In February, Ithaca Beer Company opened its new brewpub on College Avenue\u2014featuring modern d\u00e9cor, a patio for outdoor dining, and a menu that showcases its libations and locally sourced ingredients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dubbed the Taproom, the eatery is located on the ground floor of the newly constructed building that replaced the Chacona Block\u2014at the same corner where Collegetown Bagels (CTB) served up food and drink for decades, before moving across the street to Sheldon Court in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The opening of the brewpub (owned by Ithaca Beer founders Dan Mitchell \u201900 and Mari Rutz Mitchell \u201998, MS \u201903) is just the latest major change to the neighborhood where so many Cornellians live, eat, drink, and socialize. While every Big Red alum may have the Collegetown of their East Hill years emblazoned in their memory, the student-driven enclave is forever evolving\u2014from decade to decade and even year to year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEach generation of students and alumni has its own view of what the \u2018timeless\u2019 icons are\u2014and in many cases, they\u2019re pretty narrowly focused,\u201d says Mark Anbinder \u201989, a second-generation alum who has been covering the Ithaca food scene for decades for 14850 Magazine <\/em>and 14850.com and via a regular weekly segment on WVBR.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Indeed, while some legendary establishments\u2014like Johnny\u2019s Big Red Grill, the Royal Palm Tavern, the Nines, Aladdin\u2019s, Rulloff\u2019s, and the Chapter House\u2014existed for decades, countless others have come and gone: changing names, locations, or cuisines or closing altogether, with new ventures popping up to take their place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, as Anbinder notes, when Student Agencies (the building\u2019s owner) announced plans to demolish the Chacona Block\u2014prompting CTB\u2019s move\u2014many who objected were unaware of the venerable bagel shop\u2019s history: it has been operating in Collegetown since 1976, originally residing in a different storefront in the same building. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey had no idea that CTB\u2019s familiar corner spot wasn\u2019t its first home,\u201d Anbinder says, \u201cor that Oliver\u2019s [deli] was the corner icon there for a while.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n As major construction continues to change the face of Collegetown, Cornellians<\/em> asked alumni to share their memories of the neighborhood\u2019s restaurants and watering holes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As recent grad Reed Rosenberg \u201920 observes: \u201cI think the appeal of Collegetown, upon reflection, is that it encapsulates what most people are nostalgic about when they think about their college years: it\u2019s a close-knit, walkable community where you can see your friends easily and frequently.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The following is a not-at-all-comprehensive (and in no particular order) smorgasbord of establishments that offered nourishment, libations, and entertainment to alums from the mid-20th century onward. While alums weighed in on nearly two dozen favorites, others\u2014such as Caf\u00e9 Decadence, the Connection, Dino\u2019s, and Johnny O\u2019s\u2014didn\u2019t get detailed shout-outs. But please feel free to add your memories to the comments below!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n In business for just over seven decades before closing in 2012, \u201cthe Palms\u201d was one of Collegetown\u2019s most enduring bars. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI used to go to watch football on TV,\u201d recalls John Seiler \u201957. \u201cIt was dark<\/em> in there. Fraternity houses didn\u2019t have sets then.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Palms remained a dive-bar favorite even as student drinking habits and socializing behaviors shifted\u2014particularly after New York raised the legal age to 21.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In recent decades, Cornellians started hanging out in apartments before heading out for a short stretch right before last call, which became known as \u201cPalms o\u2019clock.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n<\/div> For Lucrezia Herman \u201976, one of its salient features was the stickiness of its tables: \u201cI once made the mistake of putting a paperback on a table there, leaning my elbow on it for an hour or so and then tearing part of the back cover off when I tried to pick it up!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The building that housed the Palms is no more; it was one of several properties razed in 2017 to make way for Cornell\u2019s Breazzano Family Center for Business Education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI still have my own personal beer mug from Jim\u2019s in my den at home,\u201d recalls Bill Waters \u201954. That Stewart Avenue watering hole had opened in the late 1920s; it segued into the Chapter House in the 1960s\u2014weathering a 1980s stint as an ice cream parlor before reemerging as a popular hangout that eventually offered 49 beers on tap as well as house-made sodas, games, live music, and popcorn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMostly, the clientele consumed upstate Pilsner by the pitcher,\u201d recalls Jason Gettinger \u201964. \u201cDid it serve food? Who noticed? Oh yes, burgers and fries in a basket lined with a red-and-white checked napkin.\u201d Ron Bulmer \u201967, who worked as a bouncer when the establishment was briefly known as \u201cJim\u2019s Chapter House,\u201d sums up his takeaway: \u201cI learned to hate pizza\u2014messy to wear.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many recall 25-cent drafts, frat and sorority composites on the walls, and singing along with the jukebox. \u201cEvery time I hear Bobby Darin\u2019s \u2018Mack the Knife\u2019 or Robert Palmer\u2019s \u2018Sneakin\u2019 Sally Through the Alley,\u2019 I\u2019m immediately transported back to the Chapter House,\u201d says Sharon Palatnik Simoncini \u201978. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Destroyed in a 2015 fire\u2014after which, memorably, a crop of corn sprouted up in the vacant lot, seeded by the cache of popcorn kernels\u2014the building was rebuilt a few years later in a style similar to the original. But the Chapter House has not been revived, and the space remains vacant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In business from 1919\u00ad\u201381, the Dryden Road stalwart long left its mark on Collegetown: its iconic sign stayed up for nearly 30 years after the restaurant closed, finally being taken down in 2009 for safety reasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAs freshmen in the U-Halls, we\u2019d often walk there on a Sunday evening, a large group, for a rare dinner out,\u201d says Michael Emen \u201971. \u201cWhen the check would come, it was quite amusing to witness a dozen freshmen try to divvy it up. No one had a credit card and every penny was precious. Great memories.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And there\u2019s another reason why Johnny\u2019s looms large in Big Red food lore: its proprietor, Johnny Petrillose, was the father of Bob Petrillose, founder of the legendary Hot Truck.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n In business briefly in the early 1970s, the restaurant (also known as Ruthy\u2019s Flamboyan Restaurant) was located across from Chef Italia on College Ave. \u201cAside from great lasagna and her signature cranberry chicken, Ruthy was best known for her hot, fresh-from-the-fat donuts, available a few evenings each week,\u201d Rick Curreri \u201973 reminisces. \u201cIf you were lucky, she\u2019d give you the donut holes for free.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Known for its lunchtime burgers and weekend brunches, Rulloff\u2019s was a Collegetown staple from 1977 until its demise in 2020. (It had been previously scheduled to close to make way for demolition of the Chacona Block that summer, but shut down earlier that spring due to the COVID-19 pandemic.)<\/p>\n\n\n \u201cRulloff\u2019s was my date restaurant,\u201d notes Matt Van Ryn \u201982. \u201cThey had delicious quiche and French onion soup.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The establishment was named for notorious local murderer Edward Rulloff, who, in 1871, became the last man executed in New York State by public hanging. Rulloff\u2019s cerebral organ is one of the most notable occupants of the University\u2019s Wilder Brain Collection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nicknamed Uni Deli, the sandwich shop at the corner of College and Dryden was a mainstay of the 1970s. While some alums note its corned beef, pastrami, and slices of cheesecake priced at 10 cents per ounce, Beth Anderson \u201980 calls it \u201cthe<\/em> place to go for coffee, a sandwich, ice cream, or any type of comfort food.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The beloved pizza joint took its name from its building\u2014the original, early 1900s home of Ithaca\u2019s Fire Station No. 9. A new station was built next door in the 1960s, and the Nines opened in the early 1970s as a bar, restaurant, and music venue (first called \u201cOld No. 9\u201d). Its outdoor patio was one of Collegetown\u2019s largest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWho didn’t love the Nines?\u201d says Peter Brav \u201977. \u201cReasonable prices, many varieties of beer, burgers, those buckets of steamers, and great atmosphere with friends, especially after hockey games at Lynah Rink.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n There was much lamenting when the Nines closed in 2018, with hordes of alumni and locals clamoring for a final taste of its deep-dish pizza\u2014and a glimpse of what Tom Helf \u201983 praises as the \u201cvery cool\u201d dumbwaiter that transported food down from the second-floor kitchen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Known as Cosmo\u2019s, the establishment \u201cwas everyone\u2019s intro to Greek food,\u201d says Curreri. \u201cDemos, the ever-friendly owner-chef, would send out moussaka, pastitsio, avgolemono, and other Greek specialties (along with a great Spanish empanada) for under two bucks. The most expensive dish was a great boneless strip steak and fries, both covered with a Greek lemon sauce, for $2.22.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Ithaca franchise of this Rochester-based chain helped popularize spiedies in Ithaca in the 1970s. \u201cWhere else could you get a burger (or spiedie), fries, and a mug of draft beer for all of 99 cents?\u201d Curreri says of this College Avenue eatery, which briefly became the Italian restaurant the Vineyard before closing in 1980. \u201cAnd the meager price didn\u2019t prevent us from sending the burger back if wasn\u2019t properly cooked to order.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The legendary spot on Eddy Street was a vegetarian mecca with a national reputation, mostly due to its chef-turned-owner, Julie Jordan \u201971, who authored the landmark cookbook Wings of Life<\/em>, as well as <\/em>the Cabbagetown Caf\u00e9 Cookbook<\/em>, which featured dozens of the eatery’s recipes.<\/p>\n\n\n \u201cI went regularly for lunch with friends and co-workers,\u201d says Herman, adding that she still uses one of Jordan\u2019s cookbooks. \u201cI bought a replacement copy when I left Ithaca in the late \u201980s, as my housemates had used\/abused it heavily as well!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Located one flight below street level, this Eddy Street pizzeria was a favorite for many years before closing in 2005. \u201cThe sandwiches at the Chariot were gi-normous!\u201d says Van Ryn. \u201cThere used to be a B. Kliban cartoon, \u2018Never Eat Anything Bigger Than Your Head.\u2019 Those were the sandwiches at the Chariot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nicole Neroulias Gupte \u201901 remembers the \u201clegendary\u201d corn nuggets. \u201cThe Daily Sun<\/em> used to go there after electing the next slate of editors,\u201d she says, \u201cand they comforted me greatly when I lost an election junior year.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n In business for 36 years until its closure in 2015, Dunbar\u2019s\u2014with its accumulated graffiti, framed jerseys, and the famous Lynah Rink cowbell\u2014was a formative and memorable spot for many. Laura Tocco Mariani \u201999 recalls meeting her now-husband, Matt Mariani \u201997, there. \u201cMatt offered to buy me a beverage and the rest is history,\u201d she says, adding that they named their border collie after the bar.<\/p>\n\n\n Dunbar\u2019s was also a favorite for Michelle Giuffrida Cannon \u201990, who reminisces that \u201cWednesday night was Group Therapy\u2014$6 for a pitcher of beer and some kamikaze shots.\u201d And as Meg Feury Ragland \u201994 recalls, \u201cBack in our undergrad days, Pete Shephard \u201994 and I used to meet for beers at Dunbar\u2019s on St. Patrick\u2019s Day, along with probably a few hundred of you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n H. Fisk Johnson \u201979, MEng \u201980, MS \u201982, MBA \u201984, PhD \u201986, remembers this family-style Greek and Italian stalwart so fondly that he gave the eatery\u2014and its now-retired owner, Peter Papachryssanthou\u2014a shout-out during the 2017 celebration of the gift that created the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI think I ate 14 or 15 meals a week at Pete\u2019s restaurant, the Souvlaki House,\u201d Johnson said, then led the audience in a round of applause for Papachryssanthou (who was in attendance) and added: \u201cI highly recommend the large Greek salad with extra feta.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I highly recommend the large Greek salad with extra feta.<\/p>\nH. Fisk Johnson \u201979, MEng \u201980, MS \u201982, MBA \u201984, PhD \u201986<\/strong><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Many other alums share happy memories of the Souvlaki House\u2014still in business on Eddy Street after more than half a century. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Notable for its fold-up booth seats and wall art showcasing both soccer jerseys and images from classical history, it has long been a go-to place for hockey fans\u2019 pre-game dinners, featuring not only the eponymous meat dish and huge Greek salads but pizza, Italian entrees, and garlic bread.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before Collegetown Bagels took the iconic corner spot at College and Oak avenues, Oliver\u2019s deli resided there from 1980\u201394.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Celia Shafer Feiler \u201995, DVM \u201999, remembers Oliver\u2019s for having \u201cthe best matzo ball soup! Homemade chicken soup and one giant matzo ball that filled the container. My boyfriend then (and now husband) would pick up an order whenever I was sick.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The iconic bagel shop first opened in the Chacona Block in 1976, in the storefront that would later house Bear Necessities. It moved to its familiar corner spot in 1994, operating there for a quarter century before moving to its current home in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Janelle Teng \u201911 calls CTB \u201cthe classic, the stalwart. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, or a late-night snack. The most coveted seat in Collegetown as soon as the temperatures rose in the spring was on the CTB patio.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Collegetown CTB has since spawned four related outposts (some operating under the name Ithaca Bakery)\u2014at the foot of East State Street in downtown Ithaca, in East Hill Plaza, on Route 13, and in the Triphammer Mall in Lansing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201cshort-lived, but legendary\u201d eatery\u2014as described by Teng\u2014was located in a large space on the southwest corner of Dryden Road and College Avenue that remains vacant today. \u201cIt was an NYC-style Korean deli that served everything from mashed potatoes to sushi to beer towers, open 24 hours a day,\u201d she says. \u201cThey closed within a year, during which they were a go-to spot for many students.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Known for its soups, salads, felafel, and more, it was a Greek-and-Mediterranean favorite for three decades before it closed in 2019. Helen Rubinstein \u201904 was particularly fond of the restaurant\u2019s popular fruit salad. \u201cI think of it often, because I have never since seen a substantial fruit salad on a restaurant menu, and it boggles my mind given how healthy and easy but delicious that one was,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<\/div> \u201cIt was made with apples, grapes, kiwi, melon, berries, and maybe some other fruit, topped with plain yogurt, drizzled in honey, and sprinkled with walnuts,” Rubinstein recalls. “So simple.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A staple on Dryden Road for 15 years before moving to Ithaca\u2019s West End in 2012, Mama Teresa\u2019s was (infamously) ranked by Playboy<\/em> in 1999 as a top spot for diners to enjoy while in a state of\u2014shall we say\u2014inebriation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere are not many things certain in this life, but getting a slice during prelims or a night out to get your greasy fix at Mama T\u2019s was certain,\u201d says Lorraine Medeiros \u201901. \u201cNothing made a night more complete than a slice and a soda with friends.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A somewhat more upscale establishment amid more casual options, Stella\u2019s opened in the early \u201990s\u2014amid a resurgence of cocktail culture\u2014and offered a menu with local and organic options and a diverse list of libations. In its adjacent, dark-paneled caf\u00e9, coffee drinks and pastries were plentiful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Christen Aragoni \u201902 has fond memories of her favorite Stella\u2019s beverage, an alcoholic concoction of hot coffee, chocolate, and mint called a Troop Leader\u2014\u201cperfect after freezing at the hockey game.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Anbinder notes that even though Pixel was only in business for a decade (2005\u201315), it \u201cgarnered just as much attachment for students as did Dunbar\u2019s, which lasted 36 years.\u201d Located in an alley off Dryden Road, it was named one of the best clubs in Ithaca by the Daily Sun.<\/em> Local and NYC-based graffiti artists were commissioned to decorate the exterior walls; inside, it offered an arcade of old-school games like Ms. Pac-Man, an ongoing stream of projected movies, and a variety of DJs offering hip-hop and electronica mixes to an eager crowd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Top: Video by Cornell University<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Published March 29, 2022<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alumni from across the decades weigh\u00a0in on their\u00a0favorite hangouts\u2014some long gone, others still going strong<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":6864,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"alumni_hub_syml_posts":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[227],"tags":[],"cornell_year_post":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-6692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campus-beyond"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/Olivers_CTB_Rulloffs_street_scene_RMC2022_0038-A-1024x596.jpg\")
![\"This](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/Elba-Italian-Kitchen-1976-History-Center-A-1024x576.jpg\")
![\"Patrons](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/2022_1044_003A-1024x575.jpg\")
Royal Palm Tavern<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"View](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/palms-ceiling-A-819x1024.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nJim\u2019s Place \/ The Chapter House<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/The-Chapter-House-1969-History-Center-A-1024x576.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nJohnny\u2019s Big Red Grill<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/Johnnys_Big_Red_Grill_Anbinder_345894487_de87c5e2d4_o-A-819x1024.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nRuthy\u2019s Place<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nRulloff\u2019s<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Night](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/0726_06_005-A-1024x576.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nUniversity Delicatessen<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nThe Nines<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Exterior](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/NINES-A-A-1024x576.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nCosmopolitan Restaurant<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nChef Italia <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nCabbagetown Caf\u00e9<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Cabbagetown](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/Cabbagetown-Cafe-1977-History-Center-1-A-1024x576.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nThe Chariot<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nDunbar\u2019s<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Dunbar's,](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/Dunbars_Anbinder-A-1024x576.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nThe Souvlaki House<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\nOliver\u2019s<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nCollegetown Bagels<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Exterior](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/1229_07_A-1024x363.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nGreen Caf\u00e9<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nAladdin\u2019s Natural Eatery<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Exterior](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/Aladdins_RMC2022_0056-A-1024x576.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nMama Teresa\u2019s<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nStella\u2019s<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/Stellas_bar_interior_RMC2022_0055_Adobe1998rgb-A-1024x576.jpg\")
\n\n\n\nPixel Lounge<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nDo you have your own Collegetown eatery memory to share?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n