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Big Daddy's

It was a great family catfish place. Then the owners for some reason turned about half of it into a bar and catfish place and there went the family business. It lasted about 8 months after that.

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Was this before or after it was Boondocks and had the old boat outside near the bar area? I loved those hushpuppies!

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Before.

Before it was Big Daddy's, it was Kraft Furniture. Alan Kraft was the owner and he finally sold out. He was a really nice old man with some interesting quirks. Even with his hearing aid, he couldn't hear it thunder, so you had to yell. He would introduce himself to everyone he met, and he carried index cards and took notes so he would remember you. He never did, though. He met me at least 20 times, and each time after the introductions he would tell me about how he knew my grandparents.

Even after he sold the furniture store, you'd see him around...most often at the Kettle on Texas Avenue in Bryan. Sadly, his Alzheimer's got really bad, and he would occasionally go into Big Daddy's, thinking it was still his store. He'd grab a chair and start trying to sell it to the diners.

When I moved here in 2000, Quizno's had just opened up on the east side of College Main at Patricia (it's a bar now--not sure the name). After they closed, Dominos moved in for a while before moving out onto University.

What used to be where Potbelly is now?

OHHHH! El Arroyo! I vaguely remember that, it was a unit in fourth grade where there were "successful restaurants/unsuccessful restaurants", and she showed us El Arroyo vs. Wings N More, which at the time was still located in the area. She said that El Arroyo had really bad service. Of course, it wasn't until too long before Wings N More took off and for a time, it was the building that was El Arroyo that constantly seemed to be occupied while the Wings N More building eventually got Kerri's Stacked Enchiladas (I think that was the only post-WnM location) and fell into disrepair.

To be honest, none of use would've ever guessed that there would be two chicken finger places next to Layne's (which was apparently a "Wilson & Company" plumbing prior to Layne's.

How come the building that used to be Mama's Pizza has been so MANY different things? is the rent too high or something?

[This message has been edited by 1984Consol (edited 5/26/2012 3:50p).]

Well, being a "family owned" restaurant is an unforgiving thing.

You have to be open when the customers want, not when you want. This can mean unending weeks of 18 hour days, 6 days a week, for years.

Being self-run, you have to generate everything, the menus, the advertizing, all of the considerable HR, the purchasing, management, the whole nine yards.

You cannot turn up sick, get over-extended, need family time, or the like during those times. Oh, and you have to develop a core of "regulars" who will come in despite all those 'bad' days that occur to us all, and you have to have those regulars coming and spending enough to cover your costs in keeping the doors open, too.

The above is why something like 7 of 11 restaurants fail--or so I'm told.

Now, the "Mama's" location has some other problems. It's an old building that has been worked on (and over) often in a "it'll do for now", patch-n-paint sort of way. It's a small parking lot, with less-obvious street access. I would not be surprised if the pad lease costs are pretty high, too.

I've seen on old aerial photos that the Layne's/Military Depot curved parking lots used to be part of the roadway (entrance/exit ramps for Walton Drive. The little straight section of Walton that "Ts" up to the light was added later.

There used to be a very small Greyhound bus station close to Layne's. is that still there?

Yes, technically. I went there after eating at "Chicken Strip Row" earlier this week. Looks like there was an office most recently there, but the door was locked. The back entrance (a covered area) had a filthy-looking washing machine in the back, although it was relatively modern (late 1990s, early 2000s...I know because I use the same model)

Also: about the Mama's Pizza restaurant, it looks like Fowl Digits gave its first substantial remodel in years and years, so that may solve the physical problems of it. Also, since Layne's and Cane's seem to do alright, the access problems don't seem too much of a biggie.

As for the Walton "T", notice that it doesn't quite line up with New Main.

[This message has been edited by PS3D (edited 5/26/2012 5:33p).]

[This message has been edited by PS3D (edited 5/26/2012 5:35p).]

El Arroyo was in the Kraft Furniture/Big Daddy's building and had nice crowds before moving to College Station, where it went out of business.

I honestly can't remember if El Arroyo was before or after Big Daddy's, but I do remember they had an awesome Enchiladas Del Mar.

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OK, gonna try this....I can only go back so far on this one though,

Fontanas-->Cazadores--> Snuffers--> El Arroyo --> Chinese Place--> Mama's Pizza ...

I think I left some out, and I know there were more before that, but that's before my time. Please feel free to add to the list. This has to be the most "revolving" location.

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Was Kerry's Stacked Enchilada's in this building around 2002-2003?

[This message has been edited by Scotch (edited 5/26/2012 7:15p).]

Rockyano's pizza was short lived in one of those buildings, too.

I originally intended to post in this thread but I was actually in the "CS in the 1990's" thread when I first wrote it, but this applies to both:

I am really enjoying this thread, and I am sure others are enjoying it as well. I am learning alot about what used to be in College Station/ Bryan both before and after I left. Thanks so much to the op for starting the thread and to all of the contributors to the thread so far. Please continue)

No, Kerri's Stacked Enchiladas appeared circa 2004 in the old Wings N More. It was demolished for Raising Cane's.

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Past the Bookstore was Wes Gideon's Farmer's Market Po'Boy's Sandwich shop.

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Cap'n - Did they have a second location on Texas Ave., in Bryan or did they eventually move there? I remember them having some pretty good spaghetti and lasagna when I was a teenager[ish]. Seems like it was... somewhere on the west side of Texas Ave? Maybe around Jose's, possibly? I remember the food and sort of the interior of the building, but the exact location is pretty vague. That was wayyyyy before I could even think about driving.

Just remembered Randy Sims Barbecue in that location. Most of us probably remember his wife Brenda Sims from KBTX.

Anyone remember HWY 60 being 2 lanes from CS to Lyons?

[This message has been edited by Kattx07 (edited 5/27/2012 4:49a).]

Regarding Post Oak Mall:

Harvey Rd. is also Hwy. 30, and was there long before Post Oak Mall. My first place to live in the late 70's while a student was in the Harvey Community, and between the Safeway at Texas Ave. and Harvey Rd. and the two apartment complexes at Hwy. 6 (Briarwood and Plantation Oaks) there was nothing but mesquite trees and cattle on both sides of the road. My senior year (78-79) I lived at the Briarwood Apts., and I only remember a cow pasture across the road. Construction on Post Oak Mall began in the summer of 1979. fyi A number of use used to have target practice sessions (with our 45 autos) in the creek on the other side of 6 (behind where Ashley Funiture is now).

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From 1971 to 1975 there was a shell gas station on Hwy 30 about where the carwash is now.

I looked at Snuffer's online, says it closed in 1997 in CS. But El Arroyo, then, was AFTER Snuffer's, wasn't it?

Think you're right.

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Fontanas--> Cazadores--> Snuffers--> El Arroyo --> Chinese Place--> Mama's Pizza ...

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the building was originally an Oak-ridge Smokehouse.

Right so, we have...

Fowl Digits (currently--chicken finger related products)
Fontana's Authentic Italian Food (2009-2011)
Cazadores Mexican Restaurant (most of the 2000s)
El Arroyo (late 1990s, maybe early 2000s, gone by 2002)
Snuffer's (hamburger place out of Dallas, closed '97)
Chinese food (unknown name, unknown date)
Mama's Pizza (1980s, early 1990s?)
Fontana's (another one, apparently--unrelated?)
Coach Norton's (in 1968)
Oakridge Smokehouse (1960, first known business)

So that's about 10 in 52 years, giving each restaurant an average of five years. That's not too bad, but there was a while between El Arroyo and Cazadores. Was there anything else in between?

Which location near Foul Digits was Sambos in the 60'w and early 70's?

I'm gonna guess it was the old Wings N More/Kerri's Stacked Enchiladas building. Red roof building, looked a bit like a large Dairy Queen.

So Oakridge started in the revolving door building then moved to the location near what is now On The Border?

The Farmer's Market I knew was on the north side of the bank (Guaranty maybe?) beside the Kettle in Bryan. After Farmer's Market(great spaghetti, Po-boys and apple fritters) it was a Sloppy Joe's for many years.

Oakridge started in what is now Fowl Digits.

Did Farmer's Market have a place on Northgate as well? And Beetle's bbq--can't recall where it was. Across from Shipwreck?

The Oakridge Smokehouse/restaurant TLIAC worked at/Ladies and Lords Bridal building was on Texas Ave. close to where On The Border is now. I was not aware of a previous location before the earlier post, so I'm curious about it. How did you find out Oakridge Smokehouse opened up in the Fowl Digits location in 1960?

[This message has been edited by Scotch (edited 5/27/2012 11:06p).]

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Did Farmer's Market have a place on Northgate as well?

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I believe they did. Edit: capt-mac said this was in the current Basil's location.

IIRC, Scott Samuelson, later a geometry teacher in Bryan, developed the Farmer's Market Benjamin sandwich there either when it was Farmer's Market or a previous business.

[This message has been edited by Scotch (edited 5/27/2012 10:46p).]

^^^ Vox Humana's post...IF it's correct. So, apparently, Fowl Digits (the building) opened in 1960 with an Oakridge Smokehouse. By 1968, it was Coach Norton's (dunno what it had), and since then has served a variety of food places, including pizza, hamburgers, Chinese, Mexican...

The 707 Texas complex used to have a second building (perhaps with a different address?) in a similar style. It was torn down to make way for On The Border and the surrounding development. Late 90's/early 2000's?

One of the buildings had a Hunan restaurant, Charli was in the building that was torn down and moved over to University Dr.

[This message has been edited by Scotch (edited 5/27/2012 11:15p).]

I don't care what the Snuffer's web site says, the one here came sometime after 1997. I think it was sometime between 1999 and 2001.

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The Farmer's Market I knew was on the north side of the bank (Guaranty maybe?) beside the Kettle in Bryan. After Farmer's Market(great spaghetti, Po-boys and apple fritters) it was a Sloppy Joe's for many years

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Thanks for refreshing my memory. The exact location was pretty vague, but their spaghetti and lasagna were pretty memorable!

Oak Ridge smoke house, IIRC, was subsequently the "Black Hat Saloon".

In early 2002, it was vacant, with El Arroyo being the most recent one. I still hold by the fact it was Snuffer's, then El Arroyo. A phone book perhaps would clear up any loose ends.

Oakridge Smokehouse was not in the old Wings n More or Fowl Digits buildings. It was in a building that looked like this:

Thanks, Newbomb.....it was out in front of where the Red Lobster nee Lupe's is....and back when I was 10, it was where the superslides were!

On Farmer's Market.
Having checked my rememories with a few others', Wes Gideon opened his Farmer's Market Restaurant there on Texas, first.

Later, a sandwich shop--which may or may not have been called "Po Boys" became available. Wes took up running that location, too. It was what is now the downstairs to Basil's. The upstairs was "Copy Place" or maybe "Copy Corner." (Next door to that upstairs, and over the now-former Loupot's was the semi-infamous Adult Arcade.)

Wes got out of the NG location in the late '80s, if memory serves. He "folded" those operations into the Texas Ave location.

Wes later retired, happily. That is, until Don Ganter lured him from retirement to run Sachel's, there at Church Ave & Boyett St.