Private company

MCL Restaurant & Bakery

Restaurant chain based in Indianapolis, Indiana, US

MCL Restaurant & Bakery, formerly known as MCL Cafeterias, is a chain of American cafeteria-style restaurants based in Indianapolis. As of February 2026, the company operates 11 locations in Indiana and Ohio.2 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1950Founded1

MCL Restaurant & Bakery, formerly known as MCL Cafeterias, is a chain of American cafeteria-style restaurants based in Indianapolis. As of February 2026, the company operates 11 locations in Indiana and Ohio.2

How it started

Background

The company began in 1950 with a single cafeteria in Indianapolis, Indiana, founded by Charles O. McGaughey and George Laughner. MCL is an abbreviation of their two names. Today, the chain operates locations in Indiana, and Ohio. It is a privately owned company, now exclusively owned by the McGaughey family. In 2007, MCL Cafeterias changed the brand to "MCL Restaurant and Bakery", although no fundamental changes were made in production. MCL competed with Laughner's Cafeteria, which was founded by a cousin.

From Wikipedia’s article on MCL Restaurant & Bakery, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2

Former names

  • MCL Cafeterias1950 to 20071

Timeline

  1. 2007Renamed Name changed to MCL Restaurant & Bakery1
  2. 1950Founded Founded1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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  2. 2