A visual collection of the graphic design and illustration work promoting Portland's restaurants.
With curation support by PNCA students Lily Seres and Kendall Carnell.
Slide 1-3: Menus and postcard from Waddle's Coffee Shop. Waddles opened in 1938 and was designed by Portland’s famed architect Pietro Bellushi. While the tagline was, "A Duckie Place for the entire family," it was not a welcoming place for Black people, as evidenced by the sign outside stating, "White Trade Only — Please". Green menu from 1949; Car menu from 1950s.
Slide 4: Menu of Ringside Steakhouse of 1952. Credit: Oregonian.
Slide 5: Postcard of Skyline Restaurant in the 1950s. Back of postcard reads, "A delightful place for lunch or dinner, located at Skyline and Cornell Road in Portland's West Hills, 10 minutes from downtown. Come as you are; a place for all the family; abundant parking."
Slides 6-7: The Cloud Room menu from the1940s, was advertised as a place where you,"can you eat dinner, drink cocktails and hear heavenly jazz music." Credit: vintagemenuart.com.
Slides 1-3: The Cat ‘N Fiddle Confectionery & Tea Room operated from 1915 - 1923 on 145 Broadway. Credit: vintagemenuart.com.
Slides 4-7: For 40 years, The Ruckers Coffee Cup with its "steaming" exterior sign was a famous landmark on SW Harvey Milk St. (Stark St.). Photo from 1950s by Meredith Kreifels.
Slide 8: An Illustrated postcard from the 1960s. Kon-Tiki was Polynesian themed restaurant at the Lloyd Center Sheraton (now DoubleTree).There was lounge and dining room and to get from one room another one had to cross a bridge that hung over a lagoon formed by an indoor waterfall. The restaurant officially closed in the 1990s.
Slide 9: A 1965 Menu from Farrell’s, known for its fun family-friendly atmosphere and its outrageous sundaes. The original location near Lloyd Center closed in 2001 and the chain was closed officially in 2019
Slide 10: A menu from Barbary Coast, a 24-hour restaurant located in the old Hoyt Hotel across from Union Station. The menu featured a mix of Italian and French Dishes, and it had a roaring 20s-themed ballroom. The restaurant closed along with hotel in 1972. Source: The Culinary Institute of America Menu Collection; Chapman S. Root Menu Collection; menu 7-3278; (loc: 7-OR)
Slides 1-3: Menu from Dan & Louis Oyster Bar, year unknown. Source: The Culinary Institute of America Menu Collection; Bruce P. Jeffer Menu Collection; menu 41-1294; (loc: leg).
Slide 4-5: Menu from Yaw's Top Notch 1940s. Yaw's was a diner that launched in 1926 and ran for 56 years, closing in 1982. The location changed many times, expanding to embrace the drive-in craze. Car hop service started in 1941 with waitresses on roller skates and free tootsie rolls. Tom Lincoln remembers eating at Yaw's when he was a designer for Jantzen in the 1960s. He recalls the burgers, “Still the best I ever tasted.” The full color, illustrated menu shown above was likely the one Tom would remember. It was designed by prolific artist and illustrator Richard Wiley in the late 1960s.
Slides 6-8: Menu and ad for The Sign of the Rose Tea Shop, 1935. Sign of the Rose opened in 1915 by Mrs. Maude Reeves Bushnell. It was started on the fifth floor at SW Broadway and Yamhill, later moving to SW Alder and Broadway. Mrs. Maude Reeves Bushnell was a highly successful restauranteur at one point overseeing 50 employees, and keeping the business in operation for over 20 years. Source: Richard Engeman
Slide 9: Rose Room collateral material. Date unknown.
Slide 10: Sanseri's Cuisine menu of American and Italian dishes. Date unknown. Source: The Culinary Institute of America Menu Collection; menu 24-98; (loc: box 24-1)
Foothill Broiler was founded around 1970 as a "feeding family place" located in the Uptown Shopping Center on NW 23rd Pl. Early ads promote hamburgers and homemade pies. Collection courtesy of Sophia Mick.
