Around the Clock

Around the Clock, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Vintage neon sign outside of a vintage restaurant in Crystal Lake, Illinois. I'm told this sign works pretty well, too, and looks great all lit up.

Ten Gallon Hat

Vintage Arby's Sign-Aurora, IL, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Most people are probably familiar with the Arby's restaurant logo, a little stylized cowboy hat. It's been this way for as long as I can remember (not very, if I'm honest!), but back in the sixties the company really played up the Western theme. The earliest franchised restaurants were called "covered wagons", and were designed to have a sort of domed roof, reminiscent of an old Conestoga. Similarly, floors were tiled, in patterns that outlined steer horns, branding irons, and horses. And The Hat.

The iconic hat sign was designed by the company's sign maker, from the very first store opened in Ohio in the early sixties. Like the Golden Arches, The Hat was Arby's signature symbol, and you didn't have to even read the sign to know where you were heading.

Arby's stopped using the big neon signs some time ago, but older franchisees have made an effort to keep them in place, even when their buildings are updated and replaced (I don't think I've ever seen a "covered wagon", but I've seen a bunch of Hats).

Anyway, this one was in Aurora, Illinois, in front of an older restaurant, probably one from the later sixties. It was a fixture for decades, till the restaurant closed a couple of years ago, and The Hat was taken down. I sort of hope someone saved it-this one was in really nice shape.

Midway Eat

Midway Eat, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Neon Friday!

I've been traveling past this sign for years and years now, but this is the first time I've managed to stop and shoot it. The Midway Restaurant in Random Lake, Wisconsin ("Random Lake? Somewhere over there" as I like to joke every time we go). It's a nice little diner, and does a good trade because of Road America race track, in nearby Elkhart Lake.

Keller's Good Food

Good Food, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Vintage neon restaurant sign, in tiny Genoa City, Wisconsin. I think this building has been remodeled-that flagcrete facade doesn't look as old as the neon. Either way, I'm glad that Keller's has kept their sign intact.

Lake Aire

Lake Aire, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, is located just over the border from Illinois, and has been a popular weekend retreat for many years. Lots of cool old buildings in the area, including the excellent, old-school Lake Aire Restaurant, with this fantastic slab over the door.

The place is packed all summer long. Naturally I went when it was rainy and cold-I'm kind of glad. The colors really popped.

Olympic Restaurant

Olympic Restaurant, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

The Olympic is a well known, classic restaurant in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Their sign has undergone some modifications-I'm pretty sure it said something other than "breakfast"-and Midwestern winters haven't done it many favors. But it still works, mostly, and the restaurant is still going strong in this fun little resort town.

I also have no idea what the Olympian Breakfast includes-I've never been there early enough!

The Country School

The Country School, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Former neon sign in Rochelle, Illinois. Judging from the condition it lost it's glass a long time ago-I can't tell if it was just a neon version of this sign or if the design was different. Still, a classic.

Chicken's pretty good too.

Your Neighborhood Supper Club

Your Neighborhood Supper Club, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Plastic vacuformed sign outside the B.C. Club in tiny Arlington, Illinois. The restaurant appears to be one of two businesses in the town. At least I assume so, it may not be open-I didn't see signs to say one way or the other.

If Arlington sounds familiar, we visited their excellent-and now demolished-grain elevator last year.

Gold Star Lounge

Gold Star Lounge-Chicago, IL, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

The Gold Star Lounge has a long history in Wicker Park. I like this sign a lot, and wish it was in better shape when I saw it-I bet this would look awesome at night.

I've never asked, though, do they still have rooms to let?

Dairy Sweet

Dairy Sweet, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

I can't find any info about Dairy Sweet, other than it seems to be a Midwestern ice cream shop chain, and the few that are still around are in pretty small, rural towns. Other than that, I've got nothin'.

This one is in the town of Ohio, Illinois, and is currently closed.

Robert's Western World

Robert's Western World, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Aside from the now defunct Gilley's in Texas, Robert's Western World is probably the country's most famous honky tonk. Located along Nashville's famous Broadway (home of all sorts of venues, bars, and restaurants), there's always music playing (often live, even during the daytime) and it's always busy.

Anyway, here's a little bright-and-night show and tell of their excellent sign.

Sullivan's

Sullivan's Drive-In, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Sullivan's Drive-In has been a fixture in DeKalb, Illinois since....well since sometime, I'm not sure exactly when this place opened. Judging from this classic slab I'd guess sometime in the sixties. Sadly, there's some broken glass to this baby. It's been that way for a while too-note the spotlights set up to illuminate that which used to light up.

Hi-View

Hi-View Restaurant-Villa Park, IL, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

The Hi-View Restaurant in Villa Park, Illinois. I believe the restaurant has been remodeled a couple of times, but it still has this excellent old school neon slab out front.

Bright and night views provided. See you next year!

PS: I just noticed the little coachlight up top!

Jack's Bar-B-Que

Jack's Bar-B-Que, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Another Nashville shot. You can see how tightly packed things are along Broadway-I also got a nice shot of the Stage's sign (it's the best shot of it I have, in fact).

This is also as close as I got to getting more than one pig lit up at once-the wing of the middle piggy is still aglow. It's just too busy along Broadway to set up a tripod for night work.

The Berghoff

Chicago's historic Berghoff restaurant closed in 2006, after 107 years of being in business. A classic German restaurant, the Berghoff brewed it's own beer (which is still available and is pretty good), and was granted liquor license #1 when Prohibition was repealed.

The restaurant's basement cafe reopened a year later, owned and run by the owners' daughter, and the upstairs dining room converted to a private banquet hall. In 2007, the Berghoff reopened, continuing a Chicago tradition.

Sprague's Super Service

Sprague's , a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Opened in 1931, Sprague's Super Service was a large gas station and cafe along Route 66, on what was then the outskirts of Normal, Illinois. It housed several different restaurants and stations, and was used until 1976. This old sign is the only one that remains, although the building is still in very nice condition.

Now on the National Register of Historic Places, there are hopes that this Route 66 classic can be reopened.

Steak House

Woody's Steak House, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

This sign is on a pole near the corner, in front of a smaller building with a restaurant in it. Clearly, it's been repurposed from some other building, although I don't know if it was just relocated from this restaurant's previous location. Clearly it used to spin (and maybe still does-it's in good shape, and I bet it lights up nicely), but that big C-clamp pole is awkward.

This is down in Ottawa. I should really go down there and check it out at night, along with the Sands and Monte's.

Monte's Riverside Inn

Monte's Riverside Inn, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Happy Neon Friday!

Ottawa, Illinois is a medium sized town at the confluence of the Fox and Illinois Rivers. I'd planned on going down there for a while now-it has a nice downtown area-and finally did it because I found myself in front of a sign that told me I was only twenty miles away. I mean, once you're that close, you may as well go, right?

Imagine my surprise when I saw this gem as I passed over the Fox River. Monte's has been around for a while and is a classic old-school restaurant. This sign is just gorgeous, and I have to find the time to go back down and shoot this at night, and more importantly, eat at Monte's!

Robert's

Another small town find, this time in Genoa, Illinois. Robert's Drive In is still in business, although I believe that this sign no longer works. Still, despite having been last painted some time ago, it still points the way to this ice cream stand.

Dewey's

Another Chicago ghost neon sign. This one hung over a Mexican restaurant on Clark Street, near Devon. At the time I don't think they sold burgers, and probably not chili either, but I never actually ate there. This is obviously a really old sign, from the fifties I'd guess, and dates from the time this was a greasy spoon called Dewey's. I was surprised that it stayed in place so long-it was clearly an anachronism, but I suppose the expense of taking it down and having the power shut off was prohibitive. And, I have to admit, an old sign like this is eye catching, so it couldn't have hurt things to leave it up.

I shot this in the spring of 2009, and I understand that this sign came down later that year.