Our Story

The HomePage Cafe was opened in May of 2005 by Bruce and Frankee Muller, owners of the Voss Inn bed and breakfast, Bozeman's oldest B&B. For years guests of the Inn had commented that they were surprised that there was no internet cafe in Bozeman. When it was suggested that the Mullers should open one, their first response was "Yeah! Right! As if the bed and breakfast were not enough to keep us busy!" But one day while driving down Main Street, Frankee noticed a "for rent" sign and thought to herself that it would be a dynamite location for a cafe. Bruce was out of town, but Frankee thought she would at least look into it, so she met the landlord at the site that afternoon....and by the end of the day she had paid first and last month's rent! Then she had to decide how to tell Bruce.

When Bruce called home that evening, Frankee mustered up her nerve and said, "Honey, let me tell you what I did today!" Bruce replied, "No, let me tell you what I did! I spent the day in an internet cafe, and it was great! We really need to think about this! (Sigh of relief!)

This was not the first time Bruce and Frankee had done something this impetuous. In 1989, after having spent three years living in Los Angeles, they visited Bozeman for four days over the Easter holiday. They had been thinking they might want to have a B&B, and had been in touch with Ruthmary Tonn, the owner of the Voss Inn. The day after they arrived in Bozeman they had a tour of the Inn and fell in love with it. The next day they made an offer on it and thirty days later it was theirs! (Whew!) They returned to L.A. and listed their condominium for sale. Two weeks later they had a cash offer for exactly what they were asking, and the people wanted to move in in two weeks! So the Mullers packed up their belongings, their two year old daughter Aynsley and their newborn son Ian and moved to Bozeman.

But why Bozeman? Well, they needed to find someplace with big sky and wide open spaces. Someplace where Bruce could get out of town fast. Why? Because L.A. was driving them mad! Prior to moving to L.A. (which was where Frankee grew up) they had been operating a photo safari camp in the Okavango Delta region of Botswana in southern Africa. Bruce was born and raised in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) where he had been working in Rhodesian National Parks in the field of wildlife management. In 1983, due to political instability within the country he left Zimbabwe to work for a private photographic safari company in Botswana. In October of that year he met Frankee while she was on a photo safari with her family. Bruce was their guide. Shortly after they met, Frankee resigned her job as assistant and Spanish translator for a resort real estate attorney doing business in Mexico, and she moved to Botswana to be with Bruce. Together they managed the Santawani Safari Lodge until they decided to start their family. Frankee was reluctant to go through pregnancy, labor and delivery in the bush with an African midwife, (silly girl) so she suggested they move to the States and start a bed and breakfast inn.

So why after 16 years in the B&B business did they decide to start an internet cafe? Well, Aynsley was 18 and going off to college. Ian was 16 and really didn't want much to do with them. And Bruce played altogether too much golf! That man needed something more to do! (Sorry, Bruce.) So when they found themselves confronted with first and last month's rent they sat down and put together what they wanted for their new business. They had spent the better part of 22 years in the hospitality business. Frankee had become a pro at developing recipes for delicious muffins and scones, and her cinnamon rolls were even featured in Gourmet Magazine! They figured they were uniquely qualified to offer Bozeman something much more than just an internet cafe. They could create a classy, warm and inviting ambiance unlike anything else in Bozeman. One that would welcome people with the aroma of freshly baked breakfast breads! Where tea would be brewed properly! Where they could offer perfectly roasted organic, fair trade coffee! They already imported African artwork and handicrafts which they sold at the Voss Inn. Now they would have an even better venue for displaying it all! Ohhhh the possibilities!

And that's all she wrote!