Gone but not forgotten: Knoxville area restaurants and retailers we miss.

That place was so cool! You could eat in a jail cell or on the county fair seats, or in a car or was it a bus?

I was taken to Lord Lindsey once by a group of friends. The place was packed and I learned shortly before we got there that it was a gay club.

Darryl's had a double decker London bus with a gorilla costume in the driver's seat. There were one or two jail cells upstairs.

I don't know if the LL was an actual gay club... at least not most of the time. But it was owned by a gay guy (Kristopher K.) who also owned the Orangery and was the original redeveloper in the Old City. I think KK also updated (and converted to condos) the 3 or 4 story stucco apartment building on Kingston Pike were the sharp bend is. I think that General Neyland lived in that building for a while. It's on the north side of KP a little bit east of Cherokee Blvd. It might be called the Nicholas. I think he also opened the Hotel Oliver at the SW corner of Market Square.
 
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Bingo, that's it, it was called Orange Bowl. Great memory.

Except I can't remember the Orange Julius. I'd always go to the Orange Bowl. Was the arcade where the food court is now?

There was a clothing store just down from the Orange Bowl towards Proffit's... can't remember what it was called. On the corner near an entrance. Then there was another near the current food court... Frankenberger's I think. And another across from Frankenberger's that I can't recall the name.
 
First time I ever ummm took the blue pill was at Boiler Room, I was standing in the line to the bathroom and my buddy comes up and asks if I'm feeling it yet. I say no, he says then why are you dancing? I look down to my feet moving without me knowing it, my shirt is gone and I have glow stick liquid all over me. Lol He sets me down goes and gets this blonde named "Barbie" in a short black dress, no underwear to give me a massage...I was hooked. Lol Did you ever go to Fiction when it was above it? It was alright, pretty much a time killer till the BR opened.

Do you want to get an STD? Because that's how you get an STD.
 
Which one was Jake Butchers bank?

Smokin' Dave and the Premo Dopes used to do a song called "Jake's Last Erection" since the bank was finished roughly around the time Jake went to prison.

On a few other notes:

Lord Lindsey's was not a gay club in the 80s; it was a dance club.

Orange Bowl pizza was my favorite pizza for a long time.

Someone mentioned the Half Shell - that was my first job (not counting paper boy). Started washing dishes there when I was 14.

There used to be a pet store just west of Bearden hill called "Pet Kingdom" that had all kinds of exotic animals.

Danvers was right below Bearden High School.

There was a great little ma and pa grocery on Amherst Rd. right by the train tracks that had great hot dogs. Might have been Amherst Grocery
 
anyone remember the department store called Hills? I think it went away in the mid 80's

Deadhorse bar in western plaza

Spaghetti warehouse in the old city
 
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Except I can't remember the Orange Julius. I'd always go to the Orange Bowl. Was the arcade where the food court is now?

The arcade was just down the small set of stairs from the food court. Pretty sure OJ was in the corner right by it
 
Busboy at Garcia's was my first job. Ended up working with quite a few from there at Calhoun's years later

I miss the New York Bagel Shop too. First real bagel place in Knoxville. Worked there for a couple of years on and off

I'm going to assume Skatetown is also gone. Still have pics from my bday there in the early 80's
 
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Alex's Havana Cafe

Garcia's

The original Mandarin House behind Garcia's

West Haven Barber Shop

Havana Cafe was good.

I've often thought about going to Denver or Phoenix simply to eat Garcia's. I used to work there in high school.

Would still be there if they could pass a health inspection.
 
Busboy at Garcia's was my first job. Ended up working with quite a few from there at Calhoun's years later

I miss the New York Bagel Shop too. First real bagel place in Knoxville. Worked there for a couple of years on and off

I'm going to assume Skatetown is also gone. Still have pics from my bday there in the early 80's

Bussed there in 96-97. Chris Allen is still one of the best managers I ever had.

Best Bagels off Peters is just as good, if not better.

Skate town to my knowledge is still open.
 
Busboy at Garcia's was my first job. Ended up working with quite a few from there at Calhoun's years later

I miss the New York Bagel Shop too. First real bagel place in Knoxville. Worked there for a couple of years on and off

I'm going to assume Skatetown is also gone. Still have pics from my bday there in the early 80's

If it's the skatetown between Fountain city and Halls on 33 it's still there.
 
anyone remember the department store called Hills? I think it went away in the mid 80's

Deadhorse bar in western plaza

Spaghetti warehouse in the old city

Yeah, there was a Hills store at the corner of Papermill and KP where the Whole Foods shopping center is now. It was oriented differently though.

In the little town where I grew up, Hills was our main department store. I was there every weekend at a minimum. Bought my first records there, first baseball glove, etc etc.
 
Killer pizza. In Shelbourne towers below Carrick.

Not great, but cheap. Could get a large for 3.99. Good deal as a freshman.
 
Bussed there in 96-97. Chris Allen is still one of the best managers I ever had.

Best Bagels off Peters is just as good, if not better.

I was at Garcia's in 93. Will have to try the bagel place. I used to bring extras back to the house in college and we ate like kings


If it's the skatetown between Fountain city and Halls on 33 it's still there.

Skate town to my knowledge is still open.

This one was on Kingston Pike near Cokesbury umc. Always fun on a rainy day
 
And I know it's technically still around but the original Mr George's on Middlebrook was an awesome place. The man could give a mean crew cut
 
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anyone remember the department store called Hills? I think it went away in the mid 80's

Deadhorse bar in western plaza

Spaghetti warehouse in the old city

lol, man, I think about that place every time I'm on Kingston Pike driving to Knoxville. We would stop there every year when we'd go to a game and about all that I can remember is getting slushies from there.
 
I had forgot about the billiards place in Downtown West. We loved it because the guy let us smoke black and gold's in there.

Which reminds me...Swensen's and their model train!
 
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Are you talking about the buffet place in West Knoxville?

That was Duffs, I think. The smorgasbord. I think it was in 10-Mile center where Rothchilds is now.

Danvers was a sandwich place. Pretty sure it was in the building CiCis now owns under Bearden High.

They had roast beef, ham, etc and a big fixings bar you could load up on after you got your order. Bacon bits, pickles, etc. Danvers was cool.


There was a great bar/arcade on Cedar Bluff where Papas Johns is now. Do Littles or something like that. They used to have all you could play nights for ~ $5. Used to wear out Moon Patrol.
 
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Man was an absolute saint. Came to cut my Papaw's hair once he went in to the nursing home, and did that for countless others.

Guy deserves a street name or something.

That's an awesome story. We used to go with the whole team in HS for a buzz before camp and he always seemed to enjoy that
 

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