Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

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Dean
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Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by Dean »

Noticed today in the LA Times, that the old Van de Kamp's Bakery site in Glassel Park has been leased for a charter school.

LA Community College District had preserved the site for a potential campus. "...underwent a 50-60 million rehabilitation that saved the bakery's landmark 16th century Dutch town house facade in preparation for a campus."

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2 ... -to-a.html

This had me wonder how many of the former restaurant locations are still standing.

Found the following in Arcadia:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/attackcat/3722907168/

Many others?

The brand name lives on with bakery items at Ralphs.
Last edited by Dean on 20 Jul 2009 17:42, edited 1 time in total.
Jeff
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by Jeff »

One in Norwalk became a NORMS BURGERS. This closed years ago and the place is falling apart now. The windmill removed years ago.
mike t. whittier ca
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by mike t. whittier ca »

There was a Van de Kamps in Anaheim, it was on harbor blvd. just down the street from Disneyland, I'm not sure if its still there or not.
luckysaver
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by luckysaver »

Dean,

I saw the Glassell Park campus on the corner of Fletcher and San Fernando Road. LA City College, which owns the site calls it the "Van De Kampus" and is a satellite of the main campus in East Hollywood. They gutted the inside but rehabilitating the exterior. It was featured in as part of Morgan Yates' offramp column in AAA Westways a couple of years ago.
Morgan has a research file on it at his office in the historic Auto Club headquarters building on Figueroa.

I also saw the historic Arcadia Denny's building on Santa Anita and Huntington.

Denny's was the one that bought out all of VDK and Alphy's chains. For a 1973 list of Alphy locations from Esther Cramer, look in "The Alpha Beta Story" or ask David (he posted the 1973 AB store list). This list would be useful in finding out which Alphy cafes became Denny's. VDK would be much harder to find, try a search in the LATimes Archives for any mentions and ads.

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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by Groceteria »

Here's the Alphy's list:

Image
luckysaver
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by luckysaver »

Dean,

I just did a quick lookup on the Google news archive and found that in 1957, VDK's retail division operated a chain of retail baked goods stores/outlets (224 units), 1 drive-in restaurant (stores and drive-in restaurants unidentified), and 4 coffee shops. The drive in was said to be at the historic bakery and another location on Olive/Victory in Burbank. However, the locations of these coffee shops are somewhat known:

- 6261 Laurel Canyon Blvd south of Victory. A quick location search revealed: Lamplighter Family Restaurant.
- Arcadia (as mentioned in the earlier posts) - the landmark Denny's on "Route 66", Santa Anita and Huntington.
http://www.you-are-here.com/modern/windmill.html
http://www.agilitynut.com/eateries/ca4.html
- Across the street from Pasadena City College (Colorado and Bonnie Ave) - Burger King
https://digital.lib.washington.edu/arch ... ures/1435/
This location did not become Dennys, as the only Colorado Blvd Denny's is at Colorado and San Gabriel Blvds. A comment from a Flickr user from a photo of PCC (taken 1986):

"There was also a Van de Kamp's bakery and coffee shop a block east of the college on Colorado, at the southeast corner of Bonnie Avenue. By the 1960s, it had been remodeled and lost its windmill, but in the L.A. Library's online collection I found this old photo dating from about 1950, when the place still had its original design. I think this building was demolished about 1980 and replaced by a Burger King."

The photo mentioned in "Wayaduck"'s quote is found at:
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics31/00035282.jpg

- on the "Van De Kampus" - Fletcher and San Fernando (3060 San Fernando Rd). Currently a Denny's. (not considered a coffee shop)

An authentic artist-produced photo of the Drive-in:
http://www.bigkidcollectables.com/servlet/Detail?no=207
http://www.stancline.com/catalog/pdffiles/driveins.pdf
https://digital.lib.washington.edu/arch ... ures/1970/

- Monterey Park/East LA http://laeastside.com/wp-content/upload ... c01029.jpg
Carrows Restaurant on 2271 Atlantic Blvd. This was a Tiny Naylor's and was inducted into Roadside Peek's Hall of Fame

The Drive-in in Burbank:
http://digital-library.csun.edu/cdm4/it ... OX=1&REC=9

In the late '60's, General Bakeries (later General Host) acquired the chain. It was sold off in the late '80's.

A couple of 1950-built restaurants here:
http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/acc ... atl=google

(Studebaker Rd)

This is all I found so far. I hope this helps.

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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by luckysaver »

With regards to the Van De Kamp's brand store products when the VDK company split into pieces many years ago:

The bakery brand is owned by Kroger through the Ralphs Grocery Company and the phantom "Alpha Beta Company" subsidiaries - if you look at the bread bag or any other VDK brand item at Ralphs or Food4Less stores, it is distributed by "Interamerican Products" of Cincinnatti OH, which is the distributor of all Kroger-owned brands including the banner brands other than "Kroger". Ralphs Grocery Company acquired the brand and the La Habra Central Bakery in the '90's as part of Yucaipa purchase of Alpha Beta/Food4Less, since the bakery products were sold at Alpha Beta (I used to get the cake donuts at the old West Covina Alpha Beta often). The Van De Kamps/Ralphs La Habra bakery produces IAP baked goods for sale at most of Kroger's west coast stores, some products from the Smiths Division's Layton Farms Bakery.

The seafood product line is owned by Pinnacle/Aurora Foods and has no relation to the baked goods line sold exclusively at Kroger-owned stores.

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Dean
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by Dean »

Thanks luckysaver for all the info!

Picture of old bakery:

http://vandekampus.lacitycollege.edu/

Sign @ LAs Neon Museum:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/3228641826/

Seattle location (note next to SKAGGS!), also, interesting history listed:

http://content.lib.washington.edu/cdm4/ ... OX=1&REC=1

The frozen foods with the same name were founded by the same folks:

http://www.pinnaclefoodscorp.com/public ... -kamps.htm

The following article states:

Just one of the familiar windmills survives. Now stationary and green rather than blue, it adorns a Denny's in Arcadia.

http://articles.latimes.com/2005/jul/17/local/me-then17
Jeff
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by Jeff »

ha I forgot about the Monterey Park location. I have a picture of it somewhere from the 1960's....I'll look for it.
Dean
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by Dean »

Jeff wrote:ha I forgot about the Monterey Park location. I have a picture of it somewhere from the 1960's....I'll look for it.
Tiny Naylor's (Van de Kamp's) (Inducted 6/20/99)
Monterey Park, CA

Hungry or just begging for a quick stopover after a night on the town? Or just looking for breakfast before a trip out of town. Tiny Naylor's (formerly Van de Kamp's) is the place to be.

Well, as times change, styles change. With new ownership comes new ideas. The magnificent windmill has now been removed and a Carrow's will be occupying the site. Another great restaurant design of decades past is now now history.

Tiny Naylors (formerly Van de Kamps)
19?? - 1999

http://www.roadsidepeek.com/wherenow/index.htm

Burbank:

http://wesclark.com/burbank/roberts_drive_in.jpg

Menu, with locations listed:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3333/327 ... 8ea2_o.jpg
http://dbase1.lapl.org/images/menus/ful ... 181-04.jpg
http://dbase1.lapl.org/images/menus/ful ... 181-03.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2186/227 ... 68.jpg?v=0

Closed as Norms:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3153/256 ... 698dfc.jpg

Former Norwalk site:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3204/262 ... 32.jpg?v=0
luckysaver
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by luckysaver »

Anaheim had a restaurant as well. It was demolished some time ago.

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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by boxboy19 »

It's nice that the building wasn't torn down as it's valuable in its historical value alone, but the intersection will be horrible for students; I can't even imagine pulling into and out of that parking lot two to three times a week.
luckysaver
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by luckysaver »

I always thought the Don Carlos Mexican Restaurant on Valley/Azusa in La Puente CA was a VDK or Alphy but it is not on the list in the previous post (from Esther Cramer's book). It sits in the same shopping center as the former 1950's-era Alpha Beta (now Bodega R Ranch) and according to the real estate website Loopnet, the building opened in 1989. A satellite view shows it as an octagon with a base for a windmill. It reminded me of the Carrows on Atlantic in Monterey Park, Denny's in Arcadia, and other octagon buildings that I've seen on my travels. The building is more modern than the rest of the shopping center buildings.

If this location was previously an Alphy's, then it was most likely future store 3431 since it is at the border with City of Industry.

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Jeff
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by Jeff »

I believe Azusa and Valley was originally Spires.
luckysaver
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Re: Van de Kamp's Restaurant Sites

Post by luckysaver »

Then where exactly in City of Industry was Alphy 3431?
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