Category Archives: Restaurants

The Mack family and Springfield’s McDonald’s restaurants

Posted on July 6, 2014 by editor

Springfield’s Lithuanian historian, Sandy Baksys, covers the beginnings of McDonald’s restaurants in Springfield in three posts on her Lithuanians in Springfield, Illinois web site. Here’s how she led off the first installment: Anybody who’s eaten a McDonald’s hamburger in Springfield … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Ethnic groups, Lithuanians, Prominent figures, Restaurants | 1 Comment

The Cara-Sel Lounge

Posted on June 27, 2014 by editor

One of the more colorful Lithuanian-American businesses in Springfield was the Cara-Sel Lounge, Seventh Street and North Grand Ave, operated for 17 years by Tony and Carol Yuscius. Tony (1923-2009) was the son of Lithuanian-born Joseph and Marcella (Radavich) Yuscius. … Continue reading →

Posted in Amusements, Business, Coal mines and mining, Ethnic groups, Hotels & taverns, Lithuanians, Restaurants | 2 Comments

Joe DeFrates

Posted on November 15, 2013 by editor

Joe DeFrates was the founder of Chilli Man Chilli and a two-time winner of the International Championship Chili competition in Terlingua, Texas. See Chili ‘chilli’ in Springfield.

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The Sugar Bowl restaurants

Posted on November 14, 2013 by editor

Springfield had two Sugar Bowl restaurants, both on South Grand Avenue, which between them lasted from 1919 to 1959. Teddy Gray (1892-1977) was the main operator of the 11th Street and South Grand Sugar Bowl, while Alex Karon (1893-1972) was primarily identified … Continue reading →

Posted in Amusements, Ethnic groups, Greeks, Restaurants, Transportation | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Chili (‘chilli’) in Springfield

Posted on October 30, 2013 by editor

Springfield’s idiosyncratic two-L spelling of the dish that goes elsewhere by the spelling “chili” was institutionalized when Joe Bockelmann and Thomas McNerney opened The Dew Chilli Parlor in 1909. Although The Dew apparently was the first restaurant to spell it … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Prominent figures, Restaurants | 40 Comments

Cozy Dog Drive-In

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

The Cozy Dog, a battered, deep-fried hot dog on a stick, was created by Ed Waldmire Jr. (1916-93) while he was in the U.S. Army Air Corps in Texas.* After discharge, Waldmire brought the idea back to Springfield. Here is … Continue reading →

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Fast food in Springfield

Posted on October 28, 2013 by editor

The first drive-in restaurant in Springfield was the Sugar Bowl at 11th Street and South Grand Avenue, according to Fast Food: Roadside Restaurants in the Automobile Age, written by John Jakle of Champaign-Urbana and Keith Sculle of Springfield. The 11th … Continue reading →

Posted in Amusements, Restaurants | Tagged , | 9 Comments

The horseshoe sandwich (with recipe)

Posted on October 24, 2013 by editor

This entry was significantly expanded in December 2023. Although accounts differ, most people credit Joseph Schweska with creating the horseshoe sandwich, the locally famous open-faced combination of toast, meat and French fries covered in cheese sauce. As the story goes, … Continue reading →

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Maid-Rite Sandwich Shop

Posted on October 16, 2013 by editor

This entry has been updated, corrected and expanded. Opened in the 1920s, the Maid-Rite Sandwich Shop at 118 N. Pasfield St. is thought to be the oldest sandwich shop in continuous operation in Springfield. It also claims to have the … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Historic Sites, Restaurants | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Spaulding Orchard

Posted on October 7, 2013 by editor

The Spaulding family, starting with J. B. Spaulding, grandfather of Willis and Charles Spaulding and Maydie Spaulding Lee, at various times owned several orchards around Springfield. The village of Spaulding, next to Riverton, “got its railroad station because of the … Continue reading →

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