tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post5985430103159984225..comments2024-03-29T08:45:57.792-04:00Comments on Patricia Abbott (pattinase): Where I Ate Dinner at a Child.pattinase (abbott)http://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-24354417925145538602016-10-24T10:48:11.476-04:002016-10-24T10:48:11.476-04:00Those cliches adults use with kids do grind. I so ...Those cliches adults use with kids do grind. I so hard try not to say "you're getting so tall" but I always do. pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-80219943943332961812016-10-24T10:33:28.106-04:002016-10-24T10:33:28.106-04:00We went to Howard Johnson's fairly often, but ...We went to Howard Johnson's fairly often, but my parents were also adventurous enough to take their five children (I'm the oldest) to New York. Asti's (Italian) and Luchow's (German) stand out in my memory. <br /><br />Invariably an older woman would approach us and tell my dad, "You have such a lovely family," and I threatened to pick my nose to deter them.<br /><br />WTH. I was a teenager. I was supposed to find everything mortifying.Al Tuchernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-27047824769605190232016-10-21T01:35:33.645-04:002016-10-21T01:35:33.645-04:00When I was a child we rarely ate out. The one plac...When I was a child we rarely ate out. The one place I recall going to a few times was Sambo's. The menu had a story book--or maybe it was the place mats or a separate paper--that told the story of Sambo (black, but wearing a turban) being chased around a tree by a tiger until the tiger turned into pancake batter.<br /><br />When I was 12 we went to a chicken shack up the highway from our home in Denbigh, Virginia. Once I started to go in ahead of the family and was quickly admonished not to use that door. It was the "Colored Only" side.<br /><br />As a teenager we ate out a little more often, mostly at Mario's. This was in New York. Spaghetti and meatballs for $1.50. Cap'n Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11783977137812876489noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-66556339461892428922016-10-20T18:43:48.218-04:002016-10-20T18:43:48.218-04:00My folks had been raised rather financially poor, ...My folks had been raised rather financially poor, though getting by (and making their own money at a young age) and were essentially middle to upper middle class all my life. I think this made them unwilling to spend too much on a restaurant meal, even when they could afford to do so (and were not at all loathe to indulge in expensive hobbies and such). They were perfectly happy with crab from Red Lobster in later years, as were the cats.Todd Masonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01815516018079824802noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-85224543719691807822016-10-20T18:37:14.128-04:002016-10-20T18:37:14.128-04:00The first restaurant I remember my parents taking ...The first restaurant I remember my parents taking my brother and me to repeatedly was the vaguely Polynesian/Chinese tiki hangout the Hu Ke Lau restaurant in Chicopee, MA, across the border from the Hazardville former township within Enfield, CT, where we lived from 1973-76. The Hu Ke Lau, almost amazingly, remains in place and doing apparently decent business, with music acts and these days comedians playing there regularly. I would eat heroic amounts of the pork slices, usually dipped in the hot mustard. For less planned-for eating out, a fair amount of McD's, HoJo/Baskin Robbins and Friendly's, though I preferred Arthur Treacher's (in part for the horseradish sauce). We would get some pizza, but not that often, as I recall--sometimes at Shakey's particularly when we were on the road...I should go see if Bonanza and Ponderosa steakhouses were the same chain or competitors...I certainly remember eating in them, having gotten a tray with a numbered plastic triangle that indicated which mediocre steak you were going to get. We certainly tended to eat in better, as both my parents were fine cooks. I knew how to broil a better steak for myself by the time I was 11yo...a ski I mostly demonstrate for Alice these days, as I've been lacto-ovo-veg for almost thirty years now.Todd Masonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01815516018079824802noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-71400753744101184402016-10-20T18:21:24.177-04:002016-10-20T18:21:24.177-04:00It is Utterly remarkable how little good pizza the...It is Utterly remarkable how little good pizza there is in the Philadelphia area, given the Italo-American prevalence, most more Italian than I. Too busy trying to perfect their "gravy," perhaps.<br /><br />Lin Yutang: What is patriotism but the love of the food one ate as a child?<br /><br />Todd Masonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01815516018079824802noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-59950247792119864792016-10-20T10:08:32.869-04:002016-10-20T10:08:32.869-04:00I don't think Continental Pizza came along unt...I don't think Continental Pizza came along until after I was married and came back to Philly to visit. Although I worked at a place that made pizza. Vic's. pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-67834773746033560912016-10-20T10:07:03.722-04:002016-10-20T10:07:03.722-04:00I remember Continental Pizza on Ogontz just down t...I remember Continental Pizza on Ogontz just down the street from Littleton's Diner.<br />Loved the pizza and the memories from there.jvnasehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06963131668878903367noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-70256135320536766432016-10-19T20:37:05.850-04:002016-10-19T20:37:05.850-04:00I want to go there right now, Jeff.
Thanks, Nancy....I want to go there right now, Jeff.<br />Thanks, Nancy. pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-25902916945676759882016-10-19T19:26:59.766-04:002016-10-19T19:26:59.766-04:00One more: there was a restaurant on Austin Street...One more: there was a restaurant on Austin Street in Forest Hills and possibly some in Manhattan called something like Hamburger Train. As the name suggests, you'd sit at the counter and order your burger, and the chef would put it on a train that ran around the counter and delivered it to your seat. We used to beg my mother to take us there.Jeff Meyersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00093411926030586355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-42239793018257556952016-10-19T18:01:11.326-04:002016-10-19T18:01:11.326-04:00Oh, that darn word correct! The correct spelling i...Oh, that darn word correct! The correct spelling is Abdallah chocolates. They are still making those delicious chocolates in Burnsville, Mn.<br /><br /><br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11647212284320525726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-5539288813982606562016-10-19T15:55:20.415-04:002016-10-19T15:55:20.415-04:00Patti-I looked it up. It started in Illinois and s...Patti-I looked it up. It started in Illinois and spread to a number of states but started failing in the 60's. A few remain in Winnipeg.Steve Oerkfitznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-18424992079235270312016-10-19T14:23:13.008-04:002016-10-19T14:23:13.008-04:00I remember that commericil, Steve. Was it just Mic...I remember that commericil, Steve. Was it just Michigan? pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-44367857906165218472016-10-19T14:22:29.811-04:002016-10-19T14:22:29.811-04:00I guess economics did influence this. Although ric...I guess economics did influence this. Although rich people that we knew seemed to eat mostly at country clubs rather than restaurants. As my parents grew older and had more money, they ate out frequently on weekends. Eating out just became more popular. And now....pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-32220339880064981812016-10-19T14:21:31.122-04:002016-10-19T14:21:31.122-04:00There was a little place near Pontiac Central HS c...There was a little place near Pontiac Central HS called the XXX. They served really greasy burgers with the meat chopped up. Also remember Chicken Delite which delivered.Not so many pizza joints when I was a kid. Their motto was Don't cook tonight call Chicken Delite. Steve Oerkfitznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-87018847359366369242016-10-19T14:03:57.310-04:002016-10-19T14:03:57.310-04:00We ate away from home rarely. When I was about 5, ...We ate away from home rarely. When I was about 5, there was a place a mile away called Jack's Beverly Fountain (on the Corner of Beverly Blvd. and another street) which had great burgers and malts. But we went rarely, as my Dad preferred to make and barbecue (now we'd say "grill") burgers at home. Later we moved further out in the country, and nothing was close. My mother was violently allergic to seafood of any kind, we couldn't even go to a restaurant that served it. So once every couple of months my father would take my brother and I to a fish place, but I don't remember any names.<br /><br />I do remember a couple of times each summer we would make the long drive to a place called The Taco Kitchen, a very upscale Mexican restaurant, with excellent food. My older brother didn't like it though, so he always ordered a hamburger. I don't remember eating pizza until I was in high school and a place opened nearby. It was popular as a date night destination.Rick Robinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07978136287154214297noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-70283547014043893102016-10-19T13:00:08.871-04:002016-10-19T13:00:08.871-04:00"Topsy's, a fried chicken restaurant (dou...<i>"Topsy's, a fried chicken restaurant (double yum), whose UNCLE TOM'S CABIN decor would not be considered acceptable these days."</i><br /><br />That reminds me of the Sambo's chain of pancake restaurants we used to visit when we were on our annual Florida vacations. We would joke about them for hours afterward until my mother would announce, "All right, that's enough!" and we'd shut up. Amazing what passed for "cute ideas" well into the 1970s.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-30413453070498213852016-10-19T12:56:08.500-04:002016-10-19T12:56:08.500-04:00We went to eat out a lot more than most people com...We went to eat out a lot more than most people commenting here. Probably three times a month on average. A lot more frequently when the house became emptier as the three youngest sons went off to college and my mother grew weary of being a housewife and cook to "the men around here" as she liked to jibe. She grumbled about it openly for years and left us (the sons, not my Dad) to our own devices once we were out of high school. I guess in retrospect our family was a lot more well to do than I'd ever thought we were. You take everything for granted when you're a kid. Only when I went away to college did I get to see drastic differences in how people my own age grew up, where they lived, how their families interacted.<br /><br />We didn't go anywhere special (or "fancy pants" as RT says), but I can recall eating at three places regularly: Friendly's, which I'm sure all the East Coast people know very well; The Hungry Knight, a steak place and the closest to fine dining we ever came as a family; and an Italian joint called Venice Pizzeria where my father loved to order the Sicilian style pizza. It was square (novel for us Connecticut kids who only knew round pizzas) and had a very thick crust. This was decades before Sicilian pizza became a trendy type of pizza and given all sorts of different non-ethnic names.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-42177821454437982212016-10-19T12:21:15.719-04:002016-10-19T12:21:15.719-04:00Patti, the Bon Marche in Lowell had no affiliation...Patti, the Bon Marche in Lowell had no affiliation with any other store. They did have a huge rock in their bargain basement because it was too expensive to remove. It was also the store that moved cash through pneumatic tubes, presumably because they didn't trust their salespeople to make correct change. Pollard's (their competition) had no such new-fangled devices.Jerry Househttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09482856733981933159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-88097350483883278942016-10-19T10:02:46.336-04:002016-10-19T10:02:46.336-04:00Speaking of Nathan's, Jackie said her family w...Speaking of Nathan's, Jackie said her family would go on a Sunday and they'd each have one hot dog and the 5 of them would share one cone of fries.<br /><br />When we started dating (will be 50 years ago this January!) her parents and sisters and us went to Tung On on Avenue U for Sunday "dinner" and they'd order a family dinner for 3 or 4 with extra egg rolls.<br /><br />I still remember, my mother would give us $1 and my brother and I were able to have two slices of pizza and a drink each and get change!<br /><br />As Bill Crider would say, I miss the old days.Jeff Meyersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00093411926030586355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-48699493165230760742016-10-19T10:01:32.058-04:002016-10-19T10:01:32.058-04:00Jerry-I remember eating at a counter in People'...Jerry-I remember eating at a counter in People's Drugstore. Also I remember Bon Marche from Paris and London. Didn't know they had it here. pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-82704740340008013162016-10-19T09:59:46.793-04:002016-10-19T09:59:46.793-04:00August: That sounds like the beginning of a novel!...August: That sounds like the beginning of a novel!<br />Jeff-That hovering detail is priceless. I hate being seated at a table near where patrons wait for that reason. Don't think I have ever been to Whataburger. Maybe there are none in Michigan. <br />Abdullah chocolates-also new to me. pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-20710315499244974972016-10-19T09:55:52.508-04:002016-10-19T09:55:52.508-04:00Before I read the other responses, then: almost n...Before I read the other responses, then: almost never. We lived in Kew Gardens, Queens until we moved to Brooklyn when I was 9. The only places I ever remember eating out were the luncheonette on Queens Boulevard across (and you know how wide that is!) from my grandparents' apartment. where I remember a tuna fish sandwich on toast and a chocolate malted. Yum. There was one Chinese restaurant (can't remember the name), memorable because my mother asked my brother to "catch the waiter's eye" when she wanted the check and Ken, ever the joker, mimed snatching it out of his head. Lastly, in Rego Park, there was Topsy's, a fried chicken restaurant (double yum), whose UNCLE TOM'S CABIN decor would not be considered acceptable these days.<br /><br />There and in Brooklyn, however, my mother made dinner most days. Occasionally she and my father went out without us (Bonaparte's on Avenue M was a favorite of theirs). We'd have pizza (Bella Donna) on Kings Highway, at 15 cents a slice (!). The "big splurge" restaurant was Lundy's in Sheepshead Bay, which surely had the worst system of getting a table I've ever seen. You'd pick out someone who appeared to be nearing the end of their meal and <i>hover over their table until they left</i>. As Dave Barry would say, I swear I am not making this up. I don't ever remember going to Nathan's in Coney Island until years later.<br /><br />Jeff Meyersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00093411926030586355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-80450797124695640972016-10-19T09:33:54.084-04:002016-10-19T09:33:54.084-04:00When I was a kid there was no extra money for my p...When I was a kid there was no extra money for my parents to take all of us out to a restaurant. We got three squares and had to eat everything on the plate. If there was a extra roll on the table we would fight for it.August Westhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11797743144228505958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33110302.post-64321225244119108052016-10-19T09:29:09.436-04:002016-10-19T09:29:09.436-04:00Growing up in the smoke-filled shadow of belching ...Growing up in the smoke-filled shadow of belching steel mills in western Pennsylvania in the late 40s through the 50s and early 60s, I do not ever recall "going out to eat." Such fancy-pants luxuries were beyond my family's blue collar imagination and income. However, brief stops on Saturday shopping days at the lunch counter at G. C. Murphy's 5&10 for a hot dog and Coke were occasional treats. I never really knew anything about full service restaurants until I was in my 30s. Now that I am in my 70s, I still avoid those fancy-pants "real" restaurants and prefer the tiny neighborhood eateries that look like they were clones of the "Evening Shade" television show. And I cannot close this posting without a tip-of-the-hat to the greatest fast-food chain: Whataburger. RTDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17113953356514605424noreply@blogger.com