Igo's Restaurant in Cambridge, Mass.

Hmmm, where to go after after buying a pair of Stride Rite shoes and cordoroy pants from Filene's, a button up shirt that wasn't flame retardant from Woolworth's, and a Boston Bruins cardigan sweater from Zwicker's Sporting Goods in Arlington?

Why, a night out on the town with my parents at Igo's Restaurant in Cambridge, of course!

What a splendid way to show off my elite clothing choices and impress Igo's owners, staff and customers.

The only problem, though: It was so dark in the Igo's dining room that no one could have probably seen these latest fashion styles.

That was ok, however. Going out to Igo's was a special treat, a privilege and a chance to see how the hoi polloi lived. Well, from the eyes of an eight-year old typically eating at Howard Johnson's, Burger Chef and Chicken Delight.

At Igo's, the grand entrance looked like fancy marble. The dining rooom had this certain elegance. The waistaff seem subdued and professional yet courteous and friendly. I put on my Sunday best behavior at this upscale restaurant and made sure not to discuss my favorite Three Stooges episodes with the waitresses.

The menu featured dinners distant from Swanson's and Stouffer's. Baked stuffed lobster, roast prime rib of beef, broiled swordfish, baked stuffed Lousiana shrimp and broiled prime filet mignon highlighted a very fancy menu. Intererestingly enough, Igo's could also tone it down with some more familiar dishes like roast turkey dinner, fried clams, fried boneless chicken, burgers and broiled pork chops. They also offered... yuk... calf's liver. that putrid dish was somewhat improved, however, with accompanying bacon.

If Igo's was around today, it wouldn't seem quite as fancy. I think in retrospect, this Porter Square restaurant struck the perfect balance between pleasing both the uppeer and working classes in the diverse Cambridge neighborhoods.

And also eight-year olds like me wearing Stride Rite shoes and cordoroy pants from Filene's, a button up shirt that wasn't flame retardant from Woolworth's, and a Boston Bruins cardigan sweater from Zwicker's Sporting Goods in Arlington!

Buzzy's Fabulous Roast Beef, Boston, Mass.

Located on Cambridge St. under the Charles Street Train Station and next to the Charles Street jail, Buzzy's Fabulous Roast Beef seemed to be open at all hours. This outdoor, order-at-the window food stand was best known for its heaping roast beef sandwiches, french fries, onion rings and curt, brusque "What do you want pal?" service. Buzzy's attracted drunks, sober late night owls (in the minority), Massachusetts General Hospital staff, refined Beacon Hill types showing their alter egos, and other purveyors of the best in greasy food.



Local comedians abused Buzzy's many times in their stand-up routines. I remember one comedian (the name escapes me) saying that Buzzy's used to throw its food over the wall to feed Charles Street jail prisoners -- and the prisoners threw it right back!

Buzzy's Fabulous could have very well contributed to higher traffic at the Mass General Hospital cardiac unit, but I remember it as a beloved place from youth. Granted, I never went there much (even as a nearby Suffolk University student), but just the sight of this bustling, old-fashioned outdoor food stand made me feel good -- from the comfort food aromas to the undeniable presence of a local business succeeding.

Discoing Back to the Chateau De Ville in Saugus, Framingham and Randolph, Mass.

Does anyone remember the oversized grand ballroom with a huge chandelier and curved staircase at the Chateau de Ville -- a place where people loved to "disco" and later tell either totally fake or completely true stories of their miserable high school proms?

I seem to remember a Kiss-108 presence at the Saugus location with the late, great Sunny Jo White and Disco Vinny Peruzzi. I think the Cheatau de Ville eventually changed its name to The Palace -- which it wasn't -- some time in the 1990s before closing in 2004.

Yes, many people loved the Chateau de Ville but it just wasn't for me. At an age when "Saturday Night Fever" and "Funkytown" ruled, I preferred good conversation in small groups, long walks on the beach and listening to David Gates and Bread. I also liked eating Wonder Bread while watching "Perry Mason."

I always wondered if "Chateau de Ville" was French for "Unbearable experience in a nightclub." It just wasn't my scene. "Clubbing" to me, was watching episodes of the Flintstones that featured that secret club called "the Loyal Order of Water Buffaloes" where the "Grand Poobah" ruled.

Ultimately, my favorite part of the Chateau DeVille experience was going out for old school Chinese food afterwards.

Full of Bull Roast Beef, Saugus, Mass.

Full of Bull photo source: North Shore Eats Facebook page.

Route 1 in Saugus, Mass. used to feature so many fun, interesting and, mostly, great restaurants, bars and other food stops including The Ship, Weylu's, Hilltop Steak House, Augustine's, Karl's Sausage Kitchen, the Red Coach Grill, Valle's Steak House, Town Lyne House, Godfried's Deli, the Blue Star Lounge, Pierro's Italian restaurant and the Diamond Head. All that's left today on Route 1 that we really enjoy are Prince Pizzeria with its epic Leaning Tower of Pizza structure and delicious pizza, and the Kowloon (which might be changing in some form in the near future).

But wait, there is one more memory: Full of Bull Roast Beef. This humble little roadside restaurant with the eye-catching sign of a mean-looking but depressed bull revealed (his head hung down low), inside, walls of license plates on the wall and some of the best roast beef sandwiches and onion rings imagineable. Back in the day and to this very day, Kelly's Roast Beef at Revere Beach, to me, set the standard for the best roast beef and onion rings but Full of Bull was every bit as good.

The restaurant's name also gave us a chuckle as we were approaching an age when we knew what that meant.

I am not sure exactly when Full of Bull closed but McDonald's eventually took over this location. Yep, another segue into cokie cutter land on Route 1.

We'd love to hear your personal reflections, perspectoives and stories on Full of Bull. Please feel free to comment below.

If you liked this story, check out these memories on Route 1 in Saugus

Bishop's in Lawrence, Mass.

During its heyday, Bishop's in Lawrence, Mass. served the best Middle Eastern food and French fries in New England.

That's right, Middle Eastern food and French fries. The lamb kabobs, hummus, babba ganoush, stuffed grape leaves and, yes, perfectly cooked, shoestring french fries had no rival. The atmosphere was memorable too, with, as someone described, a dining room that resembled an aircraft carrier. Bishop's always had amazing service, with many "career" waiters -- the professionalism showed. We never thought Bishop's would close, but it did, and we had to find another restaurant to call a tradition for a revered annual family birthday celebration.

Finnerty's Country Squire, Cochituate, Mass.

Going Out To North Shore Chinese Restaurants With My Grandma

Diamond Head restaurant, Saugus, Mass. Source: https://critiki.com/

My grandma, who lived in Lynn and then Peabody, Mass., loved to go out with us to Chinese restaurants on the North Shore. Not the fancy, fusion, gourmet types that we see today but the old school restaurants specializing in pu pu platters, General Gau's chicken, chicken lo main and, often gaudy and tacky décor.

Some of the restaurant names escape me (there was a good one on Main St. in Peabody) but here is what I remember: Tiki Lau in Salem, the Diamond Head and Weylu's in Saugus and Dave Wong's China Sails at the Liberty Tree Mall in Danvers. Weylu's and the Diamond Head might have been the most gaudy with their décor. Dave Wong's gained popularity as a local chain and with a really nice owner. Tiki Lau, located in a strip mall, didn't have the glitz but might have served up the best tasting food of the bunch.

Whatever choice, going out to eat at these Chinese restaurants made her happy. She was alone, at that time, and just getting out of her apartment was much needed. Just to see her spontaneously smile in these restaurants for no reason except just being with us and enjoying one of her favorite kinds of food -- well, if she was happy, we were happy!

Do you remember these Chinese restaurants up on the North Shore? Do you have any other favorites in this area that are no longer with us? Please share your memories in the comment box below -- we'd love to hear some of your choices and any stories that go with it.

Red Coach Grill Memories

How many of you remember the Red Coach Grill restaurant chain? How many of you know that it was owned by Howard Johnson's?

That's right, the Red Coach Grill started in 1936 in Wayland, Mass. (now known as the independently-owned and operated Coach Grill) with Howard Johnson's taking over in 1937 to create a local chain that would eventually expand to more than 30 restaurants. On a side note, Howard Johnson's owned the Ground Round chain but I'd have to be a clown to talk about that one (you see, the Ground Round had clowns for entertainment; ok, bad joke).

The Red Coach Grill was like Howard Johnson's with a bowtie -- that is, with more of an elegant look and slightly upscale menu. You wouldn't find 28 flavors of ice cream, an orange roof or waitresses dressed in vintage checkered uniforms. Instead, the Red Coach Grill dimmed the lights and offered cushy and comfortable seating at black booths. The pine-paneled walls, semi-circular bar, fieldstone fireplaces, plush wall-to-wall carpeting and beamed ceilings added to the cozy ambiance. Outside looked inviting, too, with a rustic, shingled red roof and log paneling on the exterior, as well as a classy sign out front with old English font and a picture of a horse drawn coach.   

The steak and seafood menu included some meals fit for a king or a queen -- or a suburbanite with some room left on the credit card. The food was generally excellent -- just as good if not better than some local restaurants with high opinions of themselves. Diners could opt for the filet mignon, boiled live lobster or broiled swordfish or go for something more simple like New England clam chowder, char-broiled sirloin steak, broiled schrod, ham steak, or breaded veal cutlet. I remember the apple pie with vanilla ice cream to be quite good, as well.

I remember passing by Red Coach Grill locations in Hyannis, Saugus, Framingham, Middleboro and Wayland, Mass., as well as one in Lake George, N.Y. The only one we went to was in Hyannis at the rotary. In retrospect, that turned out to be the best choice as the other towns didn't have oceans beach to enjoy after the meal!

What memories do you have of the Red Coach Grill?

Putt Putt Mini Golf Near Shoppers World in Framingham, Mass.

Not all retro memories of things to do in the Boston area provided joy.

Putt Putt Mini Golf, near the older version of Shoppers World shopping center in Framingham, Mass., successfully gave me that misery.

This miniature golf course offered no opportunity to hit the ball through or around a talking whale, barber shop pole, lighthouse, windmill, covered bridge, koi pond or historic Massachusetts building. Putt Putt, on the other hand, just featured stretches of angled greens designed to frustrate and simultaneously bore us. It was no fun scoring a 140 with no tacky structures.

Plus, the par was two for every hole. That would have been the recreational equivalent of taking a physics course in elementary school. I don't think even Pythagoras could have figured out this course!

I suppose the challenging greens at Putt Putt could have helped my real golf game but I was only eight. The closest thing I came to real golf was wearing a Johnny Miller golf shirt from Sears. What a downer to have a mini golf hole right in front of you and take five shots to get it done!

As Dean Wormer once said in Animal House, "There will be no fun of any kind." That's the way I felt at Putt Putt.

Disclaimer: You will see on the score card that we all did pretty well in this round of Putt Putt Mini Golf. Believe me, that was an unexplainable abberation that I should have alerted Ripley's Believe It Or Not! to -- that is, the exception to the rule of generally playing horribly at this mini golf course!

A Panorama Tour of the Hilltop Steak House in Saugus, Mass.

While cleaning our basement a few days ago, I came across a booklet entitled, "A Panoramic Tour of Hilltop Steakhouse." It made my day. I loved that place, as I am sure you did, too.

Throughout this post, I will include the pages from that booklet. May it bring back special memories for you!

The former Hilltop Steak House in Saugus, Mass. seems to take top mention in traditional and social media posts and articles asking readers which restaurants they miss most in Massachusetts or New England.

It all makes perfect sense. From 1961 to 2013, the Hiltop Steak House immediately appeared larger than life on Route 1 with its myriad fiberglass cows out front and the cartoonish neon cactus sign almost 70-feet tall, as well as a parking lot accommodating 1,000 cars.

The fun, western-themed wall memorabilia and spacious dining rooms with names like Dodge City, Kansas City, Sioux City, Virginia City, Santa Fe and Carson City on two floors expertly towed the line between tacky and lovable. The 20,000 sq. ft. restaurant, which could accommodate nearly 1,500 customers, often became filled to full capacity -- thus validating media reports that the Hilltop evolved into one of the busiest restaurants in the world. Thank goodness the two walk-in meat chests behind the scenes could hold over 1,500 loins! Additionally, the Hilltop featured a separate butcher shop that seemed as popular as the main restaurant.

The Hilltop Steak House -- the brainchild of butcher Frank Giuffrida -- represented the true American Dream with a small business success story as big as the steaks (and drinks) served.

. Oh, and those steaks... the sirloin (starting at 18 ounces!), filet mignon and tenderloin. Magnificent in a delicious, unpretentious and straightforward way! The Hilltop served those dishes and other selections in big portions and at affordable prices.

Locals and travelers also loved the abundantly-served iceberg lettuce salads, broiled half chicekn, pork chops, broiled burgers and broiled halibut steak. Many considered the baked stuffed lobster pie as good as the steaks -- served with plenty of tender lobster and enough breading and butter to make the experience even that much better.

The Hilltop did things its own way, not accepting reservations or credit cards. The wait could be slightly uncomfortable in the long, crowded indoor waiting area out front. Many chose to head to the bar while waiting and became quite soused in the process -- often, seemingly, some big guy with a square head and his aggressive wife/girlfriend. I don't know why -- just an observation.

But I digress. There will never be another Hilltop Steak House. How could there be? For more than 50 years, the Hilltop had a great ride with a substance (the food) and style (the wonderfully exaggerated decor and design) that resulted in a one-of-a-kind restaurant and tourist attraction. Rare is it that a restaurant becomes a household name but the Hilltop fit that description.

It's a sad feeling knowing that the Hilltop Steak House will most likely never return as the restaurant we once knew and loved. Bur we have those memories and they can be embraced, forever.

I look forward to hearing about your personal reflections and perspectives on the Hilltop in the comment box below!