The new neon lighting at the landmark Tally’s Good Food Cafe in Tulsa went up a few days ago.
Tally’s new neon was the beneficiary of the city of Tulsa’s Route 66 neon-sign grant program. A grant pays up to $10,000 for 50% of the cost of a new neon sign or restoring an old one.
The first beneficiary was Billy Ray’s Catfish & BBQ in southwest Tulsa; other grants have been approved or are in the pipeline.
According to KTUL-TV in Tulsa, Tally’s owner said the new neon had been in his head for a while.
“I had this design made five years ago. I was holding onto it,” said Tally Alame, owner of Tally’s Good Food Cafe. […]
“This is exactly what I was dreaming about. It’s beautiful. I call it my ‘little Las Vegas,'” he said. […]
Tally says just in the past couple of days, he’s seen an increase in curious customers because of the signs. He wants to see more of them.
“I want to encourage all the businesses to do more neon. We need to get Route 66 going. We need more neon, more light on 11th Street,” said Tally.
Here’s the video from the station, where you can see the Tally’s animated neon in all its glory, plus reports about the other neon-sign applications:
The big neon sign above the restaurant’s entrance has existed for many years. The grant enabled Tally’s to add a lot more architectural neon on the building, along with letters and Route 66 shields.
Alame has owned Tally’s for many years. In addition to being one of the go-to places for Route 66 travelers once the University of Tulsa closed the Metro Diner in 2006 and tore down it down, he’s also served a free Thanksgiving dinner at the restaurant for anyone who shows up.
On top of all this new or refurbished neon, the city is planning a neon-sign park on the south side of the historic 11th Street Bridge. It will consist of re-created signs from long-defunct businesses.
Preservationists also are working to add downtown to the Route 66 overlay area so more sign projects become eligible for those grants.
(Image of the new neon at Tally’s Good Food Cafe in Tulsa via Tally’s page on Facebook)