News From Along Route 66, April 2017: The Riviera Fire in 2010

APRIL 23--  The Streetcar Diner was also a target of the Riviera Roadhouse fire in 2010.  It was suspicious from the start and Liz and I were sure it was arson.  But we never heard anything about the cause after the fire.

This is the first time we heard that it definitely was arson as gasoline was used and another, thankfully unsuccessful fire was attempted in the diner.

They know who did the arson, the Riviera's last owner.  At this point it appears they don't know where he is, but I hope he is caught and serves serious time.

The former trolley car was converted into a restaurant in Gardner in the 1930s and later moved to out behind the Riviera where it was restored by the Illinois Route 66 Association.  It has now been moved to Gardner's park which features the famous two-cell jail.

It was so sad to drive by the now empty and cleared site of the Riviera during the Illinois Route 66 Red Carpet Festival two weekends ago.  We had not been by it since before the fire as it was too painful.  We were happy to have the chance to have a root beer float in the diner and liked the marker to the Krafts outside of it.

Great Memories of the Riviera.  --RoadDog

Illinois Route 66 Red Carpet Corridor Festival 2017-- Part 4: Gardner

MAY 6, SATURDAY

Next stop was Gardner, Illinois, where we stopped for the first time since leaving Joliet.  We had a taste for a root beer float served at the famous Trolley Diner Car which is now located next to the equally famous two-cell jail in the park downtown.  The Diner Car used to be behind the Riviera, but was moved after the fire.  Sadly, the last owner had also tried to start a fire in it at the same time he burned down the Riviera.

A couple from the Lions Club were inside and making up the root beer floats.  Cost was a donation.  We had been in the Diner Car several times at the Riviera, but had never had a seat and eaten something.  We talked with a couple doing the Red Carpet Corridor from St. Louis.

There is a marker outside the Diner Car for Bob and Peggy Kraft and the old Riviera.

We then went to inspect the two-cell jail and its top-of-the-line bathroom facilities.  Glad I didn't need to use the bathroom at this point.

Root Beerin' Down 66.  --RoadDog

Illinois' Route 66 Red Carpet Corridor-- Part 3: Braidwood to the Old Riviera

In Braidwood, we got stopped by police as a lot of people were crossing the road between the Polk-A-Dot Drive-In and where they were having their festival grounds.  We didn't stop.

Driving into Gardner, it was very sad to see the site of the old Riviera.  You'd never have known there was a building there.  This is the first time we'd driven by it since the fire.  We always thought it was suspicious and just this past few weeks we read in the Route 66 News that it had been arson and by the last owner, as we expected.

We are sure glad we got the opportunity to go there a lot.  What a unique place with the kitchen upstairs, restaurant and bar downstairs and the dumbwaiter.  And then... those super high toilets.  As they had a wooden plaque "Al Capone Passed Gas Here in 1932."  Great food and fun people, and, of course, Bob Kraft, the luckiest man in the world, holding court behind the bar.

He was "The Luckiest Man in the World" because he could get dressed, go downstairs, drink in his bar, eat in his bar, and go upstairs at the end of the day and sleep.  And he never had to go outside and never had a drivers license.

We Sure Miss Him and Peggy and the Riviera.  --RoadDog

News From Along Route 66-- March: Some More Illinois

MARCH 12TH--  RIVIERA ROADHOUSE  in Gardner, Illinois.  This place burned down in 2010 and the well was improperly capped.  There is a person now who would like to see a hand pump installed there, but it would cost around $3,000.  And, it should have some sort of marker at the site.

Bob and Peggy Kraft operated it until 2008.

It broke my heart when I heard of the fire.  We still have never gone by the site since then, but are sure are glad we got to go to it and meet the Krafts.  Fantastic food and Bob liked to hold court in that basement bar.

A real loss for the road.

I Miss It.  --RoadDog

A Whole Lot More on the Riviera

If you click on the Riviera label below, you can find quite a few blog entries I have done in the past on this wonderful, but now gone Route 66 site.

--RoadDog

Illinois Route 66's Riviera Roadhouse's "Thrones"

And, then there were those mighty interesting "thrones" one could ascend to do their business downstairs.

I swear those toilets were at least 3-4 feet high and you had to go up several stairs to get to them.  Guys would have to stand a couple steps down to go #1.  Man, you could almost get air-headed at those heights.  I avoided using them as much as possible.  Liz said the one in the women's bathroom was similar.

Perhaps the reason for their height was the fact that the Mazon River flowed close alongside the Riviera, so it was necessary for pumping?

Someone had made a wooden plaque with the words "Al Capone Passed Gas Here in 1932" in the men's bathroom.  Bob Kraft said that the sign was stolen so often that they finally did a tracing of it and they handed it out as a souvenir of the Riviera Restaurant, Gardner, Illinois.  I have one of those tracings in our downstairs bathroom (which is not the "throne" up high they had at the Riviera).

I have to wonder how many inebriated folks were hurt falling off those thrones?

Those Thrones Were Quite the Experience.  --RoadDog

Remembering Route 66's Riviera Roadhouse

We visited the Riviera in Gardner, Illinois, on our first trip on the Mother Road back in 2002.  It was Sunday night and when we went in, we told Peggy Kraft that we were first-timers on the road and in her place and she insisted on going upstairs and waking Bob up and having him come down to say hi to us.

The poor guy had evidently just come off his "shift" working behind the bar and wasn't too with it, but he was as friendly as could be.  The next time we saw him, holding "court" as it were behind the bar, we realized this was the real Bob, not the groggy one we met that first night.  And, was he ever one of those colorful Route 66 characters that make the road so  much fun.  he ranked right up there with Ernie Edwards for stories as well as Bill Shea for charisma.

Loved the bar and the stalactites hanging down making you feel like you were in a cave.  Then, there was the dumb waiter they used to send food down (supposedly with a World War I or II shell for a counter-weight) and the clothespin line running from the basement upstairs to the kitchen for food orders.

And, then, there were those "thrones" in the bathroom which I will talk about tomorrow.

A Real Route 66 Character.  --RoadDog

Illinois' Route 66's Riviera Roadhouse

From David Wickline's "Images of 66." printed 2006.

****  RIVIERA ROADHOUSE (1928)--  at 5650 Route 53 (the new highway designation for this section of the old Route 66), Gardner, Illinois.  Was a famous Al Capone hangout and speakeasy.  It also sold gasoline in the 1930's.  The restaurant and kitchen were upstairs and the tavern was on the lower level.

The Riviera is famous for its its man-made stalactites and raised "thrones" in the Rest Rooms.

The building was pieced together from a church, a coal mining office and once had Riviera Beer Garden painted on the roof in large letters.

Bob and Peggy Kraft, Proprietors since 1971. (815) 237-2344.

****  HISTORIC HORSE DRAWN STREETCAR--  which became a diner in 1932, is located behind the Riviera Roadhouse and is over 100 years old.  It closed in 1939 and has recently been restored by the Route 66 Association of Illinois.

Of course, sadly, the Riviera is no more.  We haven't driven past it since it burned down in 2010.  It would be too sad.  And, Bob and Peggy are no longer with us.  I imagine somewhere Peggy is preparing her great food (especially that spaghetti sauce!!) and Bob is "holding court" behind some heavenly bar.

Miss It All.  --RoadDog

Bob Kraft, Co-Owner of Route 66's Riviera Roadhouse, Dies

From the July 8, 2014, Route 66 News.

Liz told me that Bob Kraft had died July 1, 2014, at age 90, in an article she saw in the Route 66 News.  Sad to hear that.

Bob Kraft was born May 4, 1924 in Chicago and married Peggy in 1972.  Peggy died in May 2013.  Together, they owned the popular, must-stop, Riviera Roadhouse in Gardner, Illinois for 37 years before retiring in 2008.  Sadly, the place burned down under "mysterious" circumstances in 2010.

The place was inducted into the Route 66 Association Hall of Fame in 1994.

I regard myself as fortunate to have met both of them on numerous occasions before the place closed.  It was unique.

Now, Bob and Peggy join the list of ever-so special Illinois Route 66 folks we were able to meet after we got into the road back in 2002.  That would include Bob Waldmire, Tom Teague, Ernie Edwards and Bill Shea.

Well, Bob is All-Route 66, but Home-Based in Illinois.  --RoadDog

Bits of 66: Motels-- Street Car-- Sonrise Donuts

Some Newer News About An Old Road.

1.  MOTELS--  The Helium web site's Lonna Gonya listed the best places to stay on Route 66: Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, NM, 1939, operated by Lillian Redman 1958-1998; El Rancho Hotel in Gallup, NM, 1930s; Wigwam Villages San Bernardino and Holbrook, Arizona and the Munger-Moss  Motel, Lebanan, Missouri.

We've stayed in all but the Wigwams as we always reached them too early in the afternoon to stay.  Maybe next time.


2.  STREET CAR--  The Riviera street car has now been moved to nearby Gardner, Illinois.  The town came out, lifted it onto a flatbed truck and took it away.  Its new location will be next to the historic jail in town.

The move was necessitated by the fire that burned down the old Riviera that looked highly suspicious.


3.  SONRISE DONUTS--  This neat place with its striking sign, is set to reopen in Springfield, Illinois.  Back in 2005, we were fortunate enough to catch a meal there on one of the rare times it was open.

RoadDog

Down Da 66: Diner Finds Home-- Tattoo Man-- Towanda Accident

Some New News About An Old Road.


1. DINER FINDS HOME-- There has been some discussion of the Yahoo Route 66 group saying that the Krafts, who still own the property the Riviera was on, have given to old diner that has been restored and sits behind their former restaurant to the City of Gardner. Now, the problem is moving it.

But, at least it will still be with us.


2. TATTOO MAN-- There was a great article and accompanying video from the Oklahoma City Oklahoman about our favorite black and blue kinda guy, Ron Jones. Old Ron has 86 tattoos on his body, 84 of which are about our good old Route 66.

I guess all that pain and expense should warrant some publicity. Congrats to you, Ron.


3. TOWANDA ACCIDENT-- Sad to hear that seven people were injured in a fireworks accident in Towanda, Illinois, on Route 66 north of Bloomington-Normal.

Definitely not a good way to celebrate the 4th.

Now, You Know. --RoadDog

Sad Scenes from the Riviera-- Part 3

This morning, I read in the Yahoo Route 66 e-mail group that it is believed that the Riviera letters have been removed from the one part of the building that was saved.

That is just one final slap-in-the-face for us 66ers if that is true. I was definitely hoping the letters would end up in some place, preferably the Museum and Hall of Fame in Pontiac, so that we would have our memories.

The person who reported it had heard it was gone, but had not confirmed it. So, let's hope he heard wrong.

If they are indeed gone, perhaps some other part of the historic place might be saved like the clothesline used to send orders up to the kitchen or dumb-waiter that brought them down (supposedly weighed down by a World War II shell). And, at least one of the two "thrones" must have survived.

We Need Something to Remember Her By. --RoadDog

Sad Scenes from the Riviera-- Part 2

Saying goodbye, sadly, to a great Route 66 site.

Here's hoping that at least the letters, or even better, the whole section that remains standing of the old Riviera will be saved. A great place for it would be at the Route 66 Museum and Hall of Fame in Pontiac.

We need to preserve at least some part of it, both for those of us who were there and those 66ers who will never have the opportunity.


A FLOOD AT POPS

On an unrelated incident, I read that Pop's in Arcadia, Oklahoma, temporarily became an island thanks to all the massive rain that has hit the state of late. Perhaps they will secede and form their own country. "I pledge allegiance to the pop for which I drink. And should I have to swin for it, so be it."

Sounds Like a Good a Good Job for the Illinois Preservation Committee, Right, John W.. --RoadDog

Sad Scenes from the Riviera

I had heard the Riviera in Gardner was was a complete loss. Liz and I had seriously considered going by the ruins Sunday to look at them and film, but it was a bit out of the way, so took our leave of Route 66 in Dwight going up Illinois Highway 47.

I'm glad we didn't go by the Riviera. Ron Warnick, in his Route 66 News Blog, had a video taken by a couple, and the devastation is complete. After a fire, there is always the hope that the damage can be repaired and the place rebuilt, but obviously that is not going to happen after viewing the video.

We'll just have our memories now.

However, I was glad to see the old streetcar diner in the back of the place looks unscathed and the president of the Route 66 Association of Illinois said it will be moved to a place in Gardner so we can look forward to that.

I have not heard anything about the Riviera's most recent owner. I did hear that he might have left after the fire, but that was just hearsay.

Another reason to see them while you can. You never know when they'll be gone.

A Sad Time at the Old Riviera. Route 66 Lost a Great Place. --RoadDog

Lots of Talk About the Riviera

Yesterday, we heard a lot of talk about the sad state affairs at the Riviera in Gardner. Some of it will make your hair stand on end. Of course, we're with a bunch of gung-ho folks, most of whom make us look like amateurs. These people take their 66 stuff seriously, and if you mess with something, they're likely to take offense.

Yesterday morning, while checking out of the Munger-Moss Motel in Lebanon, Missouri, and, of course, talking with Ramona, a guy came in from Portland, Oregon, who was driving the entire length of Route 66. I asked if he had heard about the Riviera and he said not only had he heard about it, but had taken pictures of the ruins Wednesday morning. He showed them to us. Very sad.

Plus reading various accounts and talking with 66 folk at the sign in yesterday, it seems that most believe the fire was no accident. Most point the finger at the former owner, and, at least on the surface, it would seem that he is the culprit. I even heard that he is missing. I'll keep you updated.

A Sad State of Affairs. --RoadDog

Sad News About the Riviera in Gardner, Illinois

We've been on the road since Tuesday and staying in places without internet access so just learned about the loss of this great Route 66 institution today while sitting out at the pool of another great Route 66 institution, the Munger-Moss Motel in Lebanon, Missouri.

I was just thinking how great it was to be reading the May-June issue of the Route 66 Pulse which we had just picked up in the lobby, when Liz gave me the news via the Illinois 66 Association's Facebook page. Then friend Lulu sent a more detailed account.

How little did we know May 2nd when we stopped by after the Red Carpet Corridor Festival and found it closed that this would be the last time we ever saw it. I definitely would have taken pictures of it.

However, we do have some great memories of it along with the folks who gave the place its charm. the people who worked there, and, of course, Bob "The Luckiest Man Alive" and Peggy "I Have to Put Up With Bob" Kraft.

Sure Gonna Miss the Place. --RoadDog

Gardner, Illinois' Riviera Restaurant

On the way home from the Red Carpet Corridor on Sunday, we decided to go out of our way and visit the Riviera in Gardner, Illinois. It was one of our favorite places and I'd heard they were open again.

This is a bit out of our way as we usually take Il-47 at Dwight to get home. We were disappointed to find it closed, but hoped that maybe they just weren't open on Sundays. We WERE REALLY happy to see that the entrance by the road had been paved. There was some big-time potholes where we bottomed out whenever I would forget about them.

The place looked a bit run-down and there was a chain across the backyard where the diner is located.

Today, I read in the Route 66 Yahoo E-Mail group that the owner and town are having some serious problems and it is closed for now. Let's hope they work it out. They need each other, especially now that the town has all that great Route 66 signage and even shields on the road.

We were "forced" to cruise on up the road to Braidwood where we were "forced" to stop at the Polka-Dot and had the first banana split I can remember having in a long tine. It was huge and had two halves of a banana in it and was around $3.60.

This is a Special Place. --RoadDog

Good News for Route 66 in Illinois-- Part 2

I just remembered a good Bob and Peggy Kraft story from the Riviera.

The first time we drove Route 66 in Illinois back in 2002 (at least drove it as hooked 66 nuts, I'm sure we drove it while it was Route 66 but back then, it was just another road), we stopped at the Riviera.

We told the bartender this was our first time on Route 66. She told Peggy Kraft, who came out and talked to us. Bob had already retired for the night, but she went upstairs and made him come down to meet us. Poor guy probably didn't want to do it, but when Peggy said do it, you did it. Well, on second thought, he probably was happy to do it.

It was fun talking to Bob, but even better the next time when he was "hiolding court" behind the bar and swigging all those shots. I didn't ask, but they had to be watered down. With that number of shots, I would have been on the floor and might have had to climb those steps to get at the skyhigh toilet in the bathroom.

Either way, it was just one more thing that got us hooked on Route 66.

Sure Glad to See the Place Open Again. --RoadDog

Good News for Route 66 in Illinois

I already mentioned it, but the December 15th Braidwood (Il) Journal (right up the road from Gardner, ran an article about the reopening of the great old, 80 year-old Riviera, which had been essentially closed since owners Bob and Peggy Kraft decided the time had come to retire (and deservedly so since they had run the place since the '70s).

After a rocky start with a short-lived opening back in September, issues have been settled and the venerable place will now be open seven days a week. Even better, it will be managed by long-time worker Tracy Storm who has been there 29 years Also, 26-year veteran waitress Betty will once again be serving up that great food.

And, speaking of food, they are bringing back Peggy Kraft's famous dishes and expanding the menu. It is rumored that every so often, a famous bartender will make a return appearance behind the bar he manned for all those years, that is, if he can get a ride since he never had a drivers license and he will be happy to tell you why.

Hopefully, they haven't changed anything inside.

We stopped by there when returning from the MoTour back in September, but the place was closed because of the difficulties with the town.

Getting Hungry About Now. Do They Serve Breakfast? --RoadDog

Down Da 66: Mayo-- Riviera

Some New News About an Old Road.

Good news to report along Route 66.


1. MAYO-- the famous old Mayo Hotel, hub of downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma, reopened officially on December 3rd. The hotel opened in 1925 and there for awhile was threatened with demolition, but after a lot of money was spent, you can stay there again, but most likely way too expensive for a poor soul such as I.


2. RIVIERA-- Also glad to see that the Riviera Restaurant in Gardner, Illinois, reopens this weekend. Hopefully the food and atmosphere will remain as it was before. Next time down, we'll be checking it out.

Great News Along the Route. --RoadDog