Dad Was a Foodie Before His Time
Wednesdays are usually recipe day. But usually on March 4, I write a post about Dad who died on this date in 1997. Since Dad loved to eat, my original plan was to feature a recipe for one of his favorite foods. Not an easy task to choose just one food. Because he had lots of favorites.
Pretty much anything on his plate.
But then, I read that Dad’s favorite restaurant in the world, Archie’s Waeside Steakhouse in Le Mars, Iowa–my home town–was just named one of five restaurants to be named one of the James Beard Foundation’s America Classics for 2015.
Bam!
I was transported back to 1965. Mom was pushing Dad across the Archie’s parking lot. My sister, brother, and I were tagging along behind. Big Sis held the door open while Mom maneuvered Dad’s wheelchair across the threshold. Once inside, Dad’s grin was so wide his face could barely hold it. He began greeting the customers waiting to be seated, whether or not he’d ever seen them before.
But we never had to wait very long for a booth.
Perhaps because Dad was the former youth extension director in Plymouth County, where Le Mars is located. And he trained the county youth to show their cattle at the fair. And Archie’s always bought the county fair champion feeder steers to serve at the restaurant. Or perhaps it was because Dad began salivating for his Archie’s steak cooked just right–black on the outside and still kicking on the inside–and the wait staff took pity on him. Or perhaps because his joy at being out to eat with his family, chewing the fat with every friend or acquaintance who walked by, made the restaurant look good. Or perhaps because he was Archie’s best word-of-mouth advertiser on wheels.
Ever.
All of which goes to show that Dad was a foodie before his time. Long before James Beard, Top Chef, or the Food Network. Long before cell phones, selfies, and posting pictures of people posing with food on Facebook. Long before all that, Dad knew he could travel the world and never find a steak better than one from Archie’s. Now the world knows about Archie’s, too.
Dad would be so proud.
In memory of Harlan John Stratton: May 11, 1929–March 4, 1997.
