I would argue Little John’s LAST heyday was the early 2000s when plan 9 records was still next-door instead of a god damn CVS and you had a Gen X student body. You had a grungy old time dive joint, and now it just no longer fits The Corner, which I’m devastated to say. The Corners new vibe is suburban, clean cut, new, & mass cultural. Little John’s was a remnant of another time that started to decline ten+ years ago, and its new iteration was a soulless husk of its former glory.
The new attempt fucked up big by destroying the once warm atmosphere with cheap new tacky seating that was spread out, self ordering from a screen, and so on; not that I’m sure it would have mattered given what I just said. RIP.
DANG I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT THAT PLACE! What about Common Grounds? Man, the Corner has changed SO MUCH. I recall a group of gutter punks/train hopping vegabonds always hanging under the train tracks at the bottom of the hill, they’d have a fish hook connected to a cup for change. Different times…
Since we’re all waxing nostalgic, and since there’s no better thread for it (full disclosure: I did not check), anybody going to reunions next weekend?
OG’s- how good was Big Jim’s. Just so solid and so affordable. Out on RT-29 and to the left of you were heading north I believe. Great burgers. I could be way off on the directions, but that’s what I remember.
Still functionally exists as Pico Wrap. Same space, basically the same menu, same willingness to make the Caesar salad as a wrap with the spicy chicken.
Oh man! I’ve got a family friend who worked at Barnaby’s when he was in undergrad. Still has the pizza recipe from his days there. Once or twice a year he has us over for dinner and makes Barnaby’s pizza for us. Still slaps.
Back during the mid to late 90s, there was a Vietnamese place. I can’t remember the location or the name, but I remember that we had to drive there.
I didn’t grow up going to Vietnamese restaurants because I could eat that at home and my mom was a great cook. Plus there weren’t too many and they were out in the West End. So my palette wasn’t that sophisticated and for some reason I didn’t get cravings for it when I was in college.
But when my friends did, we went there. All I can remember was that the owners kids waited the tables in the afternoons or sat at a table doing homework. And when I say kids, I mean like middle schoolers, 10-12 years old maybe.
I have no idea if the food was good or not, but those kids are in their late 30s or so now and probably have kids of their own that are about the age they were when they spent afternoons at the restaurant. I doubt the place is still around.
Sometimes I get nostalgic and miss the memories of times that I didn’t appreciate enough when I was living them. I have to remind myself about this when I get annoyed or upset or tired by my kids.
loved that place
