Gone But Not Forgotten in San Antonio! - Part I (Keller: insurance, architecture)

[smuboy86]

Windsor was the first of what could be called the Atrium Malls in San Antonio. It was 2 story with soaring courts with skylights. I always liked the design of Windsor over any of the other San Antonio malls. At least after the remodel, clean white marble floors with pink mixed in along with an impressive light filled food court.

[Willsatx]

If you have ever seen the blues brothers movie they have a mall chase scene and I can tell you that how South Park Mall used to look like in the 70's.

[pippo]

I can remember when South Park mall was Very Scary.

[irnag]

I could've swore Sound Warehouse was in the old Kinney Shoe Store building on San Pedro and Jackson Keller. The building had large windows and a sloping roof typical of the Kinney shoe stores of the 60s and 70s. I moved away after 1981, (also they built one closer to my house) so I am not sure as to the fate of Sound Warehouse after that.

[irnag]

Originally Posted by pacific_trader

I vaguely remember Whopper Burger, I believe there was one on Rittiman or Eisenhauer? Didn't they close up when Burger King came to town?

I remember Whopper Burger kept Burger King out of SA for the longest time due to the fact that both sold Whopper Burgers and Whopper Burger had squatters rights or something to that effect. In fact I remember the only Burger King location was way south of town. It must have been the mid 80s when Burger King came in full force. I remember quite a few WB locations. One was behind Wonderland Mall and another was on Fredericksburg and Callaghan. It was on top of a hill, I think a Chinese Restaurant occupies the location now.

[GWhopper]

Originally Posted by Willsatx

Where was it located? What is there now?

Nothing, just asphalt. They tore down the structure in late 80's, maybe early 90's.

[GWhopper]

Originally Posted by Macgrad89

From what I remember, the story on Whopper Burger was the Bates' had worked out an agreement regarding the exclusive use of the term "Whopper" in the San Antonio area with Burger King which is why Burger King was not in San Antonio until the mid 80s. Burger King wanted to come into the market badly, so much so they decided to approach the Bates Family with a buyout offer. The offer was accepted and the Whopper Burger name went away around 1985-1986 and Burger King began operations in San Antonio then. Burger King took over very few if any Whopper Burger outlets and instead took most of the Carls' Jr stores when they left SA (Carl's had flame-broilers like BK's). My wife worked at a Burger King at Marbach and Horal (a former Carl's Jr) before she graduated from Jay in '87.

The person to have asked a lot of this stuff would have been my father as he was in the construction business in San Antonio for nearly 40 years. Dad always seemed to know the right people to ask the right questions about all this stuff. Unfortunately we lost him in May, 2006 after a very brief bout with a rare form of lung cancer. He worked at General Supply Co off of Broadway estimating acoustical ceiling tile jobs and supervising their installation. For those who remember, General Supply had their name painted in very large red letters on their warehouse which faced Loop 410 near the airport (Building Specialties is now in that building). I do my best nowadays to remember all the stories about different construction jobs he worked, such as helping build the now-demolished GPM Towers and Central Park Mall, Old San Francisco Steak House, and various additions to the Barn Door.

Macgrad89

Pillsbury (the doughboy company) actually owned Burger King at the time, and wound up buying out the San Antonio Whopper Burger restaurants, just to close them down in order to pave the way for Burger King.

[Willsatx]

Originally Posted by GWhopper

Nothing, just asphalt. They tore down the structure in late 80's, maybe early 90's.

I was curious to know in what area it was on.

[GWhopper]

So a week ago I was sitting at Murf's on San Pedro and got to thinking about the whole Whopper Burger thing. I go back home and start doing a few internet searches and found this thread. I don't think I have enjoyed myself on the internet this much since the first time I went online. This is great! I've spent a week reading all the posts, not wanting to repeat anything or answer some thing that was already answered.

I grew up in Colonies North, so I remember the old mall, with the Handy Andy the Sommer's Drug Store (my mom worked there while she was pregnant with me!) Davey Jones's Locker, and the Winns (Where I bought my very first Star Wars toys when they came out after the first movie. I think I bought a C-3PO and a Chewbacca, cause all the Han Solo's were gone when I got there). And of course the old movie theatre in there. I saw Return to Boggy Creek and Last Flight of Noah's Ark there. Does anybody a small women's fitness gym there that pretty much was geared for lazy women? I remember they had these machines with these fabric belts that you would essentially wrap around your stomach, arms, legs, etc., then the machines would shake the belts back and forth, basically just jiggling the fat. The women just stood or sat there while the machines did all the work!

In the parking lot was the Fishing Pier, and across from the Handy Andy was a Dairy Queen (in the way-old days) which is a music store now. Where the Colonies North Antique flea market is now used to be a furniture store. And next door to that, where there is an Indian restaurant now was the very first Souper Salad.

Behind the Handy Andy was the Hickory Hut BBQ that some mentioned earlier in this thread. If you missed that place, don't lament for long. My parents knew the owners, they still own a Hickory Hut in Helotes and it still tastes the same.

[GWhopper]

I am surprised no one has mention Wolfe's Inn. It was an old fancy house that was converted to a restaurant on Fredricksburg and Warzbach, where the Hooter's is now. You can still see part of the old stone fence that surrounded it right on the corner.

And what about Stewert Anderson's Cattleman's Club where Sugar's is now?