I started missing the Luna Cafe in the Route 66 settlement of Mitchell, Ill., as soon as I read this first paragraph from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch story:
Any time you walk into a bar with Bob Seger playing on the jukebox, you have a pretty good idea of the ambience. Luna Cafe doesn’t disappoint, and its down-home atmosphere is the polar opposite of see-and-be-scene happy hours throughout the region. This crowd is made up of steelworkers from the nearby mills, enjoying cold frosty beverages after their shift, and an infusion of neighborhood regulars. Occasionally, Europeans wander into the bar, searching for a piece of history.
I once lived about 30 miles from the Luna, and it was great to stop there to take in the local, blue-collar flavor. It’s one of the few regrets I have about moving to Oklahoma — the Sooner State doesn’t have Ted Drewes Frozen Custard, nor a Luna Cafe to drink Stag beer and listen to both Hanks on the jukebox.
The Luna Cafe is one of kind. If you’re in the metro-east area of St. Louis, don’t bypass it or you’ll regret it.
I stopped in the Luna last week for just the reasons described here. I had just followed the National Road Byway to Eads Bridge and was sitting under the bridge pondering my next move. I knew I deserved a cold one and knew that Route 66 and the Luna couldn’t be too far away. About ten minutes later, thanks to the magic of GPS, I was in the Luna draining a long neck. I wasn’t thinking clearly and had a Bud instead of a Stag. I’ll do better next time.
All barstools were full (free wings day) so I moved to a table. I couldn’t help hearing (didn’t really try all that hard) some folks near me at the bar. It seemed that every third or fourth sentence was, “Well, it depends”, with the word “depends” heavily emphasized and usually stretched just a bit. This all became clear when the bartender for the next shift showed up. She had lost a bet of some sorts and a Depend adult diaper was waiting for her behind the bar. Paying off the bet involved her wearing it for her entire shift and she started it off with as much good natured laughter as everyone else. You won’t see that at T.G.I.Fridays.
Thanks for the great story, Denny.