Page 50 - Vacation Okoboji Tourist Guide 2022

BY JONATHAN REED\u000A n vacation, people like to live it up, so the Iowa Great Lakes has no shortage of dining establishments Memories of those great meals live on today No doubt your parents recalled the fried chicken dinners at the Jersey Dell Tea\u000ARoom, Vick\u2019s at the Triboji Corner, the Gingham Inn in Spirit Lake, or the great times at the Peacock in Arnolds Park That\u2019s just the start of old supper clubs here\u000AWhere Did Your Parents Like To Eat?\u000AO\u000A RED\u2019S\u000A A meal at Red\u2019s was an annual pilgrimage Ralph Clinton knew how to cook, and his specialty as a restaurateur was hamburgers Combine that with his crimson hair, and his nickname occurred naturally: \u201CHamburger Red \u201D Clinton opened Red\u2019s hamburger stand in Arnolds Park in 1922 The hamburger stand grew and moved to Broadway about 1932\u000AIn 1934, Clinton opened a\u000Adinner club at Broadway and Highway 71, remodeling it in Art Deco style He also had restaurants in Spirit Lake and Hartley\u000ARed\u2019s Arnolds Park caf\u00E9 interior was comfortable and up-to-date, even after a 1937 fire To a certain few, it was known that there were slot machines on the second floor for \u201Centertainment only \u201D\u000AHi Point Supper Club\u000AHigh Point just off Highway 86 had the (incorrect) reputation for being the highest point in Iowa, but one worth preserving Built in 1963, the Hi-Point Supper Club and Sky Lounge offered spectacular views of West Okoboji\u000AOriginally called the Hi-Point Hacienda\u2014in a converted Spanish- style home built by J A Beck (of the Inn)\u2014the restaurant was opened in July 1941 by Dick West Bill and Lou Houser purchased the business in 1947, selling the modern restaurant in 1965 to Bud and Bonnie Osborne It became Mr B\u2019s Steak House about 1978 but burned to the ground in 1980 Today, this is the site of the Wahpeton water tower\u000A Photos courtesy of Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum\u000A 48 VACATION OKOBOJI 2022\u000A