Sizzler, a regular Herkimer lacrosse road trip stop
On many occasions our team had takeout pizza while going down the New York State thruway in the vans. And sit down meal meant middle-class midlevel chain informal family restaurants with buffets like Shoney’s and Sizzler. “We would go to these all you could eat places,” said teammate Jeff Fagan. Restaurant like Sizzler, which started in 1957 in a trailer in Culver City, California, had all you could eat buffets. “I remember all you could eat shrimp and salad bars we gorged on," said Fagan. Sizzlers had deals where you could order an inexpensive steak and get unlimited access to salad bars loaded with shrimp, potato salad, steamed beets, peas, cherry tomatoes, croutons and much more. The deal came with beverages and basket after basket of piping out dinner rolls and little glass dishes with individually wrapped butter squares. Coach would call ahead and haggle a deal with the restaurant manager that would stretch our $5 per diem, fill our stomachs and quench our thirst. For largely poor junior college student athletes, Sizzler’s seemed like a meal at the Tage Mahal. I’d love to hear comments on away game food from others who played for the coach Wehrum.
