Retrologist Roundup: Mansard misery, neon niceties, 'Hopeful' signs and more
Plus, Red Lobster's fate, the future of 'Mary Richards' mall' and more news from the American roadside.
Hello friends!
I’m back after a brief but crucial sabbatical from the newsletter, taken for a good and wonderful reason: I’m working hard on a book on roadside Americana!
I promise to share more with you about the book soon, and I hope that when the time comes, you can pick up a copy (or quite a few!) and even connect with me at a reading near you.
But from here on out, you’ll be getting regular Substack dispatches from me again, so please keep an eye on the inbox for Retrologist updates — and news on the book. I’m glad to be back here, because I love writing these newsletters.
So, with that matter out of the way, let’s get down to business.
The other day, on my Instagram, I shared the sad news about the demolition of one of America’s finest remaining McDonald’s mansards, in Reading, Massachusetts.
I shared this store's story in an earlier newsletter, which you can check out here.
As I wrote last June:
This is store No. 595, which would date this franchise to 1963 or so, which means there was an original “red and white” structure here in the early days. Presumably, the mansard followed in the 1970s, and now, and this can’t surprise anyone at this point, the next generation of design will soon be unveiled here.
Well, we are now almost one year removed from when I wrote those words, and sure enough, the McBox cometh.
Bobby Cecere on Instagram sent along these pics of the demolition and images of what the inside looked like in its final iteration, something I could not document because my visit happened when many dining rooms were closed because of health concerns.
The brick walls, the tile floor … the cradle of paradise for this Gen Xer. All. Gone.
Are there any mansards left near you? Let me know here, please:
A Manhattan walkabout: Hotel Chelsea neon nirvana; a luncheonette’s resilience
Scaffolding has come down at the Hotel Chelsea in Manhattan, finally giving us a good look at the restored neon sign for El Quijote.
To me, it’s miraculous we even have this restaurant, after what appeared to be a permanent closure in 2018, and what a joy to see that awning and neon again uncluttered by the scaffolding, the eternal scourge of Gotham streets.
The neon sign for the Hotel Chelsea has also been freshened up and was shining bright on Friday afternoon. Neon set against a cloudy backdrop is a lovely sight indeed.
Appreciated together, these signs represent a resilient slice of old New York, even if the hotel and the restaurant are very different today.
Not far away, I checked in on another survivor, the old Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop, which dates to the late 1920s. It’s now in new hands and operating under a new (but actually old) name, S&P, but the storefront (and interior) remain much the same. Check it out next time you’re nearby.
Reno’s ‘Best Bet’
The Best Bet Motor Lodge in the Midtown section of Reno, Nevada, has been spiffed up and has reopened as a wellness hotel. The old neon sign is still there, but a stay here is far from what it used to be.
Reports the Reno Gazette Journal:
Just like Midtown, the Best Bet Motor Lodge underwent a major transformation to bring new life to the location. Following its remodel, the once-aging property has turned into a boutique hotel with a focus on wellness.
The changes include a major redesign of all its rooms, which include wood furniture made locally by Hammer and Saw.
Birdhouse Hospitality, a group that has been revitalizing historic Reno structures, took on this project.
We wish them well — I’ll see if I can make it out this way later this year.
***
A ‘Hopeful’ sign
I first spotted one of these “Hopeful” signs in Chelsea, Manhattan, in 2021, and another one in Portland, Maine, last summer.
Here’s more about this art project by Portland’s Charlie Hewitt, who recently sent one of his “Hopeful” signs to Ukraine.
From his website:
Artist Charlie Hewitt began The Hopeful Project, 2019-present, with a single lighted aluminum sculpture commissioned by Speedwell Projects for the roof of their headquarters in Portland, Maine. “Maine is a dark place in the winter,” Hewitt said, “and I felt compelled to illuminate that corner of our world with a message of hope.”
To date, the Hopeful message has spread with installations across seven states at dozens of different sites, both public and private, including an appearance at the 2021 Presidential Inauguration.
We could stand to be more hopeful these days.
***
Retail red card for Red Lobster?
Should I be going around documenting Red Lobsters before it’s too late?
I didn’t think I’d ever intentionally shot one, but I was curious and did manage to find a few photos in my archive. The troubled chain’s 49% owner is determined to unload its stake, but are there any takers?
Red Lobster, described by some as a “Zombie Brand,” is looking for the seafood lover in you, especially if you are rich and have a flair for a floundering business. (Floundering? Get it? Ahh, never mind.)
Aside from nostalgia induced by an earwormy 1980s jingle, I can't say that I ever developed an abiding affection for Red Lobster. Perhaps my general gustatory displeasure with seafood (with notable exceptions) explains my nonchalance. But yet I can’t help but be a little troubled by its current state of affairs.
Do you think Red Lobster can survive?
***
Will Nicollet Mall ‘make it after all’?
The Mary Tyler Moore statue, cool as it is, is not enough to make Nicollet Mall an interesting place that’s attractive to shoppers. William E. Burleson argues in the Star Tribune that the shopping district in downtown Minneapolis suffers from a terminal case of a lack of funkiness. The old buildings have been torn down, replaced with shiny skyscrapers, stripping the stretch of interesting, unique and historic shops at street level, the quirky retail texture that makes a shopping district appealing.
He writes:
You need small storefronts. You need reasonable rents. Huge skyscrapers with vast empty polished granite lobbies are dandy, but where are the nail salon and the T-shirt shop and the popcorn stand going to be?
Along with little stores and old buildings come neon signs and weird storefronts in general, all adding to the funky feel. The Nicollet Mall is decidedly not funky. It's as stiff as a starched dress shirt. Can you hang a neon sign outside of a cold glass box and bring it to life? Yeah, good luck with that.
Bottom line: We made some bad choices that doomed the Nicollet Mall to become a glass, limestone and steel wasteland.
His prescription? While a time machine might be handy to prevent demolitions and preserve the mom-and-pop mix, we can still do something, even if the Nicollet Mall doesn’t make it after all, he argues in the piece.
ASIDE: The 1970s CBS sitcom “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” was set here in Minneapolis, with the TV station WJM-TV, Mary Richards' workplace, right here. (The building used in establishing shots still stands!) Mary Tyler Moore returned to the area a few seasons after the original 1970 opening sequence was filmed for an updated open, and you can still follow in her footsteps in an atrium nearby at the IDS Center Crystal Court.
To wit:
Protecting the seat of King George
The long-shuttered George the Chili King has been placed on a list of the most endangered buildings in Des Moines, Iowa.
George Karaidos Jr. died in 2019, ending his business, but the building remains. And the sign did, too, until earlier this year, when it was purchased by a collector.
When it’s Libby’s, Libby’s, Libby’s …
New Jersey has a thing for hot dogs, and one of the most classic of joints was Libby’s Lunch, near the Great Falls in Paterson. (If you’ve never seen the waterfalls here, make a point of doing so. What an epic wonder, and so close to NYC.)
Libby’s closed amid the pandemic and now the building has been sold to a restaurant operator in Clifton who plans to turn the site into a cafe.
But what will become of the old building? Demolition is possible as it’s not protected. Here’s what has to happen to save it.
Doomed diner
The Wethersfield Diner, near Hartford, Connecticut, will be demolished after plans were approved for a mixed-use development on the site. The diner's owner was surprised by the news.
She’s accepted her fate, but not the diner’s, and hopes it can be saved.
She’s now hoping the cab, which serves as the main space of the diner, can be saved. It’s a prefabricated structure manufactured decades ago that she said she worked hard to restore.
“I really hope someone sees this has the means, the will, and the ability to come and save the cab at least,” Pribyson said.
Let’s save this diner!
Brick House is back
Many people know about modernist architect Philip Johnson’s Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut, but did you know he also designed a Brick House in the posh town?
The latter had closed to the public in 2007 after sustaining water damage, but it’s now open again and can make for an architectural-tour twofer with the Glass House. Details here.
Clifton’s comeback
I have a quick trip to LA planned, and how wonderful to see this news: Clifton’s is reopening! The multi-level dining and drinking emporium opened in 1935 as Clifton’s Cafeteria and trudged along for decades until closing, decaying and undergoing a big renovation, reopening under its old name.
It closed in 2018, changed its name to Clifton’s Republic, then ran into pandemic headwinds that prevented a full return. (Certain bars in the space were opened from time to time.)
At any rate, Clifton’s is back, and I’ll drink to that!
Moonburger rises in Brooklyn
I’m a sucker for a new business that gives off vintage vibes, as well as anything with the name “moon” in it. A couple of years ago, I snapped a photo of Moonburger in Kingston, New York, intrigued by the tableau, and thought nothing more of it. It turns out they are a small Hudson Valley vegan burger chain, and Eater’s Emma Orlow reports they are expanding into Brooklyn.
Brooklynites might see Moonburger and immediately think of Mooburger, a Cobble Hill fixture I loved while living there.
In brief …
Bryan, Texas’ Chicken Oil Co. is being rehabbed for reopening after a fire shut it down in 2022. The restaurant dates to 1977.
Delgadillo’s is a true icon of Route 66. Here’s how it looked in June 2013. (Rolando Pujol) The wonderful Delgadillo’s Snow Cap, a Route 66 fixture in Seligman, Arizona, has made a list of the nation’s top diners. See Love Food’s full list here.
How they’re using Augmented Reality (NOT AI) to revitalize ghost signs in a part of Milwaukee.
Mary Mac’s Tea Room in Atlanta has reopened after storm damage shut it for a spell.
They’re trying to save Patrick’s Roadhouse in Santa Monica.
Lucy the Elephant and the Union Water Sphere make mapping software maker BatchGeo’s list of the world’s largest roadside attractions. Here’s the full list.
And last but not least … Happy Mother’s Day!
For the second year in a row, I picked up flowers for mom at Donhauser Florist in East Elmhurst, Queens. The shop has a rich history and has been in the same family since its founding in 1889 by Hans Donhauser, whose portrait hangs on a wall inside.
Support your mom-and-pop florists!
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So glad to hear Clifton’s cafeteria is coming back – do you know the fate of the neon they found in the wall a couple years back? ( Can’t seem to find anything anything online about it) It’s one of my favorite Neon stories – just wondering if it’s still lit🤞
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2151843/Clifton-Cafeteria-Neon-light-left-77-years-discovered-Los-Angeles-restaurant-renovation.html
Red Lobster does seem doomed to me. They can't afford to go upscale in these days brew house causality, and I don't see how any such chain goes down market without becoming plain old nasty. I'm ambivalent. Not a shell fish guy. As for scaly fish I'll spend more to get fresh stuff with a clear provenance, and it seems that's a trend too, at least in cities.