Back in May 1984, Ed and Sharon Dinges moved from Kenosha Wisconsin to raise their three boys in the rural setting of Merrill. The couple purchased the former Country Inn at Hwy. 64/107 and Joe Snow Road and went about raising their family while they built a reputation for their new business. Ed and Sharon had never owned a restaurant or a tavern before. Ed had run his own snowplow business and worked in construction before a back injury prompted him to look for a different line of work.