(The following story by Alexa Aguilar appeared on the Chicago Tribune website on April 24.)
CHICAGO — The food is typical fast-food fare — hot dogs, sandwiches and burgers — and the furnishings are run-of-the-mill diner, with vinyl tablecloths and a jukebox.
But when a Lionel train toting entrees emerges on tracks running from the kitchen and young customers start to squeal “choo-choo,” it becomes apparent why a visit to Snackville Junction, 9144 S. Kedzie Ave. in Evergreen Park has become a tradition that, in many cases, spans generations.
“If I had a nickel for every time a customer tells me that they came here when they were a kid, and now they are bringing their grandchild, I’d be a millionaire,” said Jeff Silhan, who has owned the restaurant for 21 years. “It’s one of those places that you eventually outgrow, but then you get married and want to bring your kids, and then those kids grow up and bring theirs.”
As much as Silhan loves the tradition behind the 60-year-old restaurant, he’s had enough. The 55-year-old former paramedic recently retired from the Chicago Fire Department and doesn’t want to be tethered any longer to a full-time business.
The restaurant closes Sunday. He’s still looking for a buyer.
The clue to Snackville Junction’s allure over the years is simple, he said.
“It’s the goofy train,” he said with a laugh.
On Monday, customer Bill Hynes sat on ketchup-and-mustard-color barstools with his 5-year-old son, Liam.
Liam wiggled excitedly in his chair when a train whistle sounded, and a tiny Union Pacific engine appeared on tracks leading from the kitchen, pulling their lunches in plastic mesh baskets behind it. After a waitress handed them their baskets, the train continued along its path and returned to the kitchen on tracks behind the soda pop machines and coffee pots.
“Choo, choo,” Liam crowed.
“I like trains,” he said later as he munched on a french fry. “I have a train movie.”
Hynes remembers hanging out at the diner’s former location, 11016 S. Western Ave., in Chicago’s Beverly neighborhood as a teenager. He didn’t return until he had children, he said. Now, he and Liam visit regularly.
Silhan bought Snackville Junction in 1986 when it was still on Western Avenue. When his lease ended in 1996, he announced he was closing. But about 200 pleading phone calls later, Silhan decided to look for another location.
In the new spot, Snackville continued to offer a kid-friendly menu, such as the Conductor (junior cheeseburger), the Clubcar (BLT) and a Cheddarnooga Choo Choo (a burger with cheddar), while the trains made their continuous loop around the counter.
Silhan has about 20 Lionel trains, though on any given day, five are in the repair shop, he said. Children sometimes get too excited and knock them off the tracks.
Birthday parties have been popular, as is the free Thanksgiving dinner that Silhan and his staff cook every year for the neighborhood.
Colleen Kelly, 19, had birthday parties at Snackville Junction when she was a child. Once she turned 16, she started working as a waitress behind the counter. David Stange, a cook, remembers walking to the restaurant from school.
“When I tell people where I work, they say, ‘You work at the train place?’” Kelly said. “I love the atmosphere, the kids.”
George Heinz of Evergreen Park stopped in Monday for one last lunch. Heinz came in for Thanksgiving dinner, he said, and had been looking forward to eventually showing the trains to his new grandchild.
“I wanted to bring my grandson in, but he’s only 4 months old,” he said. “I guess it’s too late.”