“The food is number one — we hear from people all of the time just how amazing Scott’s cooking is,” Sarah Ash said. “I also have to give it up to my staff, they make everybody feel so comfortable. That is what Ash’s is all about.”

Scott and Sarah Ash both have had long careers in the restaurant industry.

Sarah Ash started as a waitress when she was 15 and has had many different jobs, including bartender, manager and catering director.

Scott Ash inherited his love of cooking from his grandmother. As a teenager he was not sure he wanted to pursue cooking as a career, but a year spent studying electronics convinced him that the kitchen is where he needed to be.

ASH’S RESTAURANT IS at 1853 Old Highway 69 in Spread Eagle, Wis. (Jim Paul/Daily News photo)

Scott Ash attended culinary school at Waukesha County Technical College, graduating in 2006. He would spend the next 10 years in the Milwaukee area working for different hotels, restaurants and country clubs.

Working for a restaurant group, Scott Ash helped open two restaurants.

In 2016 Scott and Sarah Ash moved to Florence, Wis., and opened Maxsells. For Scott and Sarah Ash, owning their own restaurant and living in the northwoods was a dream come true.

“My grandparents lived in northern Wisconsin and growing up in the city, I would really relish that time being up north, so I always wanted to someday live here,” Scott Ash said. “And working in restaurants for 10 years, putting in long days for other people, kind of makes you think that maybe I could do this for myself.”

Scott and Sarah Ash would have Maxsells for four years, but negotiations to buy the building they were in did not work out so instead of moving back to Milwaukee they decided to start a new place.

They would look at several locations but none seemed to be the right fit for them until they found what had been Spud’s Bistro on 1853 Old Highway 69, hidden off U.S. 2 in Spread Eagle. Scott and Sarah Ash were not worried about being a little off the beaten path.

“We established such a great reputation with our clientele when we were still at Maxsells that when we took the three months off to redo this place, they could not wait for us to get back open,” Sarah Ash said. “Plus it is just so serene. There is something to be said about being back in this beautiful location with the trees and deer coming in, the guests get to experience that.”

The customers did come back, plus many new faces. Patrons come from all over Dickinson and Iron counties, even as far away as Eagle River, Wis., and Escanaba, Sarah Ash said, adding the Spread Eagle community has been wonderful as well.

Scott Ash describes the menu at Ash’s Restaurant as modern American.

“American food is a conglomeration of immigrant foods, there may be Mexican influences or Italian or French influences but it is all relatively Americanized food,” Scott Ash said. “We do it at a high level.”

Scott Ash said proudly that almost everything at Ash’s Restaurant is made from scratch using the freshest ingredients possible and local products when available.

“If you start with a high-end product, you do not have to do a whole lot to make it good,” Scott Ash said.

The menu at Ash’s Restaurant changes for every season to highlight the best products available at that time of the year. There are also weekly specials and Fridays often feature a fresh Lake Superior whitefish fish fry.

There are some favorites like the crispy goat cheese balls appetizer and the chicken marsala that are staples of the menu and will never go away.

A current highlight includes a roasted apple salad. There is always a hand-cut steak and, for the less adventurous, a burger elevated to the next level with wagyu beef.

Six times a year Ash’s Restaurant hosts a wine dinner. Scott Ash chooses a theme for a four-course meal and Sarah uses her knowledge of wines to find the perfect pairings. The last dinner was a Muppets theme with frog legs served as an entree. After dinner Scott Ash greets guests.

Dates for 2025 wine dinners will be announced soon after the holidays on the website https://ashs-restaurant.com and on the Ash’s Restaurant’s Facebook page. The event often sells out. Also, even though New Year’s Eve falls on a Tuesday, Ash’s will be open with some awesome specials.

Scott and Sarah Ash urge everybody to check Ash’s Restaurant, whether out for a special occasion or after a day on the nearby snowmobile/ATV trail.

“I know we have not served a lot of people in the area — they may be a little intimidated to come give us a try,” Scott Ash said. “We really stress the hospitality end of it. We want people to give us a shot.”

Ash’s Restaurant is open 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. To make a reservation, call 715-696-8062.