People from Lost Ottawa are always finding things stuck in the walls, in shoeboxes, down in the basement, or folded up and tucked away for years. That’s was happened with old menu from the Steak & Burger in Bayshore, shared by Russel Morton.
“Here’s a 1985 Steak & Burger menu I found tucked away,” Said Russel. “There was one at Bayshore and it had delicious food!”
The Steak & Burger chain restaurant was a major attraction in the Bayshore Mall when it first opened in 1973. Kind of a new thing. Especially for kids of that era who had never eaten in a sit-down restaurant. I remember being very nervous, going in there by myself and ordering a burger with root beer from a waitress all dressed up in Western clothes.
The Steak & Burger chain later merged with Harvey’s and Swiss Chalet into a much larger cooperation that was eventually taken over by even bigger giant CARA. Alas, as food habits changed, People stopped eating in such places. The Steak & Burgers faded away. The one at Bayshore, and the other at St. Laurent closed in the 1990s, as near as I can tell, but people still remember the experience.
***
Take a closer look at the menu and prices!
Stella: This share made me laugh out loud! It was a big treat going to Steak & Burger … I had forgotten all about it!
Adrienne: Loved the Steak and Burger!
Gerry: They had a nerve calling whatever it was they served steak.
Elaine: Hey, we used to go there all the time!
Linda: Loved the burgers there … wish they would come back.
Marc: One of my favourite burgers, as a kid.
Lisa: I remember. Good deep fried zucchini sticks too.
Brenda: And check out the prices!
Andy: Cheap prices, but the minimum wage was probably $3.85 then.
Terry: Before The Works arrived and burgers jumped to $12 overnight!
Jenny: My older sister used to take me to Bayshore on an annual date to do my Christmas shopping and she would always treat me to lunch at Steak & Burger! Good memories.
Brad: In the mid-1970s the Steak & Burger was on the second floor and its lower-end sister restaurant the Mug & Burger was on the first floor. As kids we went to Mug & Burger more often. They had good root beer.
Stephen: Dad and Mum to Steak & Burger. Kids to Mug & Burger. Our weekly Friday event.
Pierre: Spent many a Friday afternoon at the Steak & Burger.
Kevin: When I worked at Miracle Mart/M store, we used to drink there every Friday after work.
Dwight: We used to call it the second office, because our bosses used to sit up there and drink all day.
Andrea: This was the first restaurant I ever went to on my own. I went with my three girlfriends. We had caesar salad.
Lisa: My friend Marita and I used to go every other Saturday. Sometimes the Mug & Burger
Marita: I totally remember! Good times!
Christine: Worked at Bayshore location from 1978-81, when the steakhouse was in back and the burger-joint up front.
Shelley: Spent 16 years of my life working at the Steak & Burger.
Andrew: I worked there as a bus boy in the late-1980s when I was in high school. I remember when we moved up to the brand new third floor. Everything was so new and pink!
Keri: My mom worked the one in Bayshore. I used to have to wait at the bar for her shift to finish. I would play Pacman on the old table top machine and the bartender would make me the best strawberry milkshakes!
Rhonda: My mom was the manager for many years, starting in early-1970s. We always had Sunday dinner there so we could spend Sunday with my mom … while she worked!
Paul: Here’s another old menu:
A second old menu with amazing prices.
Ken: I think there was a Steak & Burger at St. Laurent as well?
Gordon: Yes, near the movie theatre. Ate there a number of times. It had an outside entrance because the mall closed at six every night except Thursday and Friday.
Tom: I remember the St. Laurent location. Yum!
Jimmy: I tried applying at the St. Laurent location when I was 14 … what did I know? LOL!
Daryn: Was this also where the Colonel’s Lounge was?
David: Yes, and there was another one at 121 Laurier Ave., which I don’tactually recall, but the address is on the bottom of the menu.
Shailla: Does anyone remember the Hudson Bay Restaurant at Bayshore? The one with the Inuit art and the mirrored walls?
Kelly: That restaurant in the Bay was the absolute best. My mom used to bring me along when we did our groceries at Steinbergs. Just me, her and my nephew. I loved the burger, and the burger steak with fries and gravy! My heart is warmed with these beautiful memories!
Shailla: My grandmother worked at the Bay and we would met her every Saturday for lunch. I have fond memories of getting a free birthday meal. I chose the burger, of course! Then the clown sundae with the upside-down cone for a hat. Happy memories, indeed.