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LeeinMT

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  1. Ye Olde College Inn across Main St from Rice U. Food to die for. The San Jacinto Inn (or something like that) by the ship channel. All the oysters you could eat. Mentioned before, but no response... Der Hofbrergartten beer hall with various animals on display, all the beer you could drink, and a real oom-paw band that we all danced to. Somewhere in the Friendswood area. Long gone.
  2. I once picked up a business associate from Dallas at IAH and was driving in I-45 when the freeway jammed up (imagine that?). Looking around, I departed the right lane and headed across the grass over to the service road, as were many others. My Dallas companion (read 'uptight, anal') hollered, What are you doing?, You can't do this!". Later I bought him a beer at the Alabama Ice House and educated him on Houston's easy tolerant culture.
  3. Ritzee's Drive In corner of Cullen and the new Gulf Fwy. Carhops, burgers, the whole thing.
  4. All of them. There were only three stations back then, Channels 2, 11, and 13.
  5. No, but the one you show is the same idea and format. The one I remember showed bank robbers in their car with the cops chasing behind them. One of the first J in the B franchises in Houston was opened in 1959 by the Spring Branch Junior High Asst Principal, Mr. English. Located on Long Point, everyone thought he had lost his mind, but it was an instant success. A two way intercom in the drive thru was a radical new concept. "Jack will speak to you".
  6. Jack's first TV commercial showed a police car chasing the bad guys through the drive through, hardly slowing down, the food service was so fast. Both the bad guys and the cops got their burgers.
  7. More... Jame's Coney Island (but not the one downtown where they hollered at you NY style). They are all over town, but their original recipe hasn't changed. Same hot dog, higher priced. Worth the visit. Nielson's Deli. Started in the early 50's by Danish immigrants, potato salad to die for, and they haven't changed the recipe or ingredients - only the prices. Only one left is on Richmond between Weslayn and 610 just over the RR tracks - still run by the founder's son.. They make their own mayonnaise. Houston has rebuilt itself three times over since we grew up there. I think it is the nature of the place. It's about to do it again. Spelling some of Houston's street names is a challenge. Never could get Bissonnet, Weslayn, Kuykendahl right.
  8. More... The Shamrock Hilton on S. Main was demo'd years ago, but is remembered where they filmed part of the movie 'Giant' with Eliz Taylor, Rock Hudson, and James Dean in the mid 50's. Story is that Dean really got as tanked as depicted in the movie, and that it was actually included in part of the film. He wasn't just acting. Union Station downtown is now the convention center. The trains had to back in for passenger loading. The original Foleys downtown just got demo'd. So did the Houston Club. The old original Sears store on S Main. Walking into it recently was spooky - like stepping back in time. Same merchandise layout, escalators, basement, etc. No customers and almost no staff. This one won't last long. Sears is part of the mid 20th century and is about to die. They are just holding on to their real estate holdings.
  9. Just past Barker Cypress Rd on the South side of Hempstead Rd. It was an artesian well accidentally discovered by oil well drillers who had lost their drill bit. Huge swimming area known as 'Hot Wells', and now known as the Hot Wells Shooting Range.
  10. Frank's Meat Mkt on Witte Rd 1/2 block north of Long Point is now an Hispanic night club. In 1962 you opened the top of a big cooler and paid a dime to slide an ice cold Coke down the slots where you could pull it out. The big swimming hole out Hempstead Hwy. I found it (thanks to Google Earth, old aerial photos, and the old phone books). Now a concrete mixing facility with the big hole filled in. Andrau Airpark off Westheimer? Home of the $400 hamburger. Gone. Now upscale housing. Where I learned to fly. 2K's Ice cream parlor corner Westheimer and Post Oak close to Saks, soon to become part of the Galleria complex. Favorite place for the church youth groups to hang out and only place in Houston to get an original 1920's 'cherry phosphate'. Rebuilt at least twice over.
  11. Prices' Hamburgers on Wirt just south of Long Point is now a parking lot for a Mexican oyster bar. There is a McDonalds next door. Prices had the 19 cent burgers that we splurged on with our dates after cruising Long Point. Playland Park on S. Main at Murworth is long gone - now an abandoned parking lot for the Astrodome. A popular place to take dates, especially the 'wild mouse' ride. Their racetrack was where A.J. Foyt got started. Their entrance was flanked by tall multi-colored neon that resembled toothbrushes.
  12. Weingartens was always the more upscale grocery outlet. Family sold out and retired. The one on Long Point is now a 'supermercado'. The Thunderbird Drive-In Movie on Clay Rd is now a business park. With the girls in the back seat, we used to sneak in a couple guys in the trunk and always got away with it. Dobbs House diner at the corner Long Point and Wirt is still there but is now an auto parts dealer.
  13. The old original downtown library building has an archives section with microfilms of the original Houston phone books, both white pages and yellow. A good source is the 1962 yellow pages. Remember when phone number started with 2 letters? Which is why we still have little letters on our phones. We can tear up and rebuild structures, but the geographical postal addresses remain the same. The Texan Drive In on Hempstead at Long Point is now a vacant lot. I was able to scrape away some dirt and find the remains of the old black & white tiles on the slab that was the kitchen. The guys from Cy-Fair would come down to the Texan wearing their FFA jackets and greasy hair looking for a fight, and usually found one. Cafeterias were always part of Houston's unique culture where our parents would take us 'out to eat. L & C and other that I can't remember. The food was good and was a treat. Clayborns on Bissonnet still maintains the original high quality that we got spoiled on, but don't try it on Mother's day.
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