LaBARGE - It's one of Wyoming's best-kept secrets. Just exactly what will the new menu offer once the famed Moondance Diner opens this summer in this tiny town?

Manhattan meatloaf, perhaps? New York steaks? Homemade Holland Tunnel fries?

New Moondance owner Cheryl Pierce isn't saying.

The important thing, she said, is that the menu will have to be intriguing enough to tantalize the taste buds of sophisticated New Yorkers passing through, while at the same time be appealing enough for the hearty, more blue-collar appetites of drilling rig hands, truckers and other local folks.

"After all (the hype) … it would be a disaster if the food wasn't good," Pierce said.

"There's kind of a lot of pressure on us right now," she said. "All the publicity has kind of brought more scrutiny on us, so to speak. The food and the service has to be our No. 1 priority."

Cheryl and husband Vince purchased the New York dining icon last summer after developers threatened the demolition of the famous Lower Manhattan eatery.

The subsequent move to southwest Wyoming captured the hearts of state residents, the attention of a nation clamoring for a little good news, and international headlines. It also brings a much-needed restaurant to LaBarge, which has a population of around 600.

The Pierces have been working through the winter on refurbishing and renovating the 80-year-old diner. The couple bought a double lot in downtown LaBarge where the diner will sit. They are shooting for a June 1 grand opening.

Pierce said the new menu is ready and a few early copies have been printed. She said the menu was designed and hand-drawn by her sister, Tanya Elliott.

"It's a secret right now … that's all I can say," Pierce said with a sly grin during a recent tour of the renovation work.

The new diner will include an addition for the commercial kitchen that's being constructed by a Riverton firm. The original diner seated about 34 people, with 10 stools and six tables. Pierce said the addition will also allow for more seating.

In New York, the diner was noted for its cheeseburgers, hand-cut fries, homemade shakes, half-pound deli sandwiches and hungry celebrity revelers stopping by for breakfast. Pierce said the new menu will be "faithful" to the Moondance's culinary reputation, but with a distinct Wyoming flair.

"The food, the service, the atmosphere … it will all be very, very unique," she said. "We want to have a real fun and inviting atmosphere."

The diner will sport a soda fountain, complete with a "soda jerk." Pierce envisions five or six workers will be required for each shift once the diner opens.

"We're already getting resumes from local (people) and from abroad, if you can believe it," she said. "But with our harsh winters and housing (problems) … we've got to make sure we get the right people."

The diner will also offer "limited, very quality items" such as coffee mugs, T-shirts, cookie tins and ball caps emblazoned with the Moondance logo. A local candymaker, Tonya Hoffman, will provide logo-festooned chocolates and other treats, she said.

In November, Pierce opened a catering business under the auspices of the Moondance Diner - called Moonlight Catering - in part as a practice run for when the new diner opens. The business is providing catering services to the truck and energy industries in the area.