new business venture.
“With the help of my parents, we decided we could do it,” she said. “They have been here through all of it and have been a huge help. I could not be doing this without them. I just decided this is where my life was going to take me.”
Kildahl said she put in an offer on the building located at 141 County Road KK at the beginning of January, but didn’t close until March.
She said the building had previously operated as a supper club before being brought back to life as Maria’s Tomorrow River Supper Club.
“I think the former supper club ended operations in about 2010,” she said. “A lot of the older people in my little community remember it as a supper club. After it ceased to be a supper club, it had been a bar and barbeque joint.”
Kildahl said much of the work in transforming the building was cosmetic in nature – painting, reworking a few things and reverting the aesthetics of a bar back into a traditional supper club.
“I needed to change the vibe into more of an old-fashioned one,” she said. “Also, in the kitchen, there was a lot of stuff for barbecue, so we needed to switch it up for grills.”
Kildahl said the name of the supper club is a nod to its past with a twist.
“The Tomorrow River runs through Amherst, so obviously, that’s part of the name,” she said. “The old supper club that used to be here was named the Tomorrow River Supper Club. I wanted to remember the building’s history, but also give it a fresh take, so we put my name in front of it. I was apprehensive to do that, but my parents liked the idea of keeping the old tie, but also reminding people of the new ownership.”
‘So far so good’
Though only open for less than a month, Kildahl said things are going “really well” at the newly reinvented supper club.
With Amherst nestled between Stevens Point to the northwest and Waupaca to the southeast, she said Maria’s Tomorrow River Supper Club is located about 25 minutes from the nearest supper club.
“We were a little bit slower to start than I was hoping for, but since then, everybody who has come in here has had nothing but positive things to say,” she said. “People have said the food has been fantastic, and we’ve had locals and out-of-town folks. I’ve had a few couples from Chicago who have come up and eaten, so that’s been really fun to see.”
Using her self-proclaimed “people skills,” Kildahl said she feels it’s very important for her to be up front and center in the supper club, getting to know the stories and personalities of her customers.
“I love talking to all of my customers, especially here at the beginning as we get going,” she said. “I’ve been getting their stories of where they’re from, what they’re doing and how they found us. Sometimes, customers will come back to the bar after they’re done eating to converse even more.”
Kildahl said Maria’s Tomorrow River Supper Club offers traditional supper club fare like prime rib, steak, tenderloin, shrimp, salmon and chicken.
To begin the dining experience, she said the establishment offers a traditional supper club staple – a relish tray.
“That’s very old-fashioned,” she said. “We also offer a salad cart that comes through the dining room and builds your salad right there. It’s basically a salad bar without you having to get up and do the work yourself.”
For more information on Maria’s Tomorrow River Supper Club, including a peek at the menu, visit its Facebook page.
