RIP Southwyck Mall

Many fond memories of this place. Hard for some to picture because it became so dumpy in its final days, but it was once a happening, fun place to go to.


The other day, I was just thinking how the whole Southwyck area has changed since the 1980s. There used to be a lot of nice restaurants in the area.

Here are a few businesses (mainly restaurants) that either went under or changed entirely...

- Lulu's Storyville Saloon (Olde Town, inside mall). Closed in early 80s to make room for Southwyck AMC 3 theaters.

- Forum Cafeteria (near Montgomery Ward entrance). Closed in mid-to-late 80's. Eventually converted to the mall's three-tenant "food court" in early 90s.

- Friendly's Ice Cream (inside mall). Decent sit-down place just like the one in Maumee.

- Steak & Ale (right across from the mall). Changed to Damon's in the mid 80's, then a crafts store before closing.

- Dominic's (also across the street). One-of-a-kind Italian place. Open til the early 2000's before being torn down to build a strip mall.

- Bombay Bicycle Club (Glendale & Reynolds). A lot like TGI Friday's. Torn down to make way for Walgreens.

- Rax Roast Beef (Southwyck Circle). Arby's clone. Revolving door of restaurants for years; now nothing.

- Taco Bell (Reynolds). Closed in early 2000s.

- China Gate (Heatherdowns & Reynolds). Torn down along with the Budget Inn to make room for Rite Aid.

- Little Caesar's Pizza (Heatherdowns & Reynolds). Nice sit-down pizza parlor now a pool supply store (?).

- 7 Eleven (Heatherdowns & Cheyenne). Turned into East of Chicago Pizza.

- AMC Car Dealer (Reynolds). Now a flooring (?) store.

- Old Bob Evans (Reynolds across from mall). Torn down to build Steak & Shake.

- Bentley's Restaurant (at former Holiday Inn). Torn down to make way for new Bob Evans.

- Highland Appliance (Reynolds). Turned into ABC Warehouse before they moved up the road.

- Kiddie City (Reynolds). Torn down to build Toys R Us in mid 80s.

- Sourdough Charlie's (Reynolds). Reopened as Two Toot's Grill for a while.

- GD Ritzy's (Reynolds & Airport). Top Hat for a while before becoming Baskin Robbins.

I think Olive Garden, Pizza Hut, Arby's and McDonald's are the only ones that survived.

That's a great nostalgic list! Did you do that stone cold from memory? I remember Color Tile and the great Bill Knapp's restaurant, both just north on Reynolds.

There was an awesome Pizza place across from Orange Julious (sp?) called Cinzanos? or Cassanos? Greasy Pizza that was yum.

Haha... mostly from memory. Had to look up a couple. Forgot about Bill Knapp's!... tons of family dinners at that place. Also, does anyone remember what that China Buffet by Toys R Us used to be? Miller's or something?

I remember Barry Bagel's used to be by Coney Island then they moved across the aisle from OJ. The pizza place might've been before my time.

Max and Ermas's was where the Comedy Club is now. It was Streamers for a while too

Southwyck and Woodville were the two malls we would go to when I was growing up. Every Saturday my mom and grandma would take my brother and I shopping. I loved going to Mongomery Wards because after we got done shopping we would eat in that little restaurant they had in the store,or we would go down to Bill Knapps

Forgot to mention Ground Round (later Border Cantina) on Glendale where South End Grille is now.

And Peaches (later Coconuts) records & tapes on Reynolds in the strip where Little Caesar's used to be.

You've got it right housebeats. The China Buffet did used to be Miller's restaurant. Lord how I miss that place. Boy how things have changed, and not for the better either. What big discount retailer was in the building where that huge church where Pastor Pitts is the clergyman now?

I had to think about it for a sec, but it hit me like a ton of bricks: Hills!

Yep hills, and then Handy andy used to be in the vacant building across from ponderosa on Woodville. Man I miss some of the stores I used to frequent when I was little. I used to love getting pretzels from the stands at southwyck and woodville. There was also a frisch's in southwyck.

To bad they can't make downtown Toledo like it was when my mom was growing up. My grandpa constantly tells me stories about how it was when my mom and uncle were little, and how all the stores decorated their front windows for christmas. The way he tells it makes me wanna go back to see it myself.

Does anyone remember Volmer's Park out by Grand Rapids???

Good thread. I lived at an apartment on Brownstone a block up from Southwyck just last year. I've heard that the carwash on the corner of Brownstone and Reynolds used to be a Perkins.

That Rax you mentioned...is that where the closed down Mexican restaurant on Southwyck is?

That Bombay Bicycle club sounds like it was a cool place to go. Wish it was still there when I was living in the neighborhood.

housebeats you have quite the memory. Did anyone ever try to Bombay Bicycle Club? It closed down right before I started working out that way.

I was just telling someone the other day that Toledo was probably a pretty cool town in the '50's. What a time to have been alive...

Remember Molly's around the corner on Reynolds? I remember the 57 Chevy on top. But that place has changed hands many times since.

"Yep hills, and then Handy andy used to be in the vacant building across from ponderosa on Woodville."

And at some time before it was Hills it was Bargain City, not to be confused with the Bargain Barn, which was next to Edy's on the other side of Drouillard Rd, I think that's the street name.

I used to go to Perkins Restaurant a lot when I was in my 30's and 40's. I think that was at the corner of Brownstone and South Reynolds. There is a car wash there now. I liked the menu, and the pretty waitresses. I remember stopping at the Perkins near Dayton after the one here closed.

Then again I remember when you could do any shopping you ever needed to do at Great Eastern.

"And at some time before it was Hills it was Bargain City, not to be confused with the Bargain Barn, which was next to Edy's on the other side of Drouillard Rd, I think that's the street name."

I don't remember that Bargain City, but I do remember the Rink's Bargain City on the corner of Nantuckett and Monroe. I can't even begin to calculate how many quarters I dropped into the Defender game they had there.

as the first pizza maker in the food court that opened in 1990, I enjoyed the goings-on "behind the scenes" in and around the back hallways that connected all the stores, especially the ones that lead to the food court.

Sbarros, Ali Baba and Subway. Man, the fun I had working there in that little out of the way corner of the mall.

Shame there'll never be another "Old Towne"...

I remember Volmer's Park. I used to go square dancing there.

I've eaten at the Bombay Bicycle Club many times. The food and service were very good, and if memory serves they used to have coconut shrimp that were excellent.

Southwyck was one of the nicer malls I've ever been to, before it started to go downhill.

Yep, Rax was in that tiny outparcel spot right behind Keybank. Think they were open til maybe the early 90s. It was Sourdough Charlies for awhile, then Big Boy after that, then a couple different mexican places - lastly El Reparo - which had pretty good margaritas.

Even though the food court was small, Sbarro was a nice addition. Wolfed down many slices there growing up.

Was gonna add that one cool feature about the mall was its fountains, including the big one in the center court.

Then President Carter spoke from there in the middle.

Also on Reynolds was Smugglers Inn. It was a cool place to eat and drink. The interior decor was rather enchanting.

madjack- Funny you should mention Vollmer's Park. It was in Wood County on SR 65 where Tontogany Creek flows into the Maumee. A covered bridge spanned the creek and connected the picnic grounds to the amusement rides. I recall being at a picnic there years ago and you could hardly eat because the place was swarming with yellowjackets.

Does any one remember Pappy Mock's or Jonnie's, both were located near the corners of Reynolds and Airport Hwy.

Does anybody remember when Airport Highway was actually called Chicago Pike?

The Bugelow had a bar under neath it called the bicycle club. Open pit fire place. Corner of Airport Hwy and Reynolds.

Thats Bungelow. Sorry.

Rink's Bargain Barn also had a store on Conant and the Trail where the old Foodtown was.

There was a Bargain City at Dorr and Reynolds too. It sat where the empty Foodtown is now. I got my first job there when I was 15. I lied about my age and got caught. They canned me just after Christmas.

Many, many memories of Southwyck... in Old Towne, the magician's store... and he was always happy to demostrate a trick or two... the Forum cafeteria... also, spending all night at the mall doing the Children's Miracle Network Telethon... the list goes on and on... oh, and didn't Miller's restaurant across the street make some great chicken???

holland- I sure do remember Chicago Pike. That was SR 2 before Toledo Express Airport was built. I think the name of the road became Wayne Street as you entered the city limits. On CP just east of Reynolds there was a restaurant named Opperman's.

Hey, what was the name of the restaurant on Airport just east of Byrne? It had a fake, life-size horse and buggy in front.

On Wayne & S. Detroit there were two gas stations- a Sohio and a Gulf.

On Dorr & Reynolds that Rink's BC,(later Foodtown) stood vacant for a few years but is now a fitness center.

deere 1- I remember the Maumee Bargain Barn on the NW corner of Conant & AW Trail in an old brick building. I've been told it was originally an AT&T repeater station for long-distance telephone service. After the place was torn down a car wash was built on the site.

I have vague recollections of another Bargain Barn on Dorr St. near Calvary Cemetery.

It seems that Foodtown was across the Trail in the strip mall. That little restaurant that sits out in the middle was originally a Don's Drive-in; a chain of burger joints that featured the 'Trailblazer' (a double bacon burger). Another Don's was near downtown Toledo on Broadway near Clayton (now the Hi-level Cafe).

The restaurant on Airport east of Byrne was called 4E Ranch House. I ate there many times.

I did some digging and apparently Smuggler's Inn was a chain of 62 restaurants, based in California. Allegedly, there are still 3-4 locations left, one in Kansas City, one in Punxutawney PA, and a couple around Calgary, Alberta - although those might be a different entity. Reviews of the one in Kansas City noted that it felt like walking into a time warp, and hadn't been renovated since opening.

Sometime in the late 1970s or early 80s, the parent company converted many Smuggler's Inns to Bombay Bicycle Clubs, which had locations all over. Several of these are actually still open... in Cincinnati, Milwaukee, and San Antonio. I'm pretty sure the location on the NW corner of Glendale & Reynolds was open as late as 1990, and then sat vacant for many years until finally being torn down for the present day Walgreens.

I remember eating at the Bill Knapps with my grandmother. She seemed to love that place. I remember thinking about how cool Bombay Bicycle Club was-may have only been there once. Looking back, it reminds me of TGI Friday's. The 4E Ranch had interesting decor but I thought their food sucked. They closed after the owner, Phil, died of cancer a few years ago.

OMG the memories. Do any of you recall that there was a Howard Johnson's on the corner of Heatherdowns & Reynolds? My mom used to work there when I was young. My dad used to take me there before I got my braces adjusted once a month over at this new Deco building at Talmadge & Sylvania......right across from this metro airport that was out there (lol - Now Westfield Shopping Town).

That goes w a y back! I'm glad you posted that. Farther east up Reynolds anybody remember the Swedish Buffet (Reynolds and Nebraska) ? How about Phil Donahue's? A McDonald's at Reynolds and Kellogg Rd? A Citgo gas station where the Taco Bell was that later became a pay day loan place? Anybody remember Stanley Reynolds for for whom Reynolds Rd and Reynolds Corners got it's name. Yeah. I'm THAT old.

OMG.... Sveden House Buffet... I forgot all about that... that was some of the best food and they had a breakfast buffet that was cheap and incredible... (there was also one in front of the Ice House on Alexis)... how about the Pizza Inn where Ideal Hot Dog now sits on Heatherdowns... used to go there for the lunch buffet after leaving Bowsher for the day during my senior year... then off to the Red Baron at Southwyck to lose quarters for the rest of the afternoon....

The Sveden House!!! That was the name. Thank you for that. I'm having a good time tripping down memory lane here. That land first held a private residence. Then it was converted to a VFW Post for a few years. The house/VFW Post was torn down to become the Sveden House. About 1968-70?

Enclosed Mall Complex Culmination of Four Years of Planning and Construction
http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r95/Toledo07/Southwyck/

how about teh drive-in theatre on Reynolds, huh? HUH??? lol, Jesse James, I can still see the marquee with the bucking bronco. I thot that part of town was the egde of the world and it was....as I knew it up till I got my license in 1969.

Okay, but who remembers the airplane that sat in the field at Hill and Reynolds for a long time after an emergency landing???

I remember going for a drive with my mom and sister the day after that airplane crashed there, just so we could see it.

That plane sat in Strain's farm field for a couple of years as I recall. Just about right across from Phil Donahue's restaurant.

Ah, yes, the "jefferson airplane". Most high schools have a rock that the senior class paints, that plane had "Rogers class of 75" painted on it. :-)

Remember the small Putt Putt golf on Reynolds just south of Nebraska? IIRC it was either where the old Frisches used to be or right next door.

Oh yeah, We used to eat at Bombay Bicycle Club regularly, their french onion soup was great.
They recently tore down the home of many childhood memories, RCR lanes. My first job was working there, I learned to bowl there, started league bowling the year president Kennedy was killed.
Met my wife there, lots of good times. It's gone, my old high school (Rogers) gone....time slips away.

I remember the Jefferson Airplane as a stripped twin engine something or other.

The Svenden House had great food, although I didn't get to eat there very often.

I remember Lay's gas station at the corner of Alexis and Whiteford in Sylvania. Across the street was a very small grocery called Manor's, next to that was a Tastee-Freeze. Cat a corner from Lay's was Mister G's Pizza, and in the same building was a local bar with a sawdust floor. I can't remember the name of the bar.

Mister G's had great pizza and subs. I think he had a son named Colin who was there a lot. Does anyone know what ever happened to Mister G?

Rogers High isn't "gone". The original building has been added on to numerous times or has it been torn down and replaced? I was in the first four year graduating class ('63). Before McTigue Jr. high was built.

According to Google, there are still a few Sveden House restaurants in Michigan, with one in Livonia and another in St Clair Shores.

Thanks for that post housebeats. Once in a while I get to Livonia. I'll have to get the GPS to get me to one.

Sadly, the original Rogers High is no more... also, I thought that I saw a Sveden House when I was covering a high school game in Livonia, but I figured that it was either just a closed restaurant (since there were other closed businesses nearby) or was different from the one that I had known... by the way, the Bicycle Club made one heck of a Monte Cristo (sp?) sandwich...

RIP the original Rogers High Bldg. I'm glad the gym bleachers aren't around to talk anymore. What happened under the bleachers can now stay under the bleachers.

Too funny, the 'Jefferson Airplane.'

That was my first real impression of Toledo as I got off exit 4 of the turnpike and headed north on Reynolds with my girlfriend while heading to UT, Sept. of '73.

I remember us riding along seeing that plane sitting in the field off to our right and just going, 'what the f*ck'??!!

Don't forget Chuck Muer's on Airport!

Phil Donahue's restaurant sat across form the airplane that sat in Tom Strains farm field. Before it was Phil Donahue's it was a place called 'Weiner King'. My DH, being a serious chili dog fan laments that restaurant's closing to this day.

Didn't that farm also be the last 3 holes of Inverness before the course was redone and a portion of the property sold?

If I remember correctly it was Fred Beier who told me that.

The propertys do abut each other but I'm not sure about the course layout. I do remember something about the course being redone. I think there was some sort of controversy as the changes were not popular with some of the older members. Something like that.

Here's the wiki entry about course cnahges and when they were done.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverness_Club

"...Jefferson Airplane as a stripped twin engine something or other..."

It was a Douglas DC-3

Does anyone besides me find it ironic that Chuck Muer went from making a living at serving fish to becoming fish food himself?

You made me snort coffee out of my nose. I think pirates got the boat and its passengers.

omg..... I remember everything mentioned herein fact regarding rogers and mctigue schools I remember when the old schools were built. what a nostalgic trip this is just great.my wife worked at the jesse james and we went to the maumee drive in too.winter was miracle mile drive in where they gave you a heater that did nothing lol

does anyone remember the franklin park airport where the mall is now?I cant find anything about it on the internet but I remember it well

Regarding the Airplane... I was sitting at my Folk's kitchen table on Simms Drive when that plane flew over and landed in the field. I gotta yell you we thought it was going to hit the roof. We heard it coming and ran outside. I swear I could count the rivets... I believe it landed in (was it), Strain's Farm???

Franklin Park was called Franklin Field and my Dad and I went out there to watch planes come and go and radio control hobby planes.

Tha Mall was built around '71 I believe.

Bombay Bicycle Club was open at least until December 1995, when they were mentioned in this Blade article:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8wMqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=bQMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3658,5091385&dq=bombay+bicycle+club+restaurant+toledo&hl=en

(I LOVE Google's news archives - I could get sucked in spending hours browsing the old newspapers. You start reading one article, then another, and before you know it...)

Yeah, I love those google news archives too. Someone mentioned Jesse James drive in earlier in this post. Here's the 1981 Blade article on the closing.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=UxEVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=NwMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4525,1397612&dq=jesse+james+theater+toledo&hl=en

I remember when as a small child my family went to Franklins Ice Cream on Monroe St.It was the only building that is now Franklin Park Mall.The area that is now the largest mall in toledo was a small airport back then.

Oh yeah, I remember the same. The Monroe Street corridor between Sylvania and Talmadge has changed dramatically and it means I am old !

Regarding the airplane that made an emergency landing on the farm at Hill and Reynolds, it was a Curtiss-Wright 'Commando' (military version C-46). Landed in the Keil farm which is across Hill Avenue from Strain's.

Some of those old WWII planes were donated to South Korea when Korean Airlines was forming. During my USAF years, we used to call the Commando the "Flying Coffin" because it had a poor safety record.

While stationed at Osan AB Korea I got a free 'hop' to go to Japan for a week. We were not told in advance what type of plane was used in those flights. Well, on the day of departure I saw what it was...the "Flying Coffin". I got aboard and sat down. I was the only passenger. We took off, got to cruising altitude and then both engines stopped for aboyt ten seconds, and started again. A few minutes later it happened again. The Korean pilot turned back to return to Osan AB. But then the engines were running normally so they resumed the planned course and we landed at Fukuoka, Japan without any more problems. The crew never made any explanation or made any apology to me. I'll never forget that scary day. It was May, 1, 1962.

I lived just a couple of miles from Southwyck, and really am saddened that it was torn down. Hell, I remember going to the Woodville Mall when it first opened, wondering what the hell a mall was. It was packed, shoulder to shoulder. Now, it's just a shell of a building, with little to no merchants. Very sad.

I don't know if anyone else is noticing this national trend. I discussed this with a friend of mine who is a retired Mall Anchor Store Manager.

The national trend of closing enclosed Malls and opening the Miricle Mile and Great Eastern style shopping center facilities (in her knowledgable opinion), is due to security issues. Inside the Mall structure, it's the Mall's liability whereas the parking lot greatly reduces the property owner's responsibility and/or liability to protect the public. I remember seeing a shopping center southeast of Cleveland that had guard towers in the parking lot. I believe this place is now closed.

As you would imagine, any and all costs associated with life safety and public protection and/or security would be passed on from the Mall owner to the renter/leasee. And then to the public. Which in turn causes more people to shop on-line. Who wants to deal with gang bangers and thugs. I remember shopping with my wife when we were first married in the mid 70's at "The Mall", and it was like a date. No more... Unless I'm "packin'". Just what was goin' on inside Southwyck Mall? Any Gang, teen or neighborhood issues?

That's amazing that the Franklin Park Mall was an airport. I had no idea. How long ago was that?

It think the mall started construction in the late 60's. I remember playing on the large dirt piles and getting chased out. My parents moved to that area in 1961. There was a Franklin Ice Cream as previously mentioned, a Putt-Putt, and a neat little store called Tansey's. Used to get my 1 cent candy bubble gum.

Northtowne mall started as an airport as well.

"Just what was goin' on inside Southwyck Mall? Any Gang, teen or neighborhood issues?"

As I recall, the issue was more about what was going on outside in the mall parking lot. Masses of rowdy teens with ill intentions who were vandalizing cars among other things.

The police were summoned on a near nightly basis. So, shoppers moved on - and who wouldn't?

Since I have no Mall Management experience, I'll take your friend's word for it. I'd add that in addition to the security issue, another reason for the trend towards shopping centers such as Fallen Timbers and Levis Commons is to NOT provide a cozy climate controlled environment for wandering gangs who aren't spending money. Been to Westfield Franklin Park Mall on a Saturday evening lately?

Me either.

@Hoops. We moved into that area (talmadge Green Rd) in the early eighties. Now that you mention it, I do recall the remains of a putt-putt there, apparently left after they moved it up the street to where the kohls is now. There was also an arcade called Ozzie's right next to it. Right around where the Vitamin shoppe is now.

Just what was goin' on inside Southwyck Mall? Any Gang, teen or neighborhood issues?

All three:

1.) Gangs making people uncomfortable was one factor. I think what pushed things over the edge completely was attacks on shoppers in broad daylight in the parking lot. Got a lot of play in the media and killed the desire to go to a place where your car might get keyed or you may get attacked.

2.) The general teen crowd went away. Not the gangs, but the kids that shopped at the malls. Southwyck's stores got really really crappy over the last 15 years of its existence, as the "cooler" stores almost invariably went to Franklin Park Mall/Westfield.

3.) Neighborhood is getting older. Once my mom & dad heard they were attacking people in the parking lot and weren't policing the bangers inside, they never went back. Ever.

Keep in mind, these were the same people who brought me there almost every week for one shopping trip or another, for special occasions like the antique shows and boat shows, or events under the dome in the center. They were shoppers and were lost forever by Southwyck's atmospheric changes.

Just what was goin' on inside Southwyck Mall? Any Gang, teen or neighborhood issues?

All three:

1.) Gangs making people uncomfortable was one factor. I think what pushed things over the edge completely was attacks on shoppers in broad daylight in the parking lot. Got a lot of play in the media and killed the desire to go to a place where your car might get keyed or you may get attacked.

2.) The general teen crowd went away. Not the gangs, but the kids that shopped at the malls. Southwyck's stores got really really crappy over the last 15 years of its existence, as the "cooler" stores almost invariably went to Franklin Park Mall/Westfield.

3.) Neighborhood is getting older. Once my mom & dad heard they were attacking people in the parking lot and weren't policing the bangers inside, they never went back. Ever.

Keep in mind, these were the same people who brought me there almost every week for one shopping trip or another, for special occasions like the antique shows and boat shows, or events under the dome in the center. They were shoppers and were lost forever by Southwyck's atmospheric changes.