Mid-century Reading Road (Cincinnati, Kent, Montgomery: cinema, dangerous, safe)

[mike1003]

Originally Posted by goyguy

The Upper Krust = Meir's Place
Its proprietor was Meir Ovadia, an Israeli national. Goyguy heaven will include one of that restaurant's high-rise sandwiches, probably with both "korned beef" and "pastromi." Izzy's had nothing on Meir's.

I've been thinking about this for a few days. If you are talking about today's Izzy's I have to agree with you. The sandwiches they now serve would cause Izzy to spin in his grave. And, yes, Meier's food was indeed good.

But, nothing in Cincy ever came close to the sandwiches at Izzys Plum St and Elm(?) St. when Iz was still alive. His sandwiches were great!!!!

Sitting at tables waiting to see what big wig would be seated next to you. My wife had lunch with Mstislav Rostropovich (1927–2007 ) (known as Slava; great Russian cellist and conductor) when he was in town to play with CSO.

And the entertainment, Iz yelling at everyone...Iz charging pretty girls less..Iz charging everyone something different for the same meal.

Even after Iz had his legs amputated, he'd sit behind the cash register in his wheel chair yelling..."Pick up the orders, ther aint gonna walk to the customer" What a man!

[charann]

Hi folks, I never lived on reading but have knowen about it most of my life. My grandmother always stopped at the Glass Barn as far back as i can rememeber. She used to firt with the owner who always gave her good prices. The orginal owner set his own price. If he like you, you got a good price, if he did not care you got standard price. I still go there when i get a chance. They keep the glass cleaned up now. Years ago they would break something they swept it under the table and there is stayed.
I would also like to ask does any one remember the Sohio station acrossed from Sherman. Real close to Paddock over pass. The station is now an empty lot on the EPA clean up list. My Great uncles Frank and Harry Snow worked there in the late 50s till Frank Died in 59. I have lost track of Frank"s wife Lois and the kids last heard of in 1960 in the Cin area. Any help would be appreacated.
Till i go to the Glass Barn again. thanks i enjoyed reading about the area.

[Gerri Ann]

OMG - I remember Whitey and Cindy very well! I was so young - back then - when I hung out at Ron's Hunt Club. One of my Mom's waitresses took me there and I just loved it. Whitey, Bud, Harry Hoosier, Bill Schneyer, Gentle Ben, so many of the old guys just loved to hang out there. I was very young then - still in my teens in the 70's - and met my first true love there. And who could forget the unforgettable barmaid, Mary Rose!

I remember your Dad very well. He used to make me laugh...

Originally Posted by justajean

Wow and more WOW! Loved reading this thread!

My mom worked in the Carousel Towers. Once in a while she let me come to work with her, she was an accountant. I remember the first time she took me to the Upper Krust, first time I ever had corned beef and have loved it ever since. Also remember the Arby's that had the actual roasts cooking on the front counter. I also remember vaguely Parkmoor, mom always said they had the best chicken. Think we brought it home, don't remember actually eating inside.

During the "69" twister, the office she worked in was hit bad, it was on the SW outer corner of the Carousel Towers building. She'd find glass in files months later. Her bosses relative was thrown out of the Upper Krust and remember the story about them picking glass out of his ear!

My parents got divorced when I was around 8 or so, and my dad lived for awhile on the corner of Joseph St and Reading, we lived on Avonlea. Then he moved further N on Reading or in the area. He didn't drive, but worked as a butcher for MANY years at A&P and wonder if anyone might remember him. He was a real people person, used to love his stories when he came home from work and he'd imitate everyone's accents. Everyone called him "Whitey", the story goes he had white blond hair for the first 3 decades of his life, then it turned brown. He still had mostly thick brown with some gray even when he died last year in his upper 80's. He also hung out at Ron's Hunt Club and other places and used to play drums there and elsewhere in the area, probably only till the 80's. He had a long time live in girlfriend named Cindy who died before him. She had red hair. Dad's real name was Elmer, so you can see why he used the nickname!

[Gerri Ann]

What about Denny's? Loved the pizza omelet at 3 am after the bars closed...

Originally Posted by MiddleCincinnati

Guess our crowd wasn't stuck-up enough: we haunted Chili Time, just
up the road. On at least one occasion, we stayed until closing at
4:00, then came back two hours later, when the morning shift opened
for breakfast. Beside the rejuvenating qualities of Cincinnati chili,
the store offered a bustle and a diverse clientele unmatched elswhere
on Reading Road at that hour.

As for Perkins, well, they should have stuck their strong suit: pancakes.

[Gerri Ann]

And yep, loved Chili Time too after the bars closed...

Originally Posted by Gerri Ann

What about Denny's? Loved the pizza omelet at 3 am after the bars closed...

[MiddleCincinnati]

Originally Posted by mike1003

But, nothing in Cincy ever came close to the sandwiches at Izzys Plum St and Elm(?) St. when Iz was still alive. His sandwiches were great!!!!

This is kind of like the chili wars that divide Cincinnatians both at home
and abroad. We have survived, though, by agreeing to disagree.

The eat-in delis I can remember (but there were definitely others) are:

Loretta's
Sand's
Temple
Izzy Kadetz
Tillie Nebolski's
Stanley's
Upper Krust (later Meier's Place)

All but Izzy's and Temple were on or near Reading Rd.

Izzy's was a kind of big-city dive that almost seemed out of place in
Cincinnati. The emphasis here was on meat, although the man did
understand sauer kraut.

UK/MP had a much broader appeal. For one thing, they would mix
dairy and meat. For another, they served beer. The spot felt less
like a deli than a well-stocked sandwich place.

Stanley's, to my mind, was a true deli. There was a deli counter -
a la Bilker's - as well as a modestly-sized area with table service.
The place bustled into the early 1970's and then quickly died.

Loretta's had some grocery items for sale, but concentrated mainly
on table service. Like Sands, I do not remember it very well. There
have been a few contributions in this thread on both.

Others have commented on both Tillie's and the Temple.

Beyond just delis, though, Cincinnati was (is?) an amazing sandwich
town. The neighborhood chili places all used to feature double
deckers. There used to be a place in Silverton, the Marathon, that
seemed to have nothing but sandwiches.

[fhiudt]

Thanks for bringing all these great places to mind again. I have eaten at all of them and my father was friends with all the owners and knew them well. Meir's place, Meir was the son in law of Mort Keller who owned Sugar n spice. I live in Vegas and stay in contact with Izzy's brother Charlie who lives out here and I just turned him on to the forum. My father at one time after Sands had closed was trying to put the first Empress Chili franchise out there on Reading Rd. I grew up with Bonnie Zimmerman who's father owned the Temple. Yes, Stanley's was the place to be in the early 70's. Loretta was a close girlfriend of my Aunt Jean and I remember as a kid eating there all the time. It was also the same time Loretta Young had her TV show and I always equaled both Loretta's. But my greatest memories are of Izzy's mainly cause my father and Izzy were such good friends. I tell people that there were no menus and prices and that the stories that Izzy would charge you different depending if he knew you or if you just got a cup of coffee. He once said how can you come into my place and just get a cup of coffee. I remember the old wood floors on the original Elm st location that tilted. That Izzy put out different plates during Passover. Until his son David took over there were no Rubeuns. No cheese. Izzy was famous for his pickle barrels on Elm st. He had the greatest potato pancake in the world but best of all was Izzy at the cash register and meat slicer - collecting dollars with one hand and slicing corn beef with the other yelling at Rose his wife and all the help and kibbitzing with all the customers all at the same time. I remember years later after Izzy died and Tanta Rose that is Aunt Rose to some was running the place with David, I would call in an order for my cousins and we would carry out and when we got back to our auto parts store Rose would have put in extra pancakes and pickles because she knew who we were and loved us dearly. My favorite sandwich was the potted hamburger with lots of onions and a diet dr browns creme soda.
Tillie Nebolski became a favorite when she opened in the Valley shopping center in the late 70's. After she and husband Joe cater my brother's and my bar mitzvah parties as well as numerous family functions Aunt Tillie was always greated with a hug and a kiss. It also helped that my mother and sister had a children's clothing store at the Valley at the same time and so we spent alot of time at Tillies. She made the best rolled cabbage.
Later on Dave Dennis and his brother and sisters had opened Dave's Deli where Tillie's was in the Valley, maybe one of them is reading this and will put in their two cents of history for us.

As a side bar it is still wonderful that we continue to add to this thread. Gerri Ann it is great to hear from you as I have written before the Well was a special place for the Hiudt family and I think we all enjoy your insights and if anyone else out there owned a business or whose family had one I am sure we would like to hear from you.

[Gerri Ann]

Yep, the more the merrier as to new posts! As for Hiudts, my daughter was a cheerleader in the Montgomery area in the 90's with Brie Hiudt - any relation??

Originally Posted by fhiudt

Thanks for bringing all these great places to mind again. I have eaten at all of them and my father was friends with all the owners and knew them well. Meir's place, Meir was the son in law of Mort Keller who owned Sugar n spice. I live in Vegas and stay in contact with Izzy's brother Charlie who lives out here and I just turned him on to the forum. My father at one time after Sands had closed was trying to put the first Empress Chili franchise out there on Reading Rd. I grew up with Bonnie Zimmerman who's father owned the Temple. Yes, Stanley's was the place to be in the early 70's. Loretta was a close girlfriend of my Aunt Jean and I remember as a kid eating there all the time. It was also the same time Loretta Young had her TV show and I always equaled both Loretta's. But my greatest memories are of Izzy's mainly cause my father and Izzy were such good friends. I tell people that there were no menus and prices and that the stories that Izzy would charge you different depending if he knew you or if you just got a cup of coffee. He once said how can you come into my place and just get a cup of coffee. I remember the old wood floors on the original Elm st location that tilted. That Izzy put out different plates during Passover. Until his son David took over there were no Rubeuns. No cheese. Izzy was famous for his pickle barrels on Elm st. He had the greatest potato pancake in the world but best of all was Izzy at the cash register and meat slicer - collecting dollars with one hand and slicing corn beef with the other yelling at Rose his wife and all the help and kibbitzing with all the customers all at the same time. I remember years later after Izzy died and Tanta Rose that is Aunt Rose to some was running the place with David, I would call in an order for my cousins and we would carry out and when we got back to our auto parts store Rose would have put in extra pancakes and pickles because she knew who we were and loved us dearly. My favorite sandwich was the potted hamburger with lots of onions and a diet dr browns creme soda.
Tillie Nebolski became a favorite when she opened in the Valley shopping center in the late 70's. After she and husband Joe cater my brother's and my bar mitzvah parties as well as numerous family functions Aunt Tillie was always greated with a hug and a kiss. It also helped that my mother and sister had a children's clothing store at the Valley at the same time and so we spent alot of time at Tillies. She made the best rolled cabbage.
Later on Dave Dennis and his brother and sisters had opened Dave's Deli where Tillie's was in the Valley, maybe one of them is reading this and will put in their two cents of history for us.

As a side bar it is still wonderful that we continue to add to this thread. Gerri Ann it is great to hear from you as I have written before the Well was a special place for the Hiudt family and I think we all enjoy your insights and if anyone else out there owned a business or whose family had one I am sure we would like to hear from you.

[BWAGS]

Fred:
Every kid from Roselawn and Losantaville has to remember Archie! Everything was a nickel! ( Baseball Cards, popsicle, lik-a-maid, tootsie roll etc)

[BWAGS]

Best time for Chili Time was a lunar eclipse or when the clocks changed !