Time travel: Visiting a 1980s Burger King; basking in the glow of old Times Square; admiring a giant (and doomed?) roadside ring
Plus, Fresno's skyline loses its Big G after 59 years; new owners of defunct drive-in Penguin Point sell off collectibles; and more stories from the American roadside.
The other day in The Retrologist, I shared the news that Burger King was scooping up its biggest franchisee, Carrols Corp., as part of the chain’s efforts to speed up crucial renovations of its domestic stores.
Carrols itself once had a namesake restaurant chain that converted its units to Burger King in the mid-1970s when it realized it stood no chance against the ever-ravenous fast-food giants.
One of those former Carrols — there were over 100 — that switched to Burger King was a location in Old Forge, Pennsylvania.
My friend Andee Scarantino, who runs an excellent Substack, View From the Roof, knows that location all too well — her dad ran it until 1991!
We were chatting by email about Carrols when I asked if she had any family photos of the old Burger King, and sure enough, she did, and she kindly sent them along.
In my mind, this is what a Burger King should look like. As far as I know, none are left that are in their pure 1970s/early 1980s state, inside and out, though quite a number of survivors linger of slightly later vintage or variation. These are the ones, alas, that Burger King is dead set on renovating now.
I’ve long thought restaurants would be well served by having freshened “classic” locations, as I’ve documented with Pizza Hut’s dozens of “Classic” locations. A few “Classic BKs” like this one, with the exposed brick, the cedar-shake roof, and the new retro logo (or heck, the 1969 logo, like the one in the top photo) would become instant Gen X destinations and a source of intrigue for younger generations who love nostalgia, or, in this case, anemoia, nostalgia for a time you never experienced. (Kind of how I felt in 1988 watching “The Wonder Years” depict suburban American life in 1968.)
I know that won’t happen, but I can dream. At least we can admire these photos that Andee shared with us.
If you’re curious about what this restaurant looks like today, it’s still a Burger King but is now a box. See photo Andee shared, below:
A familiar ring: Iconic mom-and-pop shop to close in Boise, Idaho
It’s a sad story with a familiar ring: A treasured mom-and-pop shop — in this case, literally a gem — is set to close.
And what will happen to the ring?
I visited Artsmith’s Jewelry back in February 2022 and learned from Jackyophoto on Instagram that it was closing at the end of the month.
Bois Dev reports the owner, Rick Harvey, has been working here since 1971, a year after Art Smith (two words, the man himself) opened the shop. Harvey apprenticed under him and bought the shop from Smith in 1983.
Harvey told Bois Dev he used to joke he’d retire when they’d carry him away from his jeweler’s bench one last time, “three days before my funeral,” but he’s stepping down well before that, saying he’s increasingly tired. His daughter is also retiring.
And so ends Artsmith’s Jewelry.
Where will he put the ring? On the finger of a safe hand, I hope, or sign museum somewhere. And that appears to be happening. Debra Jane Seltzer notes it will donated to "Signs of Our Times project," which means local Vangie Osborn, a private collector who hopes to open a museum someday and has a lot of Boise signs in storage.”
Sign Spotlight: Smith’s Bar in Times Square
I can never resist a shot of Smith’s, one of the last great holdouts of old Times Square. This photo was taken Saturday night, just before midnight. Below is my take on Smith’s:
Just look at it. Take it all in. Smith’s Bar is one of the last vestiges of the old Times Square. In its 60-plus years, the walls within have witnessed tragedies — a murder, a suicide, and many a lost soul, just hanging on. But it wasn’t all grit and gore, gloom and doom.
The place was beloved, a home away from home, a shelter from an increasingly unrecognizable and boring New York. So when the bar briefly closed in 2014, the lamentations were widespread and deeply felt. But Smith’s wasn’t ready to live on only in New York lore.
The joint was rescued from oblivion by Skip Panettiere, the father of actress Hayden Panettiere. His first thought was to overhaul the place.
But he quickly settled on a better idea — or should I say a better gift to New York. He kept Smith’s just the way it was. "Why don't we just keep it the same," he told DNAinfo in 2015, "so everything in New York doesn't get ruined." What a beautiful, profound statement.
All I can say is thanks.
Notes From The Road
Zum Stammtisch, a German restaurant in Queens, New York, that recently celebrated its 50th anniversary, has been placed on New York State’s Historic Business Preservation Registry.
This is becoming a trend: An iconic neon sign is taken down, deemed beyond repair, and replaced by a replica. The latest place this story is playing out is Fresno, California, where the massive, 11,000-pound, 15-foot-tall “G” atop the former Guarantee Bank Building was removed on Saturday. It had been there since 1965, and served once as a rotating weather beacon, the sign’s colors changing based on the forecast. (Green meant cooler weather; red meant warmer; white meant no change; flashing lights meant a storm was brewing.) It had sat inert for decades (the clock below it was long gone) and will continue to sit inert, but now presumably at ground level at the Fresno Fairgrounds. A new “G” is reportedly going to replace it, of the same design but up to modern codes, the Fresno Bee tells us. LED is not mentioned in the article, but that is a safe assumption for the replacement sign atop the 12-story building, now home to the State Center Community College District.
Speaking of which, the replacement of the Burlingame Fred Meyer sign — in LED, but otherwise, looking much the same — is already up, DKComet reports on Instagram. Here is my newsletter on the fate of this Oregon sign from last week.
What’s the buzz in Redding, California? Columnist David Benda reports on a rash of Subway closing, a new tenant for an old Pizza Hut, and an IOOF building with some new oomph.
If you have never consumed the foul-smelling “lithia” mineral water in downtown Ashland, Oregon, you may never have a chance. The fountains were shut down after state regulators suddenly became concerned about harmful elements in the water, after decades of not worrying about them too much. Adding a filter to the water would remove the so-called “healthful” ingredients that once drew people to this so-called natural elixir.
Elsewhere in Oregon, a Henry Steiner-built church in Mount Hood is now open after an unconventional 46-year renovation. Slow and steady wins the race.
The historic Lutsen Lodge, on Minnesota’s North Shore, was destroyed in a fire on Tuesday. The lodge is almost 140 years old and is touted as Minnesota’s oldest resort. "It's devastating to the community," said Dick Nelson in the Star Tribune. His great-grandfather built the resort in the mid-1880s. "It was a fantastic lodge, solid wood. But you don't build things like that anymore."
Bill Smith’s Cafe, which closed in 2022, has reopened in a new Texas town and brought along the beloved (and very Instagram-friendly) neon sign.
A former Ford plant where Model Ts were assembled has been demolished in St. Paul, Minnesota, despite attempts by preservationists to save it.
Feb. 13 is Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, Shrove Tuesday or for some in Pennsylvania, Fastnacht Day, and at the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles, you can step into the preserved Fegely’s Reading Diner (a 1938 Jerry O’Mahony diner) and enjoy this Pennsylvania Dutch donut for a quarter and a cup of coffee for a nickel.
Months after the demise of the Penguin Point restaurant chain in Indiana, the Elkhart location has reopened with a new name, Food Shack … and so much old Penguin Point stuff that they are selling it! One bit of good news … the new business has kept the penguin atop the sign!
The Penguin Point drive-in in Elkhart, as it looked in July 2022. (Rolando Pujol) An extended interview with John Swaine, CEO of the International Civil Rights Center and Museum in Greensboro, N.C. The Woolworths there was the site of the historic “Greensboro Four” sit-in to protest segregation back in 1960. The site may be on its way to becoming a National Historic Landmark.
Beth’s Cafe in Seattle, once a 24-hour haunt, is restoring late-night hours with the goal of reaching 22 hours of service, reports Eater. (Gotta love that sign featuring Nesbitt’s orange soda.)
The Staten Island Advance reflects on a diner that closed 40 years ago this year — Whoopsie’s — that was 54 years old when it went out of business when the couple running it retired on June 1, 1984. They would enjoy a short retirement, the wife dying the next year and the husband a decade later. Sad.
San Francisco’s popular Golden Boy Pizza, a North Beach staple since 1978, appears poised to open a new location. It will feature a similar pointing finger neon sign, created by Oakland’s Jim Rizzo, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.
The Texas Inn chain in Virginia, with locations in Lynchburg (two) and Harrisonburg (one), is opening its fourth outpost, in Richmond. Reports Richmond Biz Sense: Despite its name, the Texas Inn’s roots lie in the Midwest and the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was founded in 1927 as the Texas Tavern in Indiana before moving to Roanoke two years later. It would later relocate to Lynchburg and rebrand to Texas Inn, though (current owner Dave) Saunders said many locals simply call it the T-Room.
Here’s a fun list from Southern Living magazine of iconic burger joints — the “South’s Most Beloved” — with architectural eye candy to be enjoyed if burgers aren’t your bag.
A Craftsman bungalow will be saved from demolition in Phoenix and incorporated into a broader housing development. The bungalow itself could become a restaurant.
A small team is keeping some of Australia’s ghost signs alive — the piece features this memorable quote: "The signwriting industry is one of the oldest two professions in history. Signwriting and prostitution are the two oldest industries."
Have you ever visited Old Faithful at Yellowstone? I did back in 2014, and had I known about this beautiful wood informational sign then, I would have sought it out. Here’s a nice writeup about the “Old Faithful Geyser Expected Eruption” sign, which still works and has been moved from the Old Faithful Lodge to the Yellowstone Heritage and Research Center.
The sign I saw in June 2014 was not nearly as romantic as the historic one!
Figured you would appreciate, from local news: the walk-up Dairy Queen that closed due to corporate pressure in Merritt Island, FL has filed off the serial numbers and is reopening as Parkway Creamery February 8th, after waiting out their year long non-compete https://www.floridatoday.com/story/entertainment/dining/2024/02/07/former-merritt-island-dairy-queen-to-reopen-as-parkway-creamery/72493902007/
I don't think the Bill's Cafe sign is up yet but there are "plans to display the 15-foot-tall sign on the cafe's turfed patio, visible from Jefferson Street."