Deb's Downtown Cafe, Longview

If you've been in small and mid-size Texas towns, you've probably noticed that a lot of the local joints, especially downtown, have terrible hours. Many of them are lunch only. When you're out working, you never get to eat at these places because you're not going to leave the project area for an extended lunch. Thank goodness for long drives at the beginning and end of the week!
Deb's Downtown Cafe, is in downtown Longview, several miles from I-20, so you'll probably be going out of your way to get there. It's a lunch-only place, open from 11am to 2pm. It's worth the trip if you're in the area at the right time (or can drive a little ways for an extended lunch).
The decor is vaguely Mediterranean, with the walls painted to resemble an Italian villa. The food, however, is your basic lunch fare: soup, salads, and sandwiches. Sandwiches run in the 5-6 dollar range, but the price reflects the quality ingredients. Soup is $1.95 for a cup, although they will let you have the soup as your side (the other side choices are chips, fruit, or maybe salad).
I ordered a chicken salad sandwich with tomato basil soup (one of 2 soup-of-the-day options) as my side ($5.95), and a coffee. The coffee was tasty without being too strong, definitely a step up from diner coffee. The food came out in about 10 minutes. The soup came with parmesan or mozzerella cheese in it (which wasn't listed on the board). This made the soup taste a little bit like pizza in a bowl, which was tasty at first but a little too much by the last couple bites. It was good, but I was hoping for something a little thinner and more tasting of tomato. If I go back, I'd try and order it without the cheese. The chicken salad was made with celery, egg, walnut (I think) and cran-raisins. It was not overly dressed, and the ingredients really complemented each other. It was served on an herbed roll that was like a lighter ciabatta bread. It was absolutely delicious and not too big or too small.
My co-worker ordered a hot meatball sandwich ($5.95) with chips. I didn't have any, but she said it was really tasty. The chips looked a little skimpy, though.
Deb's Downtown Cafe was exactly what I hope to find when I'm out in the field: a small, locally owned cafe serving good food that goes beyond the diner basics. Sure, it cost more than fast food, but it was much tastier, healthier, with pleasant service in a decent setting. If I'm ever passing through Longview around lunch time, I'll make it a point to drive into town and eat at Deb's.
The address: 103 W. Tyler, Longview, Texas, 75601