The classic "googie"-style coffee shop used to reside in the parking lot of Eastland Center in West Covina, California, close by the neighborhood where I grew up. Opened in 1957, Eastland was then only the sixth shopping mall in the Southland, and the first to be built adjacent to a freeway. The Huddle was down from the mall by the side of the westbound San Bernardino Freeway (US-99, I-10), right at the Citrus Avenue offramp.
(More on The Huddle restaurant chain.)
A familiar sight to any Covinan on their way home from L.A. in the 1960s...
The Huddle Eastland building was demolished and the TGI-Fridays that stands there now is a new structure. Check out my history of The Huddle at
ReplyDeletehttp://www.synthetrix.com/huddle/preface.htm
I remember it was Oshman's then Akron store or maybe vice versa. I remember it as the Akron store before it was demolished. In High School, we would go to TGI Fridays. I miss the May Co. still. My sisters and my Mom (RIP) would shop there all the time, it was a ritual :-) (sigh)
ReplyDeleteI remember Akron being on the other side of Citrus.
DeleteSkating rink.... Raymond Pre school that I went to and a movie theater that I can’t believe I don’t remember the name of. I have such a vivid memory of seeing the MOONSPINNERS... The Graduate and so many there. The treasure chest at Cliftons. Carousel Theater....Serria Jr. High graduation lunch at Charley Brown’s.........I even remember Wallach’s Music City.
The only correction I would make is that this is NOT West Covina,it is Covina.My hometown.
ReplyDeleteSorry to contradict you, but Eastland has always been within the city limits of West Covina.
DeleteI second that contradiction. I grew up in West Covina and went to Covina High School, and I have never known the Eastland Shopping Center property to be anything but West Covina. And if you enter Covina into Google Maps, you'll see between Citrus and Barranca, everything south of Workman along this stretch is West Covina.
ReplyDeleteDo you have an estimate of when the Huddle went away? I graduated from Covina High in 1979, and I spent a lot of time in that area growing up, and I sure think I would remember that building. Wouldn't people just love to have that building now!!
ReplyDeleteI was away at college at the time, but I'm guessing The Huddle closed sometime around 1974-1975.
DeleteI know it was West Covina but I always thot of it as Covina...it felt like Covina
ReplyDeleteWhat a shame! Can you imagine how popular that fabulous 50's googie coffee shop would be today? Kind of like 50's Disneyland Tomorrow Land. Another shame.
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