Today’s Los Angeles Times has an article about the death of a Pasadena institution: Beadle’s Cafeteria. They use the article to bemoan the death of the entire cafeteria approach, stating that people equate it with their school experience. They describe the cafeteria thusly:
There was a time when the cafeteria was the undisputed king of Southern California dining. Before World War II, the cheap food and sprawling dining halls brought together strangers new to the region and created lasting bonds.
The meals were inexpensive, and there was something altogether modern in the dining experience, which did without menus, waiters and tablecloths. Restaurant-goers could load their trays with cold foods and then hot, delicacies like ambrosia salad and coleslaw, liver and onions and mac and cheese, and then sidle up to the cash register to pay — all without waiting.
The Times is right that eateries that call themselves “Cafeterias” are disappearing, just as Automats have disappeared. Many of the original very famous cafeterias are gone, and the few that remain, such as Cliftons (which was the first) are not as well known. There are a few that still proudly call themselves by the cafeteria name, including Luby’s and K&W
But I disagree that cafeterias are dead. They’ve just changed their name to “all you can eat buffets” or “salad bars”. One can still overstuff themselves at places like Furrs or the Buffet’s Inc stores (Old Country Buffet, Hometown Buffet, Country Buffet) . There are tons of all-you-can-eat Asian buffets (like Zen Buffet in Woodland Hills), and a few all-you-can-eat Sushi places. Lastly, how can we forget my favorite: places like Souplantation/Sweet Tomatoes and Fresh Choice. I’m not sure of the difference between these places and the traditional cafeteria.
So I think the Times is off-base here. Cafeterias aren’t gone. They’ve just modernized. Now it’s time to go to the Circle-A cafeteria (which really isn’t a cafeteria, for there isn’t one set rate) for lunch…
