Roadhouses. Still remember them? Now I still like that …. Pulling up and
flicking your lights for service and then positioning your window perfectly
when they bring the tray. Very often
nowadays if you flick your lights anywhere you are liable to get a lewd sign
from someone, so it is nice to do it there and get a menu.
The best one for
me? Without a doubt the Lollipop
Roadhouse in upper Stanza Bopape Street, by the Caltex ….. when growing up it was called the Dolls
House. They are the world class
undisputed kings of that old roadhouse item ….. russian and chips. They serve it crispy and hot and lathered in
vinegar and if you wash it down with a chocolate double thick shake …. Mmmmm
the ensuing sugar rush headache is almost worth it!! My son says there pizzas are also well worth
it.
For those who were
kids around the 1965 – 1975 time in Pretoria you will surely remember the Milky
Cove Roadhouse in Gordon Road, Colbyn (a block from the Dolls House) and the
Flying Saucer Roadhouse in what is now Pierre v Ryneveld. I remember many nights in the back of my
parent’s car …. With a blanket in winter …. Going off to those 2 roadhouses on
the weekend for a treat. I will never
forget what the hamburger sauce tasted like at the Milky Cove. My mom always fancied a banana
milkshake. Today it has been replaced
with a very worthwhile Royal Copenhagen Danish Ice-cream parlour where you can
have the most divine waffles with 2 scoops of mouthwatering ice-cream in
decadent flavours.
Drooling
yet?
I do need to tell
you that I regularly take my son down to the Lollipop Roadhouse where we get
ourselves a nice soft serve ice-cream … me on a cone …. Him in a bowl.... and then
we open the boot of my car and sit on the ledge with our backs facing the boot
and our legs hanging down. We use that
20 mins to catch up on everything and anything.
Very often just hanging out. It
is a special tradition.
Now on a
particular day this year I decided that instead of ice-cream, we would eat as
my hubby was away and this would take care of supper. We ordered and the tray arrived and was
perched onto the window. All was
well. Then in an idiotic moment I
decided to close my window. And my car
has one of those automatic buttons so when you tap it, it closes the window all
the way without having to hold the button down.
So I tapped the button and the window started to shoot up … at this
stage Nic shouted “mom the tray” and realising the imminent disaster I tapped
the button again and the window shot downwards, completely open in record time.
I will leave you to imagine the force
with which the tray shot off the window and landed between us and the car next
to us. Glasses broke, tomato sauce and
mustard containers shot in the air … a plate broke and the noise and
entertainment value was legendary. Once
we had stopped laughing … and believe me it took a while, I did offer to pay
for damages. They, obviously entertained
too, declined.
And then as we
drove off, in a last moment of theatrics, I drove over the red plastic tomato
sauce bottle which was under my wheel.
It burst ….. well let us just say it wasn’t pretty.
And yes, they do
still serve us when we go there. Even though I had to return the next day as in a grand finale to the evening we realised we still had their cutlery in the car when we got home :)
Go on …. Have a
roadhouse meal…..
Till tomorrow
K xx
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