# The loss of a great restaurant
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [November 19, 2000, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817 "2000-11-19T03:57:00Z")
**Posts on this page:** 8
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2000, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817/21 "2000-11-20T19:46:54Z")
**The Old Heidelburg** in New Haven, Connecticut. The food was lousy, but it was a great bar. And it was the oldest perpetually-running restaurant in the U.S. when it closed down about ten years ago.
More recently, the **Derby** on Macdougal Street in Greenwich Village. Nice dark brown joint of a place, also with a fine bar, perfectly-grilled steaks and chops, no-bullshit salads and vegetable sides, and they did a grilled shrimp appetizer that was just poetry. You could always get a nice gloomy booth to yourself in the back, too. About two years ago it turned into a motherfucking SPORTS BAR.
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### Author:  [@Demo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Demo)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2000, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817/22 "2000-11-20T20:00:14Z")
The Nut Tree closed? WTF? I never even knew. Like someone has said before, the sign is still out there, so I just figured it was still running. Damn, what a shame. That place was kinda a family tradition for every time we drove through there.
In other news, I seem to have seen quite a few new A&Ws opening up across the country and especially here in CA. What a wonderful thing. OK, it’s not a gourmet restaurant or anything, but ya gotta have good fast food too, right?
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### Author:  [@BunnyGirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BunnyGirl)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2000, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817/23 "2000-11-20T20:16:26Z")
My loss is kind of different. We _had_ a great Italian restaurant here in Lansing called DeLuca’s. Good everything, especially their pizza. My favorite thing was gnocchi with alfredo sauce. Yum!
So we move back home after 3 years in TN and find out that it’s still there _however_, when we go for dinner, they’ve started using cheap replacements in some of their dishes. They started making their alfredo sauce with **margarine!!!**. Aaaacckkkk! Yuck! Geez, it was disappointing. Everything used to be fresh but now its canned this and canned that.
We don’t even bother going there anymore.
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### Author:  [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2000, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817/24 "2000-11-20T20:29:09Z")
Reading this is bringing back memories of \*\* Po’ Folks\*\*, they had the best chicken fried steak with white gravy, and their prices were great too.
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### Author:  [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2000, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817/25 "2000-11-21T01:09:01Z")
I cried when I visited my friend in LA a few years back and he told me that _Swiss Echo_ had closed.
Here in Akron, I have personally closed down three Greek restaurants. Not that they were among my top 10 favorites nationwise, but they were so _close_. Good thing I can cook Greek in a pinch.
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### Author:  [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2000, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817/26 "2000-11-21T04:56:11Z")
White Tower, in Pittsburgh. **Not** to be confused with White Castle. The decor was straight-up John Waters Schlockarama style. They were open 24/7, had classic greasy diner food at reasonable prices, had large, deep booths, never turned away even the shoddiest looking patron, never forbid anyone from getting loud. The only thing they lacked was a jukebox.
Then one night, without warning, they were closed, and stayed closed.
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### Author:  [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2000, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817/27 "2000-11-21T05:23:12Z")
Well, let’s see…
I can’t believe that **Naugles** is really gone (at least from my haunt of college days, St Louis). They had killer cheese burritos. Naugles was great food because they kept to the three tenets of Nauglism:
**1. Prepare food fresh
2. Serve customer fast
3. Keep place clean**
Truly, wisdom we could all benefit by.
**Brookings the Chili King** has been gone from Lexington for about ten years now. Chili Burgers to die for. Adolph Rupp used to eat there. Good stuff.
It’s still around, but **Ferrell’s** in Hopkinsville hasn’t been the same since Red died… (If any other Dopers know THIS one I’ll eat my hat.)
My favorite Chinese place in Louisville **North China Inn** has been gone a while now. Miss the Kung Pao and the Moo Shu. Not fancy, but tasty.
And I miss the Cajun place that used to be in Frankfort.
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### Author:  [@poohpah\_chalupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/poohpah_chalupa)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2000, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-loss-of-a-great-restaurant/41817/28 "2000-11-21T06:42:58Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Democritus \*
> **…I seem to have seen quite a few new A&Ws opening up across the country and especially here in CA…**
A&W’s opening here?
:D:D:D:D:D
…with the _Burger Family?_ Teen Burgers rock! (my first official bacon-cheeseburger)! And their Coney Islands/Chili Dogs were yummy! (well, to the uninitiated West Coast pallette).
BTW, in SoCal, Naugles was bought out by the ubiquitous DelTaco, home of the homogenized plastic burrito.
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