Bob Evans Farms (NASDAQ: BOBE) owns and operates full-service restaurants, under the Bob Evans and Mimi's Cafe brand names. The Bob Evans chain consists of 571 stores in the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions of the United States. Mimi's Cafe runs 132 restaurants, primarily in California and other western states. The company is also a leading producer of pork sausage and complementary homestyle convenience foods, under the Bob Evans and Owens brand names. Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD) is a competitor.

The firm pleased investors last week, when it reported solid Q4 results and issued in-line guidance for its FY09 performance. The CEO attributed success to cost management on the restaurant side and better-than-expected numbers from the food products business. The shares were subsequently upgraded from "neutral" to "buy" at MKM Partners.

There is an outfit headquartered in Columbus, Ohio that got its start as a twelve-stool diner owned by a local farmer. He said he could not get any decent sausage for the diner and began making his own back at the farm. That was fifty-nine years ago. Both the diner and the sausage-making businesses have since prospered.

Bob Evans Farms (NASDAQ: BOBE) owns and operates full-service restaurants, under the Bob Evans and Mimi's Cafe brand names. The Bob Evans chain consists of 579 stores in the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions of the United States. Mimi's Cafe runs 118 restaurants, primarily in California and other western states. The company is also a leading producer of pork sausage and complementary home-style convenience foods, under the Bob Evans and Owens brand names. Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD) is a competitor.

The firm had good news for investors last Monday evening, when it announced Q2 EPS of 45 cents and revenues of $426.3 million. Analysts had been expecting 39 cents and $425.5 million. Management also guided FY08 EPS to $1.77-$1.84 ($1.72 consensus). The stock popped through 30-day and 50-day moving average resistance on the news and began consolidating the gain in a bullish "flag" pattern. Then, on Thursday evening, the board authorized a two million share addition to its stock buyback program. That boosted the current fiscal year authorization to five million shares and took the stock price to the top of the flag. Further upside is expected.

Bob Evans Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: BOBE), the bountiful breakfast chain with 579 outlets in the east, as well as 115 Mimi's Cafés in the west, announced a first quarter 2008 net income of $13.3 million, or $0.38 per share, on sales of $424 million. These results represent a 5.5% increase over 2006. The strongest performer was its name-brand outlets, with traffic up 3.2%, while Mimi's Cafés dropped 0.7%.

A dividend of $0.14 per share will be paid out in this quarter. The company also repurchased over one million shares, and carries a board authorization for an additional two million in 2008.

In light of these results, the company reaffirmed its guidance for the 2008 fiscal year, projecting $4-5 million in asset sales which will pork up its projected earnings to $1.77-$1.84 EPS.

Looking at net income over the past three years, we see a steady but very modest growth of around 2% per year. The company also has a modest expansion program, planning to open only four new Bob Evans restaurants in 2008, after only ten in 2007, while adding 14-16 units to its Mimi's Café brand. The company's Bob Evans units don't serve alcohol, which constrains their profitability, while the Mimi's Cafés do, perhaps accounting for the uneven investment.

The other side of The Bob Evans Farms business, accounting for about 18% of revenue, is in food products. Bob Evans is best known for its sausage products, a product impacted by the sharp rise in corn prices.

Given the gradual but upward trend of the company's bottom line, and the company's cautious approach to growth, analysts give the stock a hold recommendation -- a stock unlikely to delight, or disappoint. In other words, a meat and potatoes stock to match their menu.