Everybody did indeed go to Ginos which was partly owned by its namesake Gino Marchetti, the Baltimore Colts' football team captain. In the early days the drive-in restaurant offered 15 cent hamburgers. The front of the building featured a big window through which customers ordered their hamburgers, fries and soft drinks. For those who wanted to dine al fresco, ceramic tiled benches flanked either side of the small building. The first one that I saw was on Frederick Road in Catonsville. And recently another Catonsville man wondered in a post right here if I remembered it. Well I guess you can see from the 2008 painting above that I was thinking very hard with paint brush in hand. There was another building in this style in Towson where the Kentucky Fried Chicken is now.
Remember the original neon rocket? It cheerfully advertised the 15 cent hamburgers.
Later the restaurants were remodeled and you could eat inside and stare at the cars on the parking lot through the big glass windows. It was a great place for the teens to hang out and look cool, too. A popular favorite was the Gino Giant sandwich which was advertised as a “banquet on a bun.”
Not sure where this Gino's was located but it is a good photo of the newer style of architecture that invited diners to eat inside.
In an earlier post I wrote about the possibility of a Gino’s comeback. To read it here click on the bucket of chicken.
Many years after I had even heard anything about Gino's, I was told there was one on Mountain Road not far from Marley Station. Sure enough, I found it and I was told by the employees it was independently owned and it was, in fact, the last Gino's in existence.
ReplyDeleteI can only tell you the Gino Giant I had was the best one I have ever had. The french fries were just so-so...
Thanks for the memory...