Stinky's, The Midway and ... ?
My column today on Cafe Montclair, the latest restaurant in the building that once housed the Plum Tree, the Majestic, Ginger's Place and, originally, Lizzy's, prompted a note from Bob House:
"Today's column about the new Montclair restaurant got me thinking about Valley restaurants and bars that are no more. Would readers find that an interesting thread? I nominate two from Claremont's past: Stinky's, a burger place on Foothill that lasted into the '60s, and The Midway, an iconic dive bar, also on Foothill, that made it into the '70s. The Midway is featured in Kem Nunn's first book, 'Pomona Queen.'"
Feel free to add to the list, readers.
Two further notes I left out of the column: The hostess at Cafe Montclair, who held the same job at Plum Tree, is Pia Jackson, whose family owned the fondly remembered Di Censo's Italian Restaurant in Upland. And Joanne Boyajian of the Ontario Library discovered there was a Tin Lizzy restaurant on Holt Avenue in Pomona from 1968 to 1970, of unknown relation to the Montclair Lizzy's, which also had a Tin Lizzy theme. Huh!
This could be very popular, David! I always felt you should have followed up your "A to Z" feature with one involving past or present dining establishments from the area. As for the Midway, I think that place may have actually made it til the early '80s. There also was one other Tin Lizzy, in La Verne. I believe it was on D St in the early '70s. Naturally, I'll have to add a couple iconic Pomona eateries ... Henry's and the Taco Kitchen.
Great blog by the way!
Someone else remembers the Taco Kitchen -- amazing! As a kid in the '50s I was thrilled to use my limited Spanish there and order "frijoles."
And Henry's! Here's a link for the history of "Chicken in the Rough": http://chickenintherough.com/History.html
In the early '80s I was eating in a restaurant in Denver, struck up a conversation with the maitre d' and it turned out he had been a busboy at Henry's while I was dining there in the '60s.
Yes, there was a Tin Lizzy in downtown La Verne. I believe it was on the NW corner of D Street and Bonita Avenue. As for eateries past, how about the Bit 'O Sweden Smorgasbord in Pomona, Renee's New Mexico in Rancho Cucamonga, and the Mandarin Garden Restaurant in Ontario? All great, all popular in their day, and, sadly, all now just memories in the Inland Valley.
Whoa, the Bit O Sweden! I had forgotten about that place. Where exactly was it located? Who remembers that before the Cask and Cleaver came into its existence (in then-Cucamonga), it was a Mexican restaurant by the name of the Casa De Mayo?
Just wondering if the Charles Bentley posting here is from the Bentley's Market family in Claremont. I know there was a brother in my generation named Charles. If so, as you likely already know, there must be some interesting stories about this long-time Claremont institution.
[No doubt true, but Charles is from the roofing Bentleys, not the produce Bentleys. -- DA]
Did you see the news about Wolfe's Market giving up on groceries and focusing on the sandwich counter? Great sandwiches, I'll admit, but another bit of history fading away.
Okay, I shook the few brain cells I have left, and a few other "long gone" establishments fell out. Who remembers these? Seapy's on Holt, Sherwood Inn on D Street La Verne, Old Hickory on Foothill and Grand in Glendora, and the Heritage House next door to Hamilton Drugs on N. Garey? But maybe someone can remember the name of the burger joint on the corner of Garey & Orange Grove? That place had the best deep fried tacos!!!
Was that Burger Chef at Garey and Orange Grove?
Or was BC further north on Garey, closer to PV Hospital?
Burger Chef history link:
http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/jsf605213/myhomepage/
The Burger Chef was at Garey & Artesia, and is now a favorite spot of David's, if I recall......The one I'm looking for is just south of the 10.
[Garey and Artesia...oh, that's Golden Wok, the place with chow mein, hamburgers, donuts and Louisiana fried chicken, right? -- DA]
One and the same, David. Originally a Burger Chef, then I believe it actually became another Taylor Maid donut shop in the late '70s, but I'm a little foggy on that memory.
how about Taco Lita, Sir Georges Smorgasbord on Garey in Pomona not far from Jenkins supermarket.
Can anyone tell me if the booths from DiCenso's now grace the Vince's on Foothill? They look familiar!
Oh yes the Tin Lizzy in La Verne...actually a few doors down from the SW corner of D and Bonita. The SW corner of D and Bonita was Winchell's Doughnuts, and the NW corner was Crocker Bank. I think the oldest institution to make it into the 'modern era' was the Homer Dacus filling station at the SE corner, which is a park now.
And don't be fooled by the Warehouse Pizza that I think is still there, a few doors down from the SE corner of D and Bonita. In the '90s (and perhaps now) it was all seafoam green, bright, airy and cheerful. But back in "the day" it was a dark, seedy maze of blacklights put there to make the amateurish little paintings around each booth glow in the dark. It was where you got pizza and beer and played Pac-Man, and it had a bad reputation, which is why teens were always going there, hoping to get a few sips of beer. There was all sorts of junk piled on the rafters, including the old Homer Dacus sign after he closed down.
The big building of the University of La Verne library used to be an Alpha Beta grocery store, and the smaller building used to be a TG&Y. The little one next door with the peaked roof was a Tastee-Freez.
Here's a toughie for anyone out there who can answer...there was a church in La Verne that was turned into a dress shop. One day in the '70s someone threw a cherry bomb through one of the windows and most of the inventory burned...anyone remember the name of the store?
Was the store called "HOUSE OF FABRICS"?