ABC Store on Park Rd

 The original location of the ABC Store on Park Rd. Current location of Lucky Lou’s. 

Great nighttime shot!

 

Ads from 1968

 Enjoy these ads from 1968!

Athen’s

 Bringing down the sign at Athen’s Diner. 

The Ratcliffe Florist sign

Picture is from November 2009 when the building housed the Ratcliffe on the Green restaurant. Building currently is the home for Bernardin’s Restaurant. 

Some cool history - The Ratcliffe's Florist Shop was established in 1917. The business moved here in 1929. This neon sign was built shortly after that. It's not clear when the flower shop closed but, in 1989, the building was adapted for use as the Carpe Diem restaurant. The sign was altered slightly at that time with "Carpe Diem" added in the small script at the bottom. The restaurant became Ratcliffe on the Green around 2007. At that time, the "Carpe Diem" part of the sign was removed. During development from 2010-2011, the entire building was moved about 75 feet further north. In 2012, the sign was installed on a pole at the original location. The sign is about eight feet long.

1962 ad for the Stork Restaurants

Bourbon Street Station - 1987 ad

White Horse on East Blvd - 1987 ad

Jonathan's

Nice early 80's picture of the Jonathan's sign that was painted on the 7th St side of the building.

Issie Pittle ***Hall of Fame Restauranteur***

Issie Pittle passed away on December 24, 1975. In a career that spanned 40 years, he owned or ran at least 16 Charlotte restaurants. The press clippings below detail his legacy. (Click on pics for a fuller view)

Delly Restaurant - 1974

Nice article on the Delly Restaurant which opened on February 4th, 1974 in the Northwestern Bank building at 230 South Tryon Street.

Click on the image for a fuller view

Ivey's Terrace

Review of Ivey's Terrace that was located in the downtown Charlotte location. Review is from April 1976. Click on the image for a larger view...

Cafe Eugene

Super write-up (and a pic of the sign!) of the legendary Cafe Eugene from around 1981. 

(Click on the review for a larger view)

Hardee's 1974

Nice ad from 1974 for the Charlotte-area Hardee's. Huskee Junior!

O'Neill's 1984

A few weeks late, but here's a super cool St Patrick's Day shirt from O'Neill's from 1984!

Click here for the original O'Neill's post. 

Burger Chef sign!

1973 press pic of the Park N Shop area of Wilkinson Blvd --- note the Burger Chef sign! The abandoned Park N Shop building still exists, but only trace of the Burger Chef building is long gone. 

Of note is that the Burger Chef building on Shamrock Dr (off of Eastway) is still alive and beautifully restored! The above two pictures were taken about a year ago -- the building is now home to a cell phone store.

All American Bar & Grill

Nice 1995 ad for All American Bar & Grill which was in Dilworth on Park Rd in the Martin Hardware building. The Wing Ranch's last location was there prior to All American. Ed's Tavern currently occupies this space.

Cafe Eugene

Nice ad from 1982 for the legendary Cafe Eugene. 

Ivey's Soda Shop and Harrill's Bar-B-Q

Some great late-50's pictures of Harrill's Bar-B-Q (top 2) and the Ivey's Soda Shop (bottom picture):

Click the pics for a larger view

Click here for the original Harrill's Bar-B-Q post and here for the original Ivey's Soda Shop post. 

The Dining Car

Most likely Charlotte's first food truck, "The Dining Car" was in operation in the early '80's and was owned by then-teenager Charles Denny. A one-man show, Charles was the owner, the driver, and the cook. Specializing solely in hot dogs, choices included the "Bo Derek" (practically nothing on it) to the "Gourmet Frank" (chili, slaw, and cheese).

***Click on the picture for a larger view***

Business cards

Nice set of business cards of eateries from Charlotte's past. How many do you remember?

White Horse on South Blvd!

See below for a clip from a wrestling parody video where a White Horse on the corner of South Blvd and Braibend Dr is visible. This is a block north of Woodlawn Rd. Video appears to be from the early '80's.

Summer of 1977

A look back at some of the popular eateries in Charlotte during the summer of 1977 - how many do you remember? Click on each ad for an enlarged view.

Happy Doughnut Day!

In honor of Doughnut Day, here are two great shots of Krispy Kreme's from Charlotte's past.

South Blvd - March 1963

Independence & Hawthorne

Courtesy of the UNC-C archives

The Pantry House

Not much information about this place but the vhf graphic is great! Much thanks to David over at Groceteria for finding this gem!

Greystone at Thanksgiving

Great Thanksgiving mid-70's shot from the Greystone Restaurant on South Blvd. 

Click here for the original Greystone post.

Thanks to Tommy for the pic!

Lantana Restaurant

Super postcard shot of Latana's which was part of the Bradley Motel. Located at Little Rock Rd and the I-85S Service Road, Latana's enjoyed some popularity boost in the mid-90's when the Observer deemed it the best burger in town.

Jerry's Drive-In

1962 ad for Jerry's Drive-In. Eventually Athen's would occupy this site. The land is currently vacant pending expansion from CPCC.

Click here for an earlier post on Charlotte drive-ins and here for the Athen's post which showcases a picture of Jerry's.

The Shaft

UNCC alumni will recognize this picture of The Shaft which was located on Old Concord Rd just minutes from campus. Check out that phone number! This pic is from 1989.

Photo courtesy the Clt Obs archives

Fat Tuesday's

Fat Tuesday's was an early forerunner in the revitalization of downtown Charlotte. Opened in the late '80's, it was located at the City Fair shopping complex. Famous for their colorful wall of frozen drinks, Fat Tuesday's was initially a huge hit. Both City Fair and Fat Tuesday's would both close in the early '90's, victims of being too early in the downtown resurgence.

Photo is from 1989 - courtesy the Clt Obs archives.

***As always -- click on the photo for a larger view***

S & W's Silver Grill

Amazing shot of the Silver Grill at Charlottetown Mall. The Silver Grill was operated by the S & W Cafeteria which was directly upstairs. 

Click here for the original S & W Cafeteria post.

Photos courtesy The Clt Obs archives

***Click on pics for a larger view***

Kuester's Dining Room

Nice ad from 1955 for Kuester's Dining Room.

Please let us know if you have any information or memories of this eatery.

Stamey's - 1974

Wonderful interior shot of Stamey's from 1974.

Click here for the original Stamey's post.

Picture courtesy of the Clt Observer

Venus Diner

Amazing picture of the Venus Restaurant (commonly called the Venus Diner) sign on East Blvd from 1974.

Picture courtesy of the Clt Observer

Pedro's Pt III

Some amazing color shots of Pedro's as well as the front of a menu. Enjoy!

Please click here for the original Pedro's post and here for an update.

As always - click on each picture for a larger view.