New Owners at the Becker - Dave Johnson is a third generation restaurateur By Pippi Mayfield , Detroit Lakes Newspaper Published Sunday, April 04, 2004 Dave Johnson has been in the cooking business for many years, and now he’s trying his hand at owning the entire restaurant. April 1, Johnson purchased The Becker Sports Grille in downtown Detroit Lakes. “I can cook, but I don’t have enough experience with buying,” Johnson said. “It’s been a whirlwind.” The Becker was purchased in 2000 by Lincoln McArthur, who completely renovated the former movie theater on Washington Avenue into a sports bar. Johnson said he has no intention of changing the look of the restaurant. He does plan on making a few changes, though. He is going to offer catering, upgrade the menu, offer delivery and “sell the dickens out of the upstairs for parties.” The Becker Sports Grille “If it works out, there will be a big surprise in the lobby,” he added but wouldn’t allude to what the surprise will be. Johnson has lived and worked in Detroit Lakes for 22 years. He moved from the Iron Range and started cooking at the Erie Jr. He then cooked for Port Authority and Young Life Castaway Club. Johnson said he is a third generation restaurateur, so “it’s in my blood, you might say.” He was offered a job at the University of North Dakota, but he said he couldn’t bear the thought of leaving Detroit Lakes. His children are in the area and his late wife is buried here, so he had to stay. He wanted to stay. “This is my home. I really didn’t want to leave.” So, here he is at The Becker. “I tried retirement and that didn’t really work out,” he said. “My wife died and I needed something to consume my time.” Besides “tweaking” the menu, Johnson plans on adding homemade soups to the menu. “I’m known as a soup Norwegian.” “Not a soup Nazi,” he added with a laugh, referring to the Seinfeld episode.