@MIZZOU ASKS YOU

Heidelberg Memories

According to fire investigators, an electrical malfunction caused the three-alarm fire that destroyed The Old Heidelberg Restaurant on Aug. 18, 2003. For the first time in 40 years, MU students began the school year without the campus landmark.

The newly constructed Heidelberg opened in August 2004. The décor and color scheme of the 5,200-square-foot restaurant resembles the original, including the ’Berg’s familiar wooden booths and Tigers memorabilia. The new facility also features a roof-top patio.

@Mizzou readers shared their favorite Heidelberg memories in our October 2003 issue ...

I can’t believe what I just read! The ’Berg burnt down! How sad. I usually am able to keep up with what is going on in Columbia, but I’ve been pretty busy lately.

I don’t know what I’ll miss more: Having a cold one there with everyone before the game … Dropping in Sunday morning for breakfast before heading back home to Mississippi … Looking at all the Mizzou sports history on the walls …

I do know what my memories will always be. The reason the place was so legendary was because everyone who went to Mizzou during the Heidelberg years had the same memories of the place:

• Skipping class with friends to start the weekend early
• After finals, going there to celebrate, or drown your sorrows
• Meeting a favorite professor there to split a pitcher in an unofficial “office hours” visit

I still can't believe it. Probably won't sink in until I make it back up for the Nebraska game in October. Win or lose the game, the visit will be a little sadder this year.

— Chris Etheridge, BA ’92

Back in the heyday of the Heidelberg when I was an art student at MU, the owner of the restaurant, George Petrakis, commissioned me to paint German heraldic crests to hang above the booths. I was delighted to do the work for what was, even then, a pittance. When I delivered all those finished works, George offered less than the small amount he had promised. When I turned around with all the paintings under my arm and marched toward the door in a huff, George laughed and told me to come back. When he finally forked over the agreed upon commission, he said, “Sapp you’re too normal to become a real artist.

Because I have taught art continuously in colleges and universities, including MU as a grad student, perhaps George was right! The only “real” artist who was also a professor was one of my mentors, Frank Stack, the “Father of the Underground Comics” who is still emeritus at MU.

— William Sapp, BS Ed ’65, MA ’67

I was saddened to hear that the Heidelberg burned down.

In 1987, I was a 22-year-old mother of two who had re-entered school and felt left out of the “college experience.” One day, I visited the Heidelberg with a group of Intro. to Sociology classmates and our professor. We got into the deepest philosophical discussions over a pitcher of beer. It was then that I began the journey of discovering myself and the lessons that life teaches outside the classroom.

— Bonni Bush Funk, BJ ’89

While in engineering school I enjoyed a good pork tenderloin sandwich at the Heidelberg from time to time. However, my greatest Heidelberg moment occurred over 25 years after graduation at a reunion in Columbia for the Mizzou vs. Colorado football game.

We were all piled in my good friend's car looking for a post-game bruski at the Heidelberg, but parking was atrocious throughout downtown. We spent a good fifteen minutes looking for a place to park, with my friend's wife barking orders the entire time from the shotgun position. Finally, in a moment of glory and tired of his wife's constant needling, my buddy stopped dead in the middle of the street in front of the Heidelberg, put his car in park, got out and went into the restaurant by himself. There we sat with jaws dropped in the middle of traffic, minus our driver.

One of us climbed into the driver's seat and pulled the car into a lot a few blocks away. I'm not sure what was louder: the honking horns, my friend's angry wife, or the laughter of the male passengers. It was truly an ugly moment that will go down in the Hall of Shame, but I'll always think of the Heidelberg and my good friend's bravery under fire.

Cheers from Boulder!

— Tom Soell, BS CiE ’75

Like many MU students I hung out at The Old Heidelberg between classes, and maybe occasionally during a few classes. But hearing about the loss of the Columbia landmark struck me much harder than most of the countless thousands who passed through the front door. From 1970-78, I was a waiter, bartender and assistant manager at the Berg.

After a part-time career in such notable Columbia eateries as Loeb Dining Hall, Ku Ku Burger, and Shakey's, I went to work at the ’Berg in June 1970. Back then, only males were hired because the beer-drinking night crowd was thought to be too rowdy. When The Hoffbrau Restaurant burned down, we inherited their cooking staff. After the menu and kitchen services expanded, we started hiring a few waitresses.

When the Columbia Health Department cracked down on hair restraint for food handlers, one of our regular customers offered me a logo cap. He was a seed salesman. Though many customers of the early ’70s may not remember my name, they will remember the red (later green) Funk's G. Hybrid caps that I wore.

Before the liquor laws changed, we sold 3.2 percent beer and were one of the most popular places for Sunday and late night take-out beer. Happy hour pitchers were 75 cents, 90 cents, and then a whole $1.00. The tenderloin was the biggest sandwich in the city – “Can I order an extra bun with that please?” And few could pass up the Reuben or all-you-could-eat spaghetti daily specials.

The only electronic games were the three pinball machines in the back by the bathrooms. After we remodeled (the first time) the pinballs were moved out front, next to the bar. Booth 3, a very dark corner booth in front, was the best place to try and order an underage beer. Booth 12, another corner booth in the rear, was the next best. The second remodeling of the Heidelberg eliminated Lou's Washette laundry next door, and the famous “Toad Road” wall murals. It also eliminated booths 3 and 12.

During the 70’s, the Berg was like a home away from home to many of our staff. Even when we were off duty we collected there. It was nothing for an employee get off at 5 p.m., but still be socializing with customers or other off-duty staff at 10 or 11 p.m. We were one big happy family.

Dick Walls and the Heidelberg were always great supporters of MU sports. We fed the basketball team when the University couldn’t. I remember opening a closed ’Berg one Christmas Eve night so we could feed the MU basketball team that had just flown in from a holiday tournament at Florida State.

Home football Saturdays were naturally the busiest days of the year, and very hectic and stressful for a manager. But when Missouri beat Nebraska last Saturday, I couldn't help but think how great it would have been to be back at the ’Berg serving all the victorious Tiger fans – and maybe having a Reuben too.

— Jim “JB” Barkley, BS BA ’70

The Heidelberg as it looked after the fire subsided. Photo by Brian McNeill

I worked for the ’Berg for over two years. I lived in the apartments behind it for a summer while I worked there. It seemed my life revolved around the place. My most “burned” image of that place (and there are thousands) is a song from the jukebox: “Black Hole Sun” by Soundgarden. It was 1994, and we waitresses would fill the machine with quarters, playing that song over and over again to keep other people (the bartenders) from playing less desirable songs, which I don’t remember at this point. I can tell you that I couldn’t stand to hear that song played anywhere else since I heard it hundreds of times a night at the ’Berg. It still makes me smell the smells and feel the way it felt to be there.

I still have one of my T-shirts from waiting tables there. I won’t wear it anymore. Not because it’s too old or torn up, but because I don’t want it to become that way. I’m not very nostalgic, but the Heidelberg is a big part of my college experience. In fact, my mom called and woke me up at 6 a.m. when she heard about the fire. I cried. I’m 30 now, live in Highlands Ranch, Colo., with a husband, child, house, SUV and overcrowded schedule — quite the typical suburban mom. But I can relive my crazy days (or actually nights) of making money at the ’Berg. I loved it!!!

— Michelle Kretsinger, BA ’95

The Heidelberg gone! Oh, no. Everyone in the advertising sequence of journalism was required to take Advertising Principles, or Ad Prin. as it was affectionately called. Because of the close proximity to St. Louis, home of Anheuser Busch and its ad agencies, students would invariably get a lecture about the marketing and advertising of the various brands of Anheuser Busch beer. My class was at 10:40 am. On the day of the “Busch” lecture, over half the class made its way to the Heidelberg to test out the concepts.

— Sally Graves De Witt, BJ ’71

The Old Heidelberg was an integral part of every Mizzou J-School student’s life in the late ’60s and early ’70s. Between classes, after classes and in the evening, the dark booths of the Heidelberg provided refuge from the rigors of H&P, Ad Prin. and the “pressure cooker” curriculum at Neff and Williams halls. Good brew (served up by bartender Jim), bodacious burgers and ethereal palaver, mixed with the strains of Dylan’s “Lay, Lady, Lay,” provided a magical atmosphere of freedom, an elixir for the soul. The Old Heidelberg was the idyllic place where deals were made and dreams of life after J-School abounded. Although now gone, to legions of journalism students the old haunt will live on in fond memories for years to come.

— Tim Brackman, BJ ’72

I just hated to hear about the Heidelberg! There were many nights that we put the Missourian on the press and headed over for a beer and some potato skins at the ’Berg. And my favorite professor of all time, Jim Atwater, would sometimes hold his editorial writing class there. It helped us bond as journalists and friends. I’ll miss the ’Berg as I miss the late James Atwater.

— Laurie Van Horn, BJ ’90

It’s not that I have ONE story about the ’Berg, just a look back at my days hanging out there. My junior year I had several classes with a buddy, Reid. During the first round of tests he asked if I wanted to study at the ’Berg. Generally I studied in my room or at the library, but decided to give it a shot, because let’s face it, studying alone is pretty boring. We ordered a pitcher of beer and listened to a little Bob Marley singing “No Woman, No Cry.” I aced both tests for which we studied. The next year and a half I studied for tests at the ’Berg, drinking a pitcher of beer and listening to Bob Marley. Wouldn’t you know. I graduated with honors, and a few extra pounds! So, thanks to Bob and the ’Berg ... and a pitcher of beer.

— Brian Arbuckle, BS BA ’00

While I was at Mizzou I called the Heidelberg “my living room,” which was true, because at the time, I lived in a room at the Tiger Hotel. I spent innumerable hours there reading, grading papers, watching MU sports on the TV and occasionally raising a bit of hell, arguing with the other regulars about the topics of the day. I also had the chance to see at least a hundred people celebrate their 21st birthdays. I’m sure a few even have dim memories thereof. Finally, I even became an employee there one summer, and believe me, washing dishes isn’t nearly as much fun as drinking “Texas Tea.” I, for one, will be happy when the Phoenix-like ’Berg resurrects itself, and the taps flow freely, and the ice is cold.

— L.L. “Tex” Warner, MA ’97

Back in 1963 all of the storied beer joints were in full bloom: the I.V., The Den, Coronado, The Stein Club, The Shack, even the Black Knight, the ramshackle Stables, and more.

But when the Heidelberg opened, it raised the bar, so to speak. It didn’t raise it too high to stop the flood of beer required to satisfy MU students. It had many great points in Ye Olde Days.

• Convenient and new (what could be better?)
• Friendly waitresses
• Grouchy George, the owner (in retrospect, a quality-control genius)
• A great jukebox (I remember when the newly released “I Want to Hold Your Hand” by the Beatles was played about 10 times an hour.)

And finally, the Heidelberg had great food. For the past 40 years, I’ve searched around the world and have never found a meatball sandwich to hold a candle to the Heidelberg’s.

— Art Smith, BJ ’65

It was a sad day when I heard The Old Heidelberg had burned down. I remember going there in the early ’70s when it was just one side of the building (before they expanded into the Laundromat next to it). They kept your personal beer mug over the bar, and Dave (the owner) was usually the bartender. It was the epitome of the campus pub and a big part of my college memories.

— Guy Conway Class of ‘73

Imagine my shock when my parents phoned to tell me that the ’Berg had burned down. I’m sure they had no idea that the ’Berg was where I took my first, official legal drink at midnight on my 21st birthday! I can hardly wait until it’s rebuilt. And you can quote me on that!

— Jacqueline Clark, BA ’84

Well, friends … if the Heidelberg goes, you can just close J-School, too. That was the official J-School annex. While other students had 16-hour weeks and time for things like library work, washing hair and dating, we had no life outside of the 40 hours a week in J-work, J-classes, J-everything, except for our evenings at the Heidelberg. The drink of the house was called Pussy Galore, and three of those would render us painless, send us home, to sleep for a few hours before the 7:40 a.m. classes started. Man ... what a loss!

— Georgia Patrick, BJ ’67

I was surprised to read that the Heidelberg burned down in August. I remember it being a real J-School hangout in the late ’60s and early ’70s. The cheese plates were cheap and provided a great snack after a long day. And eating lunch or dinner there with a date was always a treat — good beer, good food and good company. I even took my family there a few years ago when passing through Columbia on our way West.

— Andrea Ferretti Vitale, BJ ’72

I can remember many a day playing pinball at the Heidelberg Restaurant after studying and during finals. It was a great place to get something to eat and forget about school just across the street.

— Ken Donohew, BS IE ’67

When I was working on my MBA in 1970, it was nice just to be able to pop across the street from BPA to have an omelet and listen to the great tunes of that year: “Bridge Over Troubled Waters” by Simon & Garfunkel and “Let It Be” by the Beatles were just two.

The thought that future generations will be denied this opportunity is sad. What a great memory of grad school days.

— John M. Gibbons, Jr., MBA ’71

Being across the street from the engineering school – many a pitcher of beer was downed, particularly after tests!! I enjoyed going there so much that when my family came down to attend my graduation, that was where we went for dinner.

— Jon McCarthy, BS CiE, ’79

Sad to hear that an old hangout burned down. I used to go for lunch and a beer and play pinball between classes. I hope someone rebuilds it so that students can continue the experience.

— Dean M. Stuhlmann, BS BA ’81

The fried mushrooms and pitchers of beer were the best! My husband and I met at Mizzou 25 years ago, and the Heidelberg was one of our favorite spots. I remember one night being there when two female students from Finland asked us to join them in a drinking contest with shots of vodka. They claimed that Americans were inferior to the Finns when it came to holding their liquor. From what I saw at the Heidelberg, I’d have to say they were right!

— Carol Brunngraber Daus, BJ ’79

I cannot believe the Heidelberg burned down! I had no idea. You miss a lot when you move away …

My German class at Mizzzou held discussion groups at the Heidelberg once a week. Students and TAs in the German Department would gather and hold discussions auf Deutsch. I remember not understanding half of what was being said in German, but I stayed anyway because the biscuits and gravy that the Heidelberg served were so good. Ach mensch! I really miss it.

— Melissa Wright, BA ’96

I remember catching a nickel pinball game or two ... and a Bud between classes in the late ’60s.

— David Cole, BSF ’71

After many a late night at the Theatre rehearsing plays, the cast and crew often ended up at the Heidelberg for dinner.

My best friend, Elizabeth “Wizzy” Kenworthy, would order a cheeseburger with bacon and grilled onions. We all thought she was weird, but got very close to getting it on the menu titled “Wizzy Burger.”

Needless to say the bacon and grilled onions thing was WAAY ahead of it’s time, as was Wizzy (currently thriving in Memphis.)

— Susan Langhauser, BA ’73

The Heidelberg was brand new and one of my assigned accounts when I was working on the ad sales staff of the Columbia Missourian in fall 1962. At the time (and maybe it still is), Ad Sales, with a minimum of 10 hours of lab per week for a semester, was a requirement for BJ majors specializing in advertising. The single biggest influence on the grade we would receive was the sale of an advertising campaign to one of our accounts. My obvious choice for this campaign was the Heidelberg. It was “a given” that they would want to make their new presence known. The layout and copy for the kickoff half-page ad were spectacular (in my opinion). And the headlines and copy for the follow-up quarter-page ads to run over the next few weeks were equally effective. But for some reason the new owner did not agree. He ended up not spending one red cent to announce his new operation. And I got a “C” in the course. How do you suppose it ever became such a popular hangout?

— Tod Berger, BJ ’63

Playing bridge from open to close, just rotating out of a game to go to class, and coming back for more bridge and a little beer. To this day Dick Walls breaks out in a sweat if you bring a deck of cards into one of his bars.

— Mary and Steve Stone

The ’Berg was a place to go after classes on Fridays for a beer. It was 25 cents a draft, as I recall. Years later it became a place to take my children when they were at MU after football games. Good food and prices – I could afford to take the roommate, girl/boy friend, and assorted other hangers-on. I’m really glad to hear that they will rebuild, but a lot of memorabilia and wonderful campus photography that hung on the walls can never be replaced.

— Craig Venneman, BS Ed ’72

My fondest memories of the Heidelberg were the half-priced appetizers. I remember many evenings sitting around the table with my sorority sisters and best buddies as we ate family style from the plethora of appetizers we ordered with the justification and satisfaction that they were just half-price! I definitely owe a few pounds to the Heidelberg. Farewell … we will miss you.

— Ebonie Cunningham, BA ’01

We used to pop over from the J-School for a morning coffee to keep us going. The bartender invariably greeted us with, “Draw one?” Naturally, being journalism students in the sixties, we said, “yes.” The Heidelberg, The Shack, The Italian Village, The M-Bar … now THOSE were hangouts. A latte at Starbucks? I don’t think so!

— Carolin Chapman Wilson, BA ’64, BJ ’65

In the early ‘80s, my friend Richard Salinas and I used to meet at the Heidelberg just about every Sunday night to talk about our lives, girlfriends, our futures, politics — everything and nothing — over pitchers of Lowenbrau Dark. It was such a relaxed, easygoing spot, and the only place I knew in Columbia that sold good dark beer on tap.

Aside from those regular Sunday night get-togethers, I’ll always remember one time, after our last final of the semester — a 7 a.m. exam that ended at 10 a.m. — when we headed immediately to the Heidelberg. Four or five of us, euphoric if a bit sleep-deprived, decided we would be drunk by lunch. Mission accomplished. It made for a long day, though.

I hope the Heidelberg is resurrected somehow. It was one of my favorite places on campus.

— John Marsh, BJ ’86

The Heidelberg was the J-School hangout. We’d hang out there with our TAs after class and drink pitchers while discussing how we were going to make it big at a national newspaper. Once an unsavory young man hit on me at the ’Berg, and my TA kindly offered to pose as my boyfriend. My TA was rather attractive, so I didn’t mind at all.

I also remember during my senior year, Byron Scott (“Scotty”) gave me $50 to buy the whole class a round at the ’Berg to celebrate graduation. We ran up a much larger tab, but the thought was certainly appreciated!

— Jennifer Seifert Bolton, BJ ’98

When I graduated with $3,000 in Visa debt, you would have thought there would have been regret — but no. Some of my fondest memories of my Mizzou days include pitchers of beer and nachos with great friends when I had no money. One of the only places I knew that took plastic, the ’Berg, is still clear in my memory! Boy I loved that place.

— Kathy Zilly Gilmore, BA ’92

My good friend Dick Erdel, BJ ’69, and I would sit in the ’Berg and drink coffee while he filled out my class schedule for the coming semester. He was a semester ahead of me in J-School. He was better than an academic adviser and the coffee was always good.

— Karen Mossman, BJ ’70

My classmates and professor were at the Heidelberg after a test, when we watched the Challenger explode on television, right before our eyes! We sat there for a very long time, watching together, because we couldn’t think about leaving and not having someone to grieve with.

The best hamburgers (real ones) in Columbia.

— Suzanne Sample Rees, BA ’86

Dr. Lewis Davids, Hill Professor of Bank Management, would hold class at the Heidelberg at least once a week. I loved the pork tenderloins, and later brought my wife (then a date), my son and daughter, and countless friends back to eat there before games. I was going there before the Middle Tennessee game with friends on this year’s trip to Columbia when we discovered it was gone. I will miss it.

— Bill Carner, MBA ’72, PhD ’89

During the summer of 1992, I worked as a camp counselor with Camp Mudd, sponsored by the University Y. We held our weekly social/planning meeting at the ’Berg on Friday afternoons with the Y’s director, Phil Steinhaus. I tried an excellent appetizer known as potato skins for the first time there. We always had a great time sharing stories from camp and planning practical jokes.

— Stephanie Dorman, BS Ed ’94, M Ed ’02

It was November 1980. A girlfriend, Rebbie, and I had just been to a performance of “Pippin” at the University Theater. A cute guy, Andy, whom I had met at the Chez just two weeks earlier was playing guitar in the pit. We had front-row seats and had a small opening to the pit right in front of my guitar player. He winked at me several times during the performance. Rebbie and I stayed after the show and Andy introduced us to his parents, who were also there that night. Andy then offered to give us a ride to Gillett Hall. We said, “yes” and Andy and I talked incessantly all the way there, as we had the three previous times we had met. As we had secretly arranged beforehand, Rebbie said she was expecting a phone call and went up to her room. Andy asked if I wanted to go to the ’Berg for a few minutes. After a sandwich and a couple hours of talking, we shared our first kiss in the middle of an empty Ninth Street in front of the Heidelberg.

We just celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary and our firstborn, Jameson, who is now a freshman biology/pre-med student at MU, called and told us about the Heidelberg fire before it hit the newsstand. By the way, Andy’s parents are Dr. James and Beverly Huckaba. Dr. Huckaba retired recently after 35 years of teaching mathematics at MU.

— Nancy Worden Huckaba, BS HE ’81, and Andy Huckaba BM ’83

As an undergraduate at MU from 1981-85, the Heidelberg was a place of refuge and reward for myself and my friend Larry. We were both pre-med then and trying to make the grades in order to get into medical school. Many an evening were spent at Ellis Library in quiet study until they closed. A lot of times, after a hard night of studying, we would treat ourselves to a pitcher of Lowenbrau Dark and an appetizer of potato skins as we unwound and solved the world’s problems in one of those ancient wooden booths. As our undergrad careers came to a close, both Larry and I were accepted to medical school at MU. In celebration of this fact, we went to the Heidelberg in the early a.m. before the last final of our undergrad years (an organic chemistry lab final) and had a pitcher of Lowenbrau Dark and skins before our test. Nothing like having a buzz while taking your last final!

A couple of years ago, Larry and I went back to the Heidelberg after a football game (this time with our wives), and we shared a booth, some Lowenbrau Dark, and some skins. I’m glad we made the effort to get back there when we did.

— Kent Cooper, BA ’85, MD ’89

I remember many a Friday afternoon happy hour spent at the Old Heidelberg. We’d sit around a table, or two, or three (depending on the crowd) and eat pizza and other munchies, while imbibing on Anheuser-Busch products. It was a fun place, allowing for plenty of partying. I was saddened to hear that it had burned down. Another landmark, gone. What’s next? The Columns?

— Al Kremer, BA ’84

I was so saddened to hear the news that our college hangout had burned to the ground. Friends I hadn’t spoken to in years were all e-mailing and calling each other about the news the day after the tragedy.

I don’t think I’ve ever been to the ’Berg and not known at least one table full of guests. I always lovingly referred to the ’Berg as the “cafeteria.” No matter what time of day, you could always walk into the Heidelberg alone, see a familiar face, and pull up a chair and hang out with your fellow Tigers.

That’s where we went for late-night happy hour when we desperately needed a study break. It’s where I celebrated (OK, ended the celebrating) my 21st birthday with a round of shots (ouch) from the bartender. This is where I always made sure to take out-of-town guests, where I met frequently for double dates, where a girlfriend and I would camp out in one of the side booths with a pack of cigs and a pitcher and talk about what’s been going on. It’s where we studied, pigged out and hung out before hitting the sack or hitting the town.

The ’Berg is already very missed. I really hope it’s rebuilt soon. I know my friends and I will be taking a road trip as soon as it is.

— Elizabeth Stallone, BSW ’99

During my last semester at Mizzou (winter 1975), I would go to the Heidelberg in the evening, usually after watching the news, have a knockwurst, topped with kraut, some hot potato salad or a steak sandwich with fries, wash it down with a Bud, and then go write on my thesis.

— Arnold Bruns, BS ’72, MS ’75

Friday nights at the ’Berg — my most precious memory of Columbia life. I studied and worked in Columbia for six years, and I left Columbia 10 days after this tragedy. I could not host my going-away party at the ’Berg on Aug. 20th because of the tragedy. I missed quite a few friends to whom I could not say goodbye in person. I hope to visit Columbia next summer and see my favorite haunt/hangout up and running like before!

— Koushik Adhikari, PhD ’00

An aerial view of the damage done by the fire at the Heidelberg. Photo by Brian McNeill

I was an MU student and graduate student from 1959-64, then intermittently until the late l960s. The Heidelberg used to be The Ever Eat Cafe, run by a pudgy guy named, Ralph, I believe. It was a plain, but cheap, place to get a meal. The saying around our dorm was, “If you ever eat, at the Ever Eat, you’ll never eat there again.” We didn’t really mean it, of course.

Then the place closed and became The Old Heidelberg, then considered an
upscale type bar-restaurant of the new era in Columbia. I remember they were small at first, but greatly expanded. I didn’t frequent the Heidelberg too much until I turned 21, then it became one of my favorite watering holes. They always had good Reubens and hot German potato salad. A lot of us alums complained (about 10 years ago) when they dropped the German potato salad. It was one of the places I liked to go back to on my visits to Columbia.

I grew up in Columbia and can recall most of the past businesses on that block: Fountain Standard Service on the Corner, Bengal Shop, a short order eatery, Agora (coffee) House, A & P Supermarket (handy for us who lived near the Campus), Tastee Freeze, The bar-restaurant run by George Patricas (sp?), etc.

— David (Scoop) Peery, BJ ’64

My friend and I both worked selling clothes at Woolf Brothers. One night after work we retired to the Old Heidelberg where the local Falstaff sales representative was in attendance. Since we were such good customers, we were treated to several pitchers. Before the evening ended my friend, Scott, leaped from our booth and intercepted two coeds who had just entered. He knew one of them from a semester at Kansas City JC before coming to Mizzou. We arranged for a double date the next weekend, after which , we decided each of us liked the other’s date better. We called right then and pulled the switch for the next weekend (a near impossible task). His date, then mine, is now Sherry Patten, my wife of 37 years (BS Ed ’66). Our oldest daughter made her first trip to Columbia last spring (we are now East Coasters), and one of her tasks was to have some fried ravioli, a meatball sub and a beer at the Old Heidelberg, where her parents were introduced.

— Tom Patten, BS BA ’67, JD ‘69

The word reached me that my “second home” was destroyed by fire. Up until graduation in 1981, I spent more time in the Heidelberg than I spent at home. I opened the place through the back door when Austin, the cook, showed up to begin the day. His gravely voiced “good morning,” letting me know that my school day had begun. While I turned on the tube, he would whip up my usual omelet and coffee, which I devoured before going to class.

By lunchtime, I was back in for more coffee, served by Larry the bartender, who had taken over for Turk. A Tex-Mex burger was my usual lunch, washed down with more coffee. If I had time, I took a turn at the pinball machines which, I must state immodestly, I was extremely good at due to a misspent youth (I coined the term “Lazurus Ball.”) Meanwhile, the jukebox would be churning out new Billy Joel tunes.

And, Steve Stepanovich might slip in and grab lunch there too, always turning a few heads at his tall frame.

After work at UPS I was back for late dinner, usually going with the special. By this time I might have one beer before going home to study. Because I dated one of the waitresses, Cathy Downs, it also gave us a chance to see each other on work nights. The place would fill up with casually dressed folks, each enjoying the warm and friendly atmosphere. Even Timothy Leary found the warmth of the restaurant one night after he gave a speech.

I coached the Heidelberg’s ladies softball team and drove them from the game perched on the back on my ’72 Cutlass convertible, with top down (the car’s) and the ladies waiving to the “crowd” after a victory. I rooted on the men’s softball team, because I didn’t have the additional time to practice. I got drunk there one night and was carried out on the shoulders of a larger friend, Jim Fryer, who decided that I had flung too many limes after downing too much tequila.

I wasn’t in a fraternity. My girlfriends weren’t in a sorority. But the Heidelberg “family,” which I once calculated included nearly 200 regulars, employees and significant others, was as important an institution for comrades in college as any more structured, recognized group on campus. They were there when you had problems. They were there when you just wanted to complain. And the beer was always cold.

Now, over twenty years later, I still possess my Heidelberg T-shirt and warm-up jacket. They have become more cherished than ever. Thank you, Walls, for the memories.

— Robert Schwaninger, BJ, JD ’81

The ’Berg was a great place to get together with friends at any time. Be it a.m. for a wonderful breakfast after a late night or for a tasty beverage before a big game or happy hour or after a tough class.

Luckily I was able to visit the ’Berg last Homecoming, and yes, I got another plastic cup. I have a couple. At least I was smart enough to keep it. Who knew it would become memorabilia.

As an alumna of Mizzou, I was very sad to hear the institution burned down, but happy that no one was actually hurt.

— Mary Awosika, BJ ’00

My favorite Heidelberg memory …

Well, it was a sad day for me, because I was leaving town the next day. As I spent part of about three or four nights a week in the lovely paneled walls of the ’Berg, I wanted to go there one last time.

I arrived at 10 a.m. Various friends popped in and out, talking, chatting, gabbing, drinking, eating and leaving. I left with the last crowd of them at about 2 a.m. that night because I had to wait for my ride. Sixteen hours straight in the confines of that loving place. Oh, what a night!

— Brian Stuhlman, BS Ed ’99

I was waiting tables at the Heidelberg when Kansas City was competing with St. Louis for the BIG WIN in some major sports event about 18 years ago or so (the play-offs?) Obviously, I don’t remember much when it comes to sports, but because Columbia is in between these two superpowers, I remember the energy at the Heidelberg that night!

Long live the Heidelberg!

— Leslie Ziegenhorn, BA ’86

Probably no plaque commemorating the hours I spent there “studying.” Thanks anyway. (Oh … I have been to Harpo’s. Guess that will have to do.)

— Mike Raines, BS ’58

When I was a student at Mizzou, just a few years ago, the Heidelberg was never far from my daily activities. Living on Ninth Street in the J-slums for a year made the ’Berg a meeting place nearly every day. We poor students always loved the inexpensive, greasy breakfast. After moving out of that “great” apartment, I rarely ever went to the ’Berg over the next year. That is until I had a poetry class that met there twice a week instead of in a classroom. We constantly bothered the wait staff with small orders, taking up table space for over an hour during the lunch rush. But never one to balk at students’ activities, they served us with a smile, a hangover grimace, or an exuberant “Go Mizzou” on game days. Thank you, ’Berg, for giving us so many pleasant memories of Mizzou.

— Brianna Veldhuizen, BA ’98

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Last Update: March 12, 2007