Arny's

[TimZag]

I was told that Arny's is closing down for good in the near future. Bummer.

[TheBeast]

This is the last weekend for Arny's. I would be there if I could get out of my stuff this weekend.
It's sad to think that I'll never have another shot at being able to eat an entire Arny's Combo.

[Birddog]

This history is incorrect BTW, ZagNative, Gamagin, or JHoop could shed more light, but it didn't even exist in 1949, and I'm pretty sure the Martire's were still in Italy
Birddog

[TheBeast]

This history is incorrect BTW, ZagNative, Gamagin, or JHoop could shed more light, but it didn't even exist in 1949, and I'm pretty sure the Martire's were still in Italy
Birddog

I'm telling Jo on you.

[zagzealot]

Does anyone know why? Real estate deal (I can imagine Starbucks would be chomping at the bit for more parking or a drive thru)? Or is the restaurant not doing well? I tell ya, we were there about 3 months ago and had less than impressive food and service.

[sdzag]

RIP Arny's

Many memories, Loved the Linebacker, I just did a moment of silence.

[lothar98zag]

didn't a former owner open another place in town? maybe the food there is similar...

[former1dog]

Arny's will forever be the spot where my buddy told me a story so funny that I snorted a malted milkshake out of my nose.

RIP Arny's.

[zag69]

Oh wow....the Double Whammy. I used to love those, ate 'em all the time.

That reminds me, I have an angiogram scheduled for next Friday. Eh, it was worth it.

[BobZag]

Bummer. A tasty grouping of eateries around there. David's, Pete's, Pita Pit, Jack & Dan's, good stuff. Arny's will be missed.

[ZagNative]

My first memories of the place would be in the late '50's, when it was (Mike's) Dairy Freeze. I would die for a Stroboli back in those days, although the $.19 Zips burger was more in line with the budgets of me and my Holy Names buddies. I still can literally taste those old-time Strombolis. Last time I had one, it didn't seem anywhere near as good. (But, then, I can remember how much better the tomatoes my mom used to buy by the flat from farmers markets on East Sprague used to taste in those days too.)

JIHoops and Gamagin might know more about the history, living closer to the place than I did.

I still had burgers for lunch often at Arny's when I worked on West Cataldo four or five years ago.

Gosh, where do we go now for an Arny-style burger? I'm hungry for one this minute! Ain't going out in the snow and cold, though.

[madzag]

Bummer. The chocolate shake and french toast combo was the perfect hangover cure

[gamagin]

I was setting fires in another county when

ZN summoned me to this thread.

there are a lot of questions about Arny's on this thread. I think I have a few answers.

The Dairy Freeze, now Arny's, was built about 1950 by Frankie Almond (sp?). He lived next door, where the pita pit is now.

Almond ran the Dairy Freeze for 2-3 years and then sold to Mike Aquino, about 1952.

Mike nurtured, built up and ran the Dairy Freeze until about 1958-1959. Aquino moved out to east trent where he bought the Burger Royale, about 2 blocks east of the now gone restaurant, Town and country. The aquino family may still own the Burger Royale. I don't know. Mike, jr., who was the owner-operator, died a couple of years ago and I lost track.

Mike Aquino is the man who invented the famous Stromboli (ham, good, fresh, Italian, provolone cheese and a generous splash of "secret" Italian sauce w/hamburger bits & onions in it ladeled into a half a loaf of french bread right over the meat and cheese. The wax paper holding this hot, heavy piece of heaven could barely contain the ooze bubbling out all over. A toothpick kept the concoction from exploding out of the paper.

A stromboli would produce an oily, hot skid mark on your clothing with each bite. It pretty much caused the same thing to happen again, on the way out.

It woud turn your breath into the odor of baby spit up (I mean, hot provolone) and could ruin a perfectly good date in the process.

You had to be going steady to eat one on a real date. And you both had to eat one, or share one, or else the powerful, addictive "magic" of the stromboli would leave the non participating person sniffing around as if someone had had a serious accident. Or problem.

In other words, the experience, taste and after taste, was fabulous. As long as you were the person eating one.

If you happened to be sporting a six pack inside your stomach after a night of being cool, well, the stromboli really found a home down there amongst the hops. It settled the savage beast. Most of the time.

Mike Aquino also created and named the double whammy. Double burger, double cheese,bacon, on half a french loaf, and due to popular demand, for a small bit more of spare change, you could get it smothered in stromboli sauce, too.

BLISS ! !

I understand Dick's drive inn, Spokane, still pays the Aquino family a small amount each year for the right to sell its version of the double whammy.

Mike sold the Freeze to Ray Martire, a young man whom Aquino had sponsored as an immigrant from Italy, about 1958. Ray and Dora ran the Freeze until about 1985, had a huge following and served at least two generations of St. Al's, GU and GPrep students, second generation devotees, the same as Mike had done.

Ray turned the Freeze over to his son, Frankie for a year or so, before it was sold to Pat Jeppeson and partners about 1989.

A few older brothers of mine worked for the original owner, Frank Almond, two others worked for Mike and I worked for Mike and a little bit with Ray. I cleaned, mopped up, took out the garbage & chopped onions for food and a little money under the table.

Jeppeson (who did about a dozen similar projects around Spokane) kept the Dairy Freeze footprint, but remodeled the store completely, then reopend as Arny's.

He also secured the rights to sell the whammy and the Stromboli (i don't think either ever measured up to the real deal; also the real deal was available at aquino's burger royal, so anyone could compare). Jeppeson & Co., ran Arny's as a three-meal-a-day joint for several years before it became a breakfast and lunch only diner. Somewhere in there Jeppeson sold.

The current owner, the one closing, is a couple who decided to get out at least a year ago when (I think) the husband got a job out of state. It has been for sale at least a year. Several deals to sell it fell through. The wife stayed back and was running the diner.

I don't know how many owners have been at Arny's, but I would guess at least three.

So what happens next ? I don't know but I can find out quickly.

The property is owned by John Stockton, who bought it from the Martires or Jeppeson. JS also owns the property from Arny's to Boone, including starbucks, davids and what was the clinic (Pia pit).

Now that you know that, the options are either JS will scrape (which would mean he bought out the owner's business and needs more parking), or the business was sold to a new operator who will try and make a go of it w/JS as the landlord.

That said, Jack and Dan's now serves a full menu of food, the pita pit is behind Arny's, Starbucks and a bagle shop are across the parking lot they all share, Pete's Pizza is across the street, so is the bulldog, which serves a good burger, and a Thai restaurant is south of Jack and Dan's.

In sum, there is alot of competition in a small space. More is on the way as GU plans to build a 600 space carpark across the street (southwest corner boone and hamilton--the whole block) from David's. When finished, there will be commercial retail bays all along the Hamilton side with, presumably, plenty of parking for customers.

But even with all the competition, none of those places, so far, serves breakfast. So there may yet be an unfilled niche in Arny's for another generation, or more, of neighborhood afficianados.

We'll see. And I'll know soon & report back.

Questions ?

best regards,

[TheBeast]

All I know is that I'm going to miss being harassed for being "out of sorts" when I go in on weekend mornings during my short visits to Spokane. A couple years ago I was in town for a long weekend visiting friends and was getting the usual treatment from Jo when the other waitress piped up and tore into me, too. My bleary eyed response?
"I know we just met, but it feels like you've been hating me for years."

Oh, and my senior year, one of my friends would get his hands on some of the of the steak and ingredients that Arny's used in their Philly Cheesesteaks. We ate like kings! Oh wow! Now my mouth is watering...

I'm really gonna miss that place. Not too many places like it in the world these days, food, service, and other.

[Birddog]

From the 60's

"Meet me at the Freeze" could have been fightin' words or just an invite to have a burger and coke. I believe also that Mike Acquino was the one who introduced grilled offerings at the Freeze, prior to that it was strictly a soft ice cream, shake, etc operation. Diversification was key to success. Locals could always go through the back door and sit around on the freezers BSing over their Cherry Cokes, occasionally helping out when needed. Gamagin is right about the Stromboli smell. The back room always smelled like spoiled milk and stinking cheese with a whiff of special sauce thrown in.

OK old timers, remember Mikes old yellow Model T or was it a Model A Ford with the Dairy Freeze logo and info painted on the sides? I think he may used it at Burger Royal too.

Birddog