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January 1938. Washington, D.C. "Cafe on L Street." Where the only thing flakier than our delicious biscuits is the peeling paint! 35mm nitrate negative by Russell Lee for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
The 1940 Boyd's City Directory shows 1841 L St. NW to be "Tate Louis restr", which would be a restaurant owned by Louis Tate. Also there by the same name in the classified section.
Things were different by 1957, as shown by the Baist's Real Estate Atlas of that year. Street address 1841 is now assigned to the buildings in lots 937 and 1038. There's a gas station on the corner, with a building set back from the street, like the building with the "Independent" sign in the picture.
1845 L St. NW was a filling station in the 1940 Boyd's City Directory.
I respectfully disagree with MaltedFalcon on the location of this photo. I don't believe this can be in SE because, well, L St. SE doesn't run past 17th St. (and never has).
No, I think this has to be 1841 L St. NW. That seems to match the 1921 Baist atlas, which shows two frame structures with a narrow side yard to the east (which we see in the companion photo of the shoe store). Even though the photo above is from a later decade, it seems likely that the building in question has been there, slowly deteriorating, since well before 1921.
"1/2 dozen oysters 35 cents" ... nowadays a half-dozen Chincoteague oysters runs about $6.
This was probably L Street in SE Washington, about 200 feet from the Anacostia River.
When I was a kid my dad would stop by the wharf and buy fresh shucked oysters in big mason jars from the boats at water Street SW. Now it's turned into a fish market. You buy from shops instead of right off the boat.
A quick stitching and we get a better view of this old building full with character.
Liver & onions for a quarter?? Make it a double and add some mashed w/dark lumpy gravy and string beans. I'll be back tomorrow for the fried chicken!
Put me immediately in mind of our trip to Kyoto, where we'd breakfast in a cafe called "Good Eat You".
We'd joke about putting in a reservation for Donner: "Donner, party of five . . . party of four . . . party of three . . . "
What is the writing that appears on the door? It looks Arabic.
[1841. And indeed, they are Arabic numerals! -Dave]
25-cents is way too much to pay for chitterlings. Especially if you can get a Fish Sandwich for a dime.
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