Old Days Eats: Where was first Ranch House? White Castle?

[Robin Garr]

An interesting question came in by Email, and I hope the historians here can come up with a definitive answer. I know there were early Ranch Houses at US60/LaGrange Road and at Iroquois Park, and of course the iconic White Castles in St. Matthews and the Highlands. But which came first? And was there an earlier option?

> Can you please tell me where the original Ranch House was located in
> Louisville?
> I can't seem to do any good on google and thought maybe you could help.
> My first visit to a Ranch House was to the one on Shelbyville Rd., and I
> have always thought that it was the first one. A group of my friends have
> been discussing this topic along with, also, the original location of the
> White Castle in Louisville.

In the mushiness of my early childhood, I recall both the South End and the Shelbyville Road Bob Colglazier's Ranch House. I also remember that a local deejay broadcast from the Shelbyville Road stand - before Paul Cowley had broadcasts from Mammy's (yes, 'Mammy's'), in the site at the corner of Bardstown and Taylorsville where Applebee's is - and where, before that, the yummy Hickory House was.

In addition to the classic, destroyed White Castles in St. Matthews and at Bardstown and Eastern Pkwy., there is/was the one at Eastern Pkwy and Preston. All had the real leaded glass windows and the 'real' castle architecture. Ah, and real WC mugs and dishes. I still have a mug I stole in my wanton youth.

One of our family claims to fame is that my mother-in-law was born in the house that stood where the Eastern Pkwy/Bardstown Road WC was. It's not as big a deal to claim someone was born on a Jiffy Lube site.

http://www.1080wklo.com/paulcowley.htm Hmmm... Maybe it was actually not Mammy's yet, but was actually a Ranch House. Beecher Frank was the other deejay I was trying to think of.

And there was another Ranch House near Standiford. I remember a deejay broadcasting while staying at the top of a 'flagpole' from there.

[Robin Garr]

http://www.1080wklo.com/paulcowley.htm Hmmm... Maybe it was actually not Mammy's yet, but was actually a Ranch House. Beecher Frank was the other deejay I was trying to think of.

And there was another Ranch House near Standiford. I remember a deejay broadcasting while staying at the top of a 'flagpole' from there.

Ken, being of similar generation, we have similar memories ... and similar fuzziness! Maybe someone even more ancient will have to step in with chapter and verse.

Speaking of your mother-in-law's White Castle connection, my grandparents lived not far from there in - and my grandfather had his dental practice in - the big yellow brick house that looms over Bardstown at Speed Alley (actually facing Ivanhoe Court). Little did I know when I sat in their dining room window looking down at the busy street that some day Fat Cats, Baja Bay and the Bard's Town, not to mention Asiatique, would later become neighborhood landmarks ...

Ha! Another connection: my father-in-law had his dental practice just down the street - first at Windson and Bardstown Road, then at Tyler and Bardstown. And, in turn, his own father's practice was above what is now the Qdoba at Bardstown and Eastern Pkwy.

I envy you your childhood proximity to Cherokee Dairy. Ahhh... real whipped cream on sundaes!

[Robin Garr]

I envy you your childhood proximity to Cherokee Dairy. Ahhh... real whipped cream on sundaes!

Funny you mention that, Ken. It just occurred to me this spring that I had always assumed my grandmother made fresh peach ice cream in a churn in the summer time. In reality, I'm 99.44% certain she nipped across the street and got it at Cherokee.

I remember the Ranch House in St Matthews, at the corner of Shelbyville Rd and Hubbards Ln, where the Mini Cooper lot is now. I thought the location across from Bowman Field was a Jerry's, but we were always headed to Hoe Kow, or the A&W stand, both at Bowman Field.

[Robin Garr]

I remember the Ranch House in St Matthews, at the corner of Shelbyville Rd and Hubbards Ln, where the Mini Cooper lot is now. I thought the location across from Bowman Field was a Jerry's, but we were always headed to Hoe Kow, or the A&W stand, both at Bowman Field.

Margie, I know they say if we remember the '60s, we weren't there, so probably I forgot.

But weren't the drive-ins at Hubbards and across from Bowman Field Frisch's Big Boys rather than Ranch House? Those were the two big competitors, as I recall; and I'm pretty certain that the St. Matthews Ranch House was out at LaGrange Road and US60, where the Mall and Oxmoor would later come to pass.

Where the Mini Cooper dealership is now, was at on time Pryor's. My parents had their rehearsal dinner at Pryor's. According to the St. Matthews history book, The Crossroads of Beargrass, Bob Colglazier's Ranch House was at the site that is currently McDonalds. If anyone has this book, check out page 157 & 158 for photos of Pryors and the Ranch House..

Thanks for that. I can now clearly visualize that Ranch House - then a bright spot bursting in the darkness at the edge of town, before the Watterson, out, really in the boonies on the way to Middletown.

I'm recalling now all my culinary innovations as a child, when such food was all we had to work with. That Pryor's you mention had excellent (to a ten-year-old) fried chicken, served with biscuits and honey. I would always pour the honey on the chicken, creating a lovely sweet-salty treat. At Hickory House, barbecue always came with a big slice of bermuda onion, dill pickle and rye bread. I loved making onion sandwiches with pickle and catsup seasoned with a little barbecue sauce. To this day, when I can't think of anything else for a snack, I'll make an onion and pickle sandwich on rye with catsup and Louisiana Hot Sauce.

And at Cherokee Dairy, my regular order was a butterscotch sundae made with coffee ice cream.

The Ranch House I remember was on Bardstoen Rd near the Watterson Exp. having a hard time remembering which side of the Watterson but I THINK it was about where Steak & Shake is now. I remember that great RanchBurger and their strawberry pie! They also had on on Taylorsville Rd in/near the J-Town shopping center. As far as which cam first, WC or Ranch House it has to be WC. There's been. wC in Louisville since the "first " depression.

I really LOVED the Hickory House on Taylorsville @ Bardstown Rd. it was one of the few (if only) places you could get BBQ mutton. But for real nostalgia pains, at least for me, I miss Joe Z's pizza in Buchel that served spaghetti in foil lined to go boxes (about the size of a shoe box.) I would kill to get my hands on their sauce recipe! That and Fanelli's ice cream (also in Buchel).

BTW, my father-in-law was once. Cook for RAnch House and told me they were one of the first restaurants in the city to use the then, almost sci-fi , piece of equipment called the Radar Range.

The history of restaurants of Louisville up to Grisanti's would be such a good book. The second book would begin with Grisanti's and how it led to today's restaurant scene.
That would be a fun project. A separate forum on Hotbytes for posting information?
I lived across from Bowman Field. I remember VonAllmen's Dairy, a butcher shop, Joe's - a liquor store, Mrs. Wheeler's clothing store, and the little gas station. Hoe Cow(?) was at the airport. Frisch's moved in pretty early; of course, Air Devil's Inn. Kingsleys was across the street from their current location. I've taken care of that little section of Taylorsville Road:-)
Anyone find my transitor radio I left at Frisch's? I went right back up there but they said they hadn't seen it. I was heartbroken:-(

Ohhhh Ellen, I love the book idea! If you lived across from Bowman Field do you remember a tiny restaurant about where Impellizeris is now, caled The Sea Queen? A sit down restaurant about 2 steps up from a Hungry Pelican.

...weren't the drive-ins at Hubbards and across from Bowman Field Frisch's Big Boys rather than Ranch House? Those were the two big competitors, as I recall; and I'm pretty certain that the St. Matthews Ranch House was out at LaGrange Road and US60, where the Mall and Oxmoor would later come to pass.

Robin, et al, the (late) great days of (eastend) Frisch's were; The Waggener Frisch's (the current Shelbyville Rd. loc.), the Seneca Frisch's (Hikes Point) and The Atherton Frisch's (next door to Air Devil's). And *WOE* to anyone from any of those schools that dared set foot on the grounds of the other schools' Big Boys!
and for those of you talkng White Castles, wasn't the Hikes Ln./Bardstown Rd one was about as old as the St. Mathews one?