El Chico Cafe - An Arkansas Connection.

Did you know the popular Dallas-based El Chico Cafe restaurant chain has an Arkansas connection? Read more and see what we tried at this Tex-Mex place.

Arkansas and its Fading Restaurant History.

Postcard from Best Western Alamo Court and Davy
Crockett Restaurant in Walnut Ridge.

I've been working on a new project over the past nine months… another book, to be exact.  This one was to be an all-encompassing book called Classic Arkansas Eateries:  A Delicious Tradition of Dining Out.  But as I compiled my research, I realized something – 40,000 words wasn't going to do justice to the food and restaurants of The Natural State.  Thus was born Classic Eateries of the Ozarks and Arkansas River Valley, the first of what I expect to be four books covering the classic restaurants all around Arkansas.

I've learned a lot, and I’m expecting to learn a lot more.  The very first thing I learned, though, was that there’s no good repository of information about these older restaurants.  Outside of Little Rock (which, thanks to the Arkansas Gazette and Arkansas Democrat, saved its restaurant history fairly well), little of the restaurants that have closed remains.  Frankly, our Arkansas restaurant history is fading away.

There are a few places to find bits here and there.  Phone books from the past give addresses, names and the number – which is a starting point.  Eateries that had money for advertising are represented in newspapers of the time where archives are available.  There are privately held photos and stories, and there are the extant restaurants that often keep their own history (though, as in the case of the original DeVito’s at Bear Creek Springs, circumstances can erase that memorabilia).  And then there are the postcards.

Hank's Dog House on Roosevelt Road in the 1960s.

The average restaurant, diner, drive-in or coffeeshop wasn’t likely to have its own postcard unless it was part of a hotel or if its owner was looking for publicity and good word-of-mouth.  Postcards cost money.

There were dozens of companies all across the United States that would create postcards and send them to these restaurants for a nominal fee.  Often these were sold at the register – for a nickel, three for a dime – add a stamp and off went a memory shared with someone back home.

Today postcards are swapped, sold and traded on sites such as eBay and CashCow.com.  Many have made their way into historical records and private collections.  And what I’ve discovered is a preserved history.

Back when I started working with photographer Grav Weldon, what each of us shot wasn’t very similar.  Grav’s preferred body of work is entropy – gravesites and cemeteries, abandoned buildings, that sort of thing.  Mine?  Well… food, of course.  Over time we’ve found some of our work merging – especially when it comes to this restaurant business.  And now I’m really starting to feel this call – this entropy of lost places that once fed communities.  It’s important.  These sort of places deserve to be remembered.

Shadden's Bar-B-Q in Marvell, August 2013. (Grav Weldon)

One of these images came this past summer.  On a research trip through the Arkansas Delta, I drove Grav by Shadden’s Bar-B-Q in Marvell.  Three years earlier, Mr. Wayne Shadden wasn’t feeling good, so he shut down for the day and went home.  The next day, he died – and the restaurant remains as it was.  I was surprised how well kept the exterior is – but the family’s watching over the place.  Most places aren’t so lucky… just see what happened to the smokehouse at Booger Hollow within a year of its closing.

Scrapping together history like this starts with a little logic.  I have images of several postcards in my collection.  Part of the new book talks about the history of The Old South in Russellville – and its predecessors.  The modular site-assembled restaurant idea created by William E. Stell at National Glass Manufacturing in Fort Smith apparently took hold.  There were hundreds of the buildings placed in locations all over the United States.  At least two of them were in Little Rock -- under the name Gordon Adkins' Fine Foods.

Gordon Adkins No. 1 on Roosevelt Road.

The restaurants had to have come after 1946 (the date the first location of The Old South was opened in Fort Smith) but before Hank’s Dog House.  I’ll get to that.  What we have of the first Gordon Adkins is not a photograph but a line drawing, complete with an address of 3614 Roosevelt Road.

Hank's Dog House in the 1950s.

Later photographs show the same building – same signature spine and rounded windows – with the name Hank’s Dog House.  The original was a little whitewashed building that was a dead ringer for The Old South. 

Building in 3600 block of Roosevelt Road.  Note the windows.

Today about three buildings down from what is now numbered as 3614 Roosevelt Road, you’ll find an orange and red building with those same rounded windows.  At first I was sure this was the same business.  But then I noticed the architecture was different – a vestibule was added on, and there was one window on the left side that’s far forward of those on the right.  Is it the same building or were the windows removed from another property and moved?

Hank's Dog House sketched postcard.

If you type in 3614 West Roosevelt Road today, you come up with an empty lot.  I checked with the city to see if there had been renumbering in the intervening years – no dice.  This Google streetview shows the lot and a building off to the right.  Compare it to this postcard,.  The building on the right appears to be the old Hank’s Catering House next door.

Google Streetview image of location, October 2013.

From this information, I’d surmise that Hank’s moved in after Gordon Adkin’s moved out, then later the restaurant moved down the street.  But that’s all supposition.  So what do I do?  I asked my mom – who came to Little Rock in the 70s to live but who visited the city several times during her childhood.  Her response?  Hank’s was a bit above her price point back in those days.  I have other interviews to come about the place, but that’s where I started.

(You know where else I find restaurant history?  Obituaries.  For instance, I learned that Ruth Brannon worked at Hank’s Dog House for 50 years – which, if I knew nothing about restaurants in Little Rock, would tell me this one was likely a classic.  That obituary is here. I also found a recipe for the famed Hank's Dog House Blue Cheese Dressing on Food.com.)

But if you go to the internet today to do research, all you see are the postcards (and obituaries) for this landmark restaurant.  And without postcards?  Well, Hank’s might just be a memory.

That is, except for a few folks who are making sure those memories stay kept.  Take, for instance, the work of Raymond Merritt on his self-hosted Mabelvale High School page.  Mr. Merritt has asked that I not duplicate photographs on his page, and I will respect that – and send a link over.  The page he’s collected with memories of fellow Mabelvale alumni of Little Rock’s cuisine is significant – and important.  These individuals are sharing their experiences, and in such a way are keeping the legacy of Little Rock’s earlier restaurants alive.

Gordon Adkins No. 2.

But I digress.

I mentioned Gordon Adkins.  The restaurant on Roosevelt was Gordon Adkins #1.  A second location was opened at 10^th and Broadway in Little Rock.  It later became the Ritz Grill. 

Ritz Grill.

Can’t find it today… 10^th Street through downtown was all but obliterated with the construction of Interstate 630.

I could go on quite a while for this, but what I’d really like is to engage you in some thought.  Are there restaurants in your past that no longer exist?   Special memories of a dinner?  Do you have photographs of these places that have passed into history?  Now’s the time to record that information.

Here’s a small selection of restaurant postcards – some with views of what’s at those locations today.

Best Western Alamo Court and Davy Crockett Restaurant
in Walnut Ridge, historic postcard.

The same Walnut Ridge property today.  The restaurant building is for
sale and the former motel rooms appear to be in use as apartments.

The old Pine Bluff Motel and Plantation Embers Restaurant at
4600 Dollarway Road.  The back mentions featured items at the
restaurant:  charcoal broiled steaks, Prime Ribs and Lobster.

Today the location is home to an America's Best Value Inn.

The Deese Motel and Restaurant in Beebe at the intersection of Highways
67 and 64 boasted 20 "completely Modern rooms.  Air-Conditioned - Steam
Heat - Tile Baths - Telephones - Beautyrest Mattresses - T.V."

The property still exists (and about 15 years ago I actually stayed there one
night!) -- but today as you can see in this Google Streetview image, the
motel is the Budget Inn, and its former restaurant is a tattoo parlor.

Powell's Motel at Highway 167 and Main Street
in Batesville served up the "finest of food" at
its somewhat elegant restaurant.

Today the restaurant is Kelley-Wyatt's, which itself was one of the trio of
Kelley family restaurants in Arkansas (the others are at Wynne and Bald
Knob).  Note that this Google Streetview captured two men atop the eatery
at the cupola.

Bald Knob's Market Cafe was celebrated on this postcard as "Just A Good
Place to Eat" at the intersection of Highways 64, 67 and 167.  It also mentions
that the restaurant is air conditioned.

I took this shot in July while researching stories for the upcoming books.
This is the interior of Kelley's Restaurant at Bald Knob.  It still bears the Kelley
name, but was sold several years ago to another family.  The image in the
postcard above is the reverse position in the dining room.

The popular Ritz Motel at Highways 67 and 70 south of downtown Little
Rock was, according to this postcard, "recommended by Duncan Hines."

The restaurant is long gone, and though the Ritz Motel still retains the name,
the comfort level has... well, gone down a bit.

UPDATE:  After being reminded about the fantastic Remember in Little Rock Facebook open group, I cleared up a bit of memory.  The orange building in the photo may have been the first location of Gordon Adkins No. 1 and possibly even the first Hank's Dog House location (MAYBE) -- but it certainly appears to have been one of the locations for Bruno's Little Italy.

Note the rounded windows -- common to The Old South-style restaurants,
certainly evident on the orange building on Roosevelt today.

Let's Go Back to The Old South in Russellville.

The last of a great restaurant chain that began in 1947, Russellville's venerable Old South Restaurant still offers a steady, sturdy diner experience today.

Breakfast at the Old South.

• KAT ROBINSON
• WAY OVER EASY: The Old South's eggs, perfectly cooked

There are a lot of places around Arkansas where you can get breakfast anytime. But finding locally owned joints that serve it up when you want it is harder. I had to wrack my brain a little, but one place that came to mind was where we went late night when I was in college at Arkansas Tech. Of course, I’m thinking about the Old South.

Back then it was the only 24 hour game in the town of Russellville (if you didn’t count the Waffle Houses that sat on either side of Exit 81 from each other). Tech students populated it overnight on a regular basis. You could have a whole booth to yourself, as long as you bought at least one item off the menu. For me back then, it was usually the $1.05 honeybun, which was served up either hot or cold. Sometimes if you ordered it hot, it was microwaved; other times it was obviously fried. You could also get a burger any hour of the day, or breakfast. Yeah, breakfast.

I found myself exhausted coming back from my recent trip to Ft. Smith and in need of coffee and vittles to get back to Little Rock on. What the heck, I decided. The Old South sounded good, and I knew the restaurant would be open.

• KAT ROBINSON
• COFFEE: Necessary

It’s not a 24 hour operation any more. There’s now an IHOP out by the interstate and a couple of 24 hour drive-ins, so there are other options for overnight dining. I doubt IHOP has the same study policy for Tech students, though. I digress..

I pulled in bleary-eyed and dragging around six that evening, somehow finding my way into the restaurant and into a booth up front. One of the waitresses was at my table immediately.

“Coffee?” she asked.

“Coffee,” I confirmed, putting my head down momentarily on the table. I was interrupted not even a full minute later with the careful click of ceramic on laminate as she quietly placed the cup on the table. I looked up gratefully as she sat down the creamer bowl as well.

“Are you eatin’ today?”

“Are you serving breakfast?”

“We sure are!”

“Then yes.”

She smiled and sat down a menu. I foggily noticed her handing off the order to another, younger woman as I brought the cup to my lips. I didn’t care that it was hot. I was sleepy and I had a lot more to do.

My head started to clear. I noticed a young man, quite possibly one of the chefs, bring out a club sandwich and a squeeze bottle of mayo. He doctored up the sandwich, took the mayo back and then came to this side of the counter to eat it. I finally got my focus back enough to read the menu.

There’s a page worth of menu items on the tri-fold Old South menu, including steak-and-eggs, pork-chops-and-eggs, omelets and the special — which includes eggs and a choice of grits, hash browns or oatmeal and a choice of biscuit, toast or English muffin with a choice of breakfast meat — which includes not just ham, sausage and bacon but also thick slices of Petit Jean bologna. I did notice the honey bun is now $1.25. Inflation.

The younger waitress came over with her check pad and pen ready. “I’m Kayla, I’m going to be your waitress. Do you know what you want yet?”

I rattled off to her “corned beef and eggs, over easy. Hash browns. Biscuit.”

“Okay, we can have that right up.”

“Thank you.”

Kayla was gone a moment and then back with the coffee pot. I realized I’d already drained a cup. I nodded and she filled it up.

“I bet you’ll like the breakfasts. I do,” she told me.

“Oh, I’m familiar with them. I used to come here in college, but I haven’t had breakfast here since 1995. It never changes, does it?”

“I don’t know, I was born in 1994,” she told me.

Perhaps I did a double-take. I don’t know for certain. “Wow,” was all I could mutter.

“It’s my first job,” she told me. “My first month.”

“Well, you’re doing a great job,” I told her. She grinned and moved on to another customer. I marveled at that conversation. And at my age. Damn, I’m getting old.

I heard orders being called up and watched as the waitresses picked them up from the grill window and took them out into the restaurant. I overheard one of the other waitresses telling a gentleman at the bar that the AC had gone out in the grill that morning and that the crews were on the roof working right then to fix everything up. She mentioned that it had reached 115 in the kitchen around lunchtime. I’m guessing that it was just the AC in the kitchen and not the rest of the place since the restaurant felt pretty nice to me.

I heard the older waitress call out “Kayla, your order’s up!” and watched the younger girl pick it up and carry it to the booth next to mine. The older waitress repeated the phrase and the actions were all repeated, except this time the plate came my way.

Kayla sat down the order and asked “anything else I can get you? Ketchup?”

“Yes. And do you have white gravy today?”

“I’ll check.” She quickly grabbed the ketchup and brought it over, then went behind the counter and asked. A few moments later she returned and brought me a cup of white (meatless) gravy with a spoon. I grinned at her and continued to take my photos. And then I really got down to breakfast.

• KAT ROBINSON
• CORNED BEEF HASH BREAKFAST: With over-easy eggs, hash browns and a crusty biscuit

The Corned Beef Hash and Eggs breakfast ($7.25) is a very good representation of the typical Old South breakfast. My over-easy eggs were as easy as you can get them, still a little wet in the center of the whites but firm enough to slide onto the plate, the equivalent of a three minute boiled egg. The two yolks were promising deep yellow pools under the surface. The hash browns were appropriately crisp and crusty, undoubtedly gaining some flavor from a griddle that’s been in use more than half a century. The corned beef hash, undoubtedly from a can, had been crisped up and cooked thoroughly on the griddle as well, and had a nice crispy crust to it.

• KAT ROBINSON
• BISCUIT AND GRAVY: Old South style

The Old South’s biscuits are humble and housemade, the same doughy, crusty asymmetrical rounds a little smaller than a fist that have graced the edges of plates there for all time. They’re just a little dry to eat by themselves, but that same dryness makes them perfect for applying something moist, like a pat of butter or a bit of jam — or in my case, the white gravy, which comes out thick and peppered. I ate just enough of my hash browns to fit the biscuit onto my plate, then cracked it open with a fork and spooned on some gravy. It soaked up a little, but the mass of the gravy sat still in the little lumps I’d spooned on.

As I ate, the rest of my world opened up a little. I was on my third cup of coffee by now and had even added sugar and cream to it to get that extra little burst of energy. The eggs were almost creamy in places and needed a little salt and pepper, but the busted yolk clung to a bit of the corned beef hash just right. Protein from egg, protein from meat, carbs from the potatoes in the hash browns and the hash and the biscuit. I probably should have evened out the breakfast with some orange juice so there’d be some fruit matter in my meal, but proper nutrition was the last thing on my mind. I just needed to wake up and get home.

I ended up eating almost everything (except about half the gravy, which remained in the bowl brought to me earlier). I even considered the honey bun, but decided that might put me a little too far over to the full side and possibly even make me a bit sleepy again. I drank the last of my coffee, dropped a dollar on the table and went up to the register to pay.

• KAT ROBINSON

The Old South may not have the best breakfast I’ve ever had. The food is diner food and very little has changed in two or three generations. But it’s consistent and it’s filling and it fills its own gap by being comforting and tasty and appropriate for the diner crowd. I know there are classmates of mine from college that will laugh a little at my descriptions and perhaps recall their own late nights spread out in one of the booths in the back, working on classwork or even working off a hangover.

You’ll find The Old South on East Main Street on the big stretch to the west of the Electric Moo (yes, it’s still open, too). They’re open from morning til about 10 p.m. now. Oh, and if you didn’t know, it’s now on the Historic Register. Apparently Elvis once had a meal there, too. (479) 968-3789.

Breakfast at the Old South.

• KAT ROBINSON
• WAY OVER EASY: The Old South's eggs, perfectly cooked

There are a lot of places around Arkansas where you can get breakfast anytime. But finding locally owned joints that serve it up when you want it is harder. I had to wrack my brain a little, but one place that came to mind was where we went late night when I was in college at Arkansas Tech. Of course, I’m thinking about the Old South.

Back then it was the only 24 hour game in the town of Russellville (if you didn’t count the Waffle Houses that sat on either side of Exit 81 from each other). Tech students populated it overnight on a regular basis. You could have a whole booth to yourself, as long as you bought at least one item off the menu. For me back then, it was usually the $1.05 honeybun, which was served up either hot or cold. Sometimes if you ordered it hot, it was microwaved; other times it was obviously fried. You could also get a burger any hour of the day, or breakfast. Yeah, breakfast.

I found myself exhausted coming back from my recent trip to Ft. Smith and in need of coffee and vittles to get back to Little Rock on. What the heck, I decided. The Old South sounded good, and I knew the restaurant would be open.

• KAT ROBINSON
• COFFEE: Necessary

It’s not a 24 hour operation any more. There’s now an IHOP out by the interstate and a couple of 24 hour drive-ins, so there are other options for overnight dining. I doubt IHOP has the same study policy for Tech students, though. I digress..

I pulled in bleary-eyed and dragging around six that evening, somehow finding my way into the restaurant and into a booth up front. One of the waitresses was at my table immediately.

“Coffee?” she asked.

“Coffee,” I confirmed, putting my head down momentarily on the table. I was interrupted not even a full minute later with the careful click of ceramic on laminate as she quietly placed the cup on the table. I looked up gratefully as she sat down the creamer bowl as well.

“Are you eatin’ today?”

“Are you serving breakfast?”

“We sure are!”

“Then yes.”

She smiled and sat down a menu. I foggily noticed her handing off the order to another, younger woman as I brought the cup to my lips. I didn’t care that it was hot. I was sleepy and I had a lot more to do.

My head started to clear. I noticed a young man, quite possibly one of the chefs, bring out a club sandwich and a squeeze bottle of mayo. He doctored up the sandwich, took the mayo back and then came to this side of the counter to eat it. I finally got my focus back enough to read the menu.

There’s a page worth of menu items on the tri-fold Old South menu, including steak-and-eggs, pork-chops-and-eggs, omelets and the special — which includes eggs and a choice of grits, hash browns or oatmeal and a choice of biscuit, toast or English muffin with a choice of breakfast meat — which includes not just ham, sausage and bacon but also thick slices of Petit Jean bologna. I did notice the honey bun is now $1.25. Inflation.

The younger waitress came over with her check pad and pen ready. “I’m Kayla, I’m going to be your waitress. Do you know what you want yet?”

I rattled off to her “corned beef and eggs, over easy. Hash browns. Biscuit.”

“Okay, we can have that right up.”

“Thank you.”

Kayla was gone a moment and then back with the coffee pot. I realized I’d already drained a cup. I nodded and she filled it up.

“I bet you’ll like the breakfasts. I do,” she told me.

“Oh, I’m familiar with them. I used to come here in college, but I haven’t had breakfast here since 1995. It never changes, does it?”

“I don’t know, I was born in 1994,” she told me.

Perhaps I did a double-take. I don’t know for certain. “Wow,” was all I could mutter.

“It’s my first job,” she told me. “My first month.”

“Well, you’re doing a great job,” I told her. She grinned and moved on to another customer. I marveled at that conversation. And at my age. Damn, I’m getting old.

I heard orders being called up and watched as the waitresses picked them up from the grill window and took them out into the restaurant. I overheard one of the other waitresses telling a gentleman at the bar that the AC had gone out in the grill that morning and that the crews were on the roof working right then to fix everything up. She mentioned that it had reached 115 in the kitchen around lunchtime. I’m guessing that it was just the AC in the kitchen and not the rest of the place since the restaurant felt pretty nice to me.

I heard the older waitress call out “Kayla, your order’s up!” and watched the younger girl pick it up and carry it to the booth next to mine. The older waitress repeated the phrase and the actions were all repeated, except this time the plate came my way.

Kayla sat down the order and asked “anything else I can get you? Ketchup?”

“Yes. And do you have white gravy today?”

“I’ll check.” She quickly grabbed the ketchup and brought it over, then went behind the counter and asked. A few moments later she returned and brought me a cup of white (meatless) gravy with a spoon. I grinned at her and continued to take my photos. And then I really got down to breakfast.

• KAT ROBINSON
• CORNED BEEF HASH BREAKFAST: With over-easy eggs, hash browns and a crusty biscuit

The Corned Beef Hash and Eggs breakfast ($7.25) is a very good representation of the typical Old South breakfast. My over-easy eggs were as easy as you can get them, still a little wet in the center of the whites but firm enough to slide onto the plate, the equivalent of a three minute boiled egg. The two yolks were promising deep yellow pools under the surface. The hash browns were appropriately crisp and crusty, undoubtedly gaining some flavor from a griddle that’s been in use more than half a century. The corned beef hash, undoubtedly from a can, had been crisped up and cooked thoroughly on the griddle as well, and had a nice crispy crust to it.

• KAT ROBINSON
• BISCUIT AND GRAVY: Old South style

The Old South’s biscuits are humble and housemade, the same doughy, crusty asymmetrical rounds a little smaller than a fist that have graced the edges of plates there for all time. They’re just a little dry to eat by themselves, but that same dryness makes them perfect for applying something moist, like a pat of butter or a bit of jam — or in my case, the white gravy, which comes out thick and peppered. I ate just enough of my hash browns to fit the biscuit onto my plate, then cracked it open with a fork and spooned on some gravy. It soaked up a little, but the mass of the gravy sat still in the little lumps I’d spooned on.

As I ate, the rest of my world opened up a little. I was on my third cup of coffee by now and had even added sugar and cream to it to get that extra little burst of energy. The eggs were almost creamy in places and needed a little salt and pepper, but the busted yolk clung to a bit of the corned beef hash just right. Protein from egg, protein from meat, carbs from the potatoes in the hash browns and the hash and the biscuit. I probably should have evened out the breakfast with some orange juice so there’d be some fruit matter in my meal, but proper nutrition was the last thing on my mind. I just needed to wake up and get home.

I ended up eating almost everything (except about half the gravy, which remained in the bowl brought to me earlier). I even considered the honey bun, but decided that might put me a little too far over to the full side and possibly even make me a bit sleepy again. I drank the last of my coffee, dropped a dollar on the table and went up to the register to pay.

• KAT ROBINSON

The Old South may not have the best breakfast I’ve ever had. The food is diner food and very little has changed in two or three generations. But it’s consistent and it’s filling and it fills its own gap by being comforting and tasty and appropriate for the diner crowd. I know there are classmates of mine from college that will laugh a little at my descriptions and perhaps recall their own late nights spread out in one of the booths in the back, working on classwork or even working off a hangover.

You’ll find The Old South on East Main Street on the big stretch to the west of the Electric Moo (yes, it’s still open, too). They’re open from morning til about 10 p.m. now. Oh, and if you didn’t know, it’s now on the Historic Register. Apparently Elvis once had a meal there, too. (479) 968-3789.