By Eric Schoen
Did I hear someone say, “It’s Miller time?” That sounds refreshing on these hot summer days.
No, unfortunately they said “Mueller time.” As we go to press Special Counsel Robert Mueller appears before Congress. I listened for 5 minutes. How do you spell “boring?”
It got me thinking about a conversation I had with my sister the other day. It was 95-plus degrees and we were talking about how, on such a hot day, we missed Charlie Brown’s, the restaurant with the big salad bar and juicy prime rib on Central Avenue in Yonkers. I loved their 16-ounce chopped steak smothered in onions. And we all loved – particularly on a hot summer day – to walk in and enjoy the ice cold salad bar.
Chilled crisp lettuce and vegetables, delicious salads (potato, Cole slaw, macaroni), marinated vegetables, marinated beans – such a wide array of choices, I hope I didn’t leave out your favorite. Fresh breads – raisin bread chock full of raisins and Italian bread. Or was it sourdough bread? Or maybe both?
But who can forget the chopped liver? It was so good that people would request to purchase it to take home for the Jewish holidays. We would always debate if it was chicken or beef chopped liver, or a combination of both. And, believe me, you didn’t have to be Jewish to eat Charlie Brown’s chopped liver. My non-Jewish friends would slather it on their plates.
There are a few Charlie Brown’s left, one in Old Tappan over the Cuomo Bridge and others in New Jersey – but we miss our Yonkers Charlie Brown’s.
Across from Charlie Brown’s was Patricia Murphy’s. Oh, those warm popovers brought to your table by the Popover Girls, dressed in their dainty little outfits. Did you know that Margie, the hostess at Charlie Brown’s, was a Popover Girl?
People would travel from all over to eat at Patricia Murphy’s. The restaurant could seat a whopping 1,000 people and often had nearly that many folks waiting for a table. During their waits, families would stroll through the beautiful Murphy’s gardens, visit the gift shop where Patricia Murphy fragrances were sold, and buy drinks at the bar or flowers at the Greenhouse.
The restaurant’s salad bar was a special feature. Pickled watermelon was served; beef, lamb and calf’s liver were available “plain roasted as you do at home” or “plain broiled with no lathering of strange sauces.”
Dad didn’t like any kind of sauce on his food (he always said he went through the Army eating chocolate pudding, as it was the only thing without onion in it) so he liked the concept of food plainly cooked without “strange sauces.”
In 1968, New York State began construction on a six-lane arterial highway near Patricia Murphy’s. The restaurant and the owners of the land it occupied received notice in 1969 of the state’s plans for a highway. In 1971, the restaurant closed.
The Red Coach Grill at Cross County Shopping Center was high above the mall. Sumptuous prime rib or, as the menu called it, “roast heavy prime rib of beef English cut;” lobster Newburgh, shrimp Newburgh, two broiled live lobsters (aka “The Daily Double”) for the holidays; Red Coach Famous clam chowder and a salad bar with all kinds of goodies, including corn relish; and bread served at your table came with their famous cheese dip to slather on. Wash it all down with a Red Coach mint fizz (vodka, fresh mint and lemon juice) for the might price of 85 cents.
Red Coach was replaced by Sizzler. After the beach on a hot summer Saturday, we would love to go to Sizzler and have the ice cold salad from the salad bar. The salad bar was introduced to accompany the main dish, but soon became a meal in itself. There were always three piping hot soups on the salad bar that even on a hot day one could enjoy.
Sizzler still exists mainly on the West Coast. A few years ago a friend had an anniversary party for his parents at the Sizzler in Puerto Rico. This Sizzler was on the water and was much fancier than the Sizzlers I had visited in Yonkers and Florida. In Puerto Rico, Sizzler had gone back to the concept of great meats with a salad bar as a side dish instead of as a full meal. The food was delicious.
Our last salad bar this week was at the Cooky’s (or was it Cookies) restaurant on Central Avenue in Yonkers where Barnes and Noble currently resides. Mention Cooky’s, and all you think about is those peel-and-eat shrimp. What a mess they made! They were particularly annoying to non-shrimp eaters like me.
With ribs, steaks, garlic-seasoned butter for your bread, and cabbage soup, the shrimp anchored the salad bar on both ends in big bins. Every salad imaginable was available on the salad bar.
Ah, fun memories. Now, tell me, isn’t this more interesting Miller – oops, I mean Mueller time?
Reach Eric Schoen at thistooisyonkers@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @ericyonkers. Listen to Eric Schoen and Dan Murphy on the Westchester Rising Radio Show on Thursdays from 10 to 11 a.m. on WVOX 1460 AM, go to WVOX.com and click the arrow to listen to the live stream, or download the WVOX app from the App Store free of charge.
