I love these old advertising postcards. It reminds me of a time when people didn't eat at McDonald's because the damn things were so hard to find. I admit it. I made a huge mistake. Fast food places were just beginning their strangle hold on fast and cheap meals when I was growing up, and back then, I was all for avoiding the local diners, with all their eccentricities in favor of the predictability of the posted menu. I have to say, I'd love to find a chicken fried steak, a bowl of chili, or a piece of cream pie, all cooked from the cook's own personal recipe book, all served by a waitress who would have never offered to super size things for me.
So, I did run a search on Terry's Cafeteria, and I did find a Facebook page with that title, though absent pictures of the building, I suspect it's a nostalgia site as opposed to one operated by an existing restaurant. I found an obituary for Cleo Terry, the owner of the cafeteria. Born in 1919 in Knoxville, Iowa, died 2008, Delaware, Ohio. A 1937 graduate of Piqua High School, he was a World War 2 veteran who served in the Normandy campaign. He was a member of the Disabled Veterans of America, so he didn't come out of the war unscathed. I couldn't find anything on when Terry's first opened it's doors, but it's a fairly safe bet it was after the war.
This card was never mailed. Captioned, "TERRY'S CAFETERIA, 105 E. Greene st., Piqua, Ohio 45356, 1/2 Mile from I-75, West on U.S. 36. Seating Capacity 350. Banquet and Party Rooms. Phone (513) 778-0566 AAA Rated."
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI miss this place SO VERY MUCH...my great grandparents used to take me here as a child back in the early 1990's, and I ALWAYS looked forward to going. I remember that bc I was a kid I always got a red tray, for the kid orders, and my grandparents got a black or grey tray. I always used to get a fancy glass of Jello, and hamburger and fries bc they were DELICIOUS!! I remember the numbered table cards if you had an order that they had to cook first, so they would know which table to serve...my great grandpa always got liver and onions...its nostalgic thinking about it now. We lived in New Carlise and never minded the drive there. It's sad that I can't ever bring my own children there now, and that I'll never be able to eat there again :-(
ReplyDeleteI also forgot...my great grandfather knew Mr. Terry, the owner, bc he and my great-grandpa served in WWII together. When we went there if he was around, they would always chat, and we never had to pay full price for any meal. My great grandpa died in 1997 at 87 years old.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah, you also mentioned that you couldn't find any information about when it opened. It opened on February 3rd, 1967 and closed on April 4th, 1999. It was originally opened by Joseph Terry and Cleo Terry. More info can be found on the Pique Public Library Archives website here: https://www.piqualibrary.org/content/ms-176
ReplyDelete