7 Old Lunch Counter Favorites Most Americans Haven’t Seen in Decades

For much of the 20th century, the lunch counter was the heart of Main Street. Drugstores, five-and-dimes like Woolworth’s and Kresge’s, and department stores all had long counters lined with spinning stools, where shoppers, office workers, and teenagers stopped for a quick, cheap meal. A soda jerk or a waitress in a crisp uniform took your order and shouted it to the cook behind the swinging door.

Those counters were also places where history happened. On February 1, 1960, four Black college students sat down at a whites-only Woolworth’s counter in Greensboro, North Carolina, and refused to leave, sparking sit-ins across the South. Part of that counter is now preserved at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.

As shopping malls and fast food took over, most lunch counters closed. Woolworth’s shut its last U.S. stores in 1997. Along with the counters went a whole menu of dishes that most Americans under 50 have never tasted. Here are seven of them.

1. The Hot Open-Faced Turkey Sandwich

This was the ultimate lunch counter comfort food. Slices of roast turkey were laid on white bread, topped with a scoop of mashed potatoes, and covered with hot gravy. It was eaten with a knife and fork, and it filled you up for the rest of the afternoon.

The same plate often came in a hot roast beef version. Some old-fashioned diners still serve it, especially in the Midwest and New England. But it has mostly vanished from the quick lunch spots where it was once a daily special.

2. The Woolworth’s Banana Split

The banana split was a lunch counter star, and Woolworth’s turned it into a game. Some stores hung balloons over the counter, each with a slip of paper inside showing a price. Customers popped a balloon to see whether they would pay full price, a discount, or as little as a penny for their sundae.

The split itself was a long dish of banana halves, three scoops of ice cream, chocolate, strawberry, and pineapple toppings, whipped cream, nuts, and a cherry. Many boomers remember the balloon game as one of the most exciting parts of a shopping trip. Today, banana splits are still sold at ice cream shops, but the lunch counter version and the balloon game are long gone.

3. The Cherry Phosphate

Before canned soda took over, lunch counters made fizzy drinks by hand. A phosphate was made by mixing flavored syrup with carbonated water and a dash of acid phosphate, which gave it a tangy bite. Cherry was a favorite, but there were also lemon, orange, and chocolate phosphates.

The drink was cheap and refreshing, perfect after a hot summer walk downtown. Acid phosphate became hard to find as soda fountains closed, and the drink faded away. A few old-time soda fountains and restored drugstores still make them, and they surprise anyone who tries one for the first time.

4. The Egg Cream

Despite its name, an egg cream contains no eggs and no cream. It is made with chocolate syrup, cold milk, and seltzer, stirred together until a foamy head forms on top. It was especially popular in New York City, where Fox’s U-Bet chocolate syrup became the classic choice.

The drink was a favorite at Brooklyn candy stores and lunch counters for much of the 20th century. Today, it is mostly found at a handful of old delis and diners in New York. Outside the city, most people have never heard of it.

5. The Liverwurst and Onion Sandwich

Liverwurst, a soft, spreadable sausage made with liver, was a common lunch meat for working Americans, especially in families with German roots. At the lunch counter, it was often served on rye bread with a thick slice of raw onion and a smear of mustard.

It was cheap, filling, and full of iron. Many older Americans remember their fathers ordering it every day. But as tastes changed, liverwurst lost its place on most menus. Today, it is still sold at some delis, but few younger people order it.

6. Chicken à la King

Chicken à la king was a creamy dish of diced chicken, mushrooms, green peppers, and pimentos in a white sauce, served over toast, rice, or a puff pastry shell. It was a popular lunch counter special and a common dish at women’s luncheons and church suppers.

The dish felt a little fancy but was cheap to make, and it was a good way to use leftover chicken. It also appeared in frozen and canned versions. By the 1980s, it had mostly disappeared from menus, though some families still make it at home as comfort food.

7. The Malted Milkshake

A malted, or malt, was a milkshake made with malted milk powder, which gave it a rich, slightly nutty flavor. Lunch counters mixed them in tall metal cups on spindle mixers, then poured them into a glass and handed you the metal cup with the extra. Getting that second pour felt like a bonus.

Malted milk powder was invented in the 1800s, and the malted shake became a soda fountain staple. Many younger people today have never had one, though some burger chains and old-fashioned diners still offer them. For many boomers, a chocolate malt is the taste of a Saturday afternoon downtown.

Why Lunch Counters Disappeared

After World War II, Americans moved to the suburbs, and shopping moved to malls. Fast-food chains like McDonald’s offered quick, cheap meals with drive-through windows. Lunch counters, which depended on busy downtown streets, lost their customers.

Drugstores also changed, focusing on pharmacy sales instead of food. Many old counters were torn out to make room for more shelves. Those changes were part of a larger shift that saw fast-food chains that got their start in the 1950s spread across the country.

The Memories Remain

For boomers, lunch counters carry memories of shopping trips with Mom, after-school treats, and first jobs as soda jerks. The food was simple, but the experience was special. You sat close to strangers, chatted with the waitress, and watched your food being made right in front of you.

A few restored lunch counters are still open across America, and they draw visitors who want a taste of the past. Many of those memories belong to boomer childhood things that vanished along with the dime store. Others echo the things your parents had in their house that are hard to find today.

Did you ever eat at a lunch counter, and which of these dishes did you order most? Many readers say the Woolworth’s balloon game is the memory they treasure most.