News @ 30 Apr 2007 05:14 pm by judyorr
Snackville JunctionOriginally uploaded by marmotfotos.
While searching for a different story about dining al fresco in Oak Lawn I stumbled upon a sad story about dining in Evergreen Park. A beloved casual dining restaurant, Snackville Junction, closed its doors last Sunday, the 21st of April. I wish I would have known.
I have so many memories of the restaurant that delivered it’s meals on trains that traveled the train tracks around the u-shaped dinette bar. The train would stop at the correct person or group so the food baskets could be removed from the cars.
The menu was large with hamburgers, hot dogs, sandwiches and more. I think as a child that the train would come by with suckers in the basket at the end of the meal. I attended a few birthday parties there.
Snackville Junction started in Chicago around 60 years ago. For the last 21 years it has been owned by Jeff and Linda Silhan who moved the restaurant to Evergreen Park. They have had it up for sale and although there has been much interest, no one has purchased it yet.
One of my favorite stories was when I dined there with my family around 31 years ago. I was around 9 months pregnant. I had a hamburger and fries. Later that night I kept getting what I thought was indigestion. This was my first child so I called my Mom and asked her if anyone was suffering the same. I told her I was getting a stomach ache every 10 minutes. She thought maybe I was having contractions. I wasn’t due for 3 more weeks so I really didn’t think so.
I was wrong. I always blamed the “greasy spoon” for starting those contractions, but in a loving way. I am very sentimental and I wish I had visited the restaurant before it closed. I missed that chance to introduce Snackville Junction to my two grandkids, aged 4 & 3.
I guess I’ll have to check out the newer restaurant located in Frankfort called Choo Choo Johnny’s. John Ethell, the owner (with his wife Patricia) opened the restaurant because of his fond memories of Snackville Junction. There is another restaurant in Des Plaines called The Choo Choo Restaurant that works on the same premise.
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