Pick a type of business where the life of a community is told through the years.

Is it the up-and-down history of mills and shoe shops? Is it the shift of stores from downtowns to malls?

I think it’s restaurants. The restaurant, in many forms, has always been around. Taverns served travelers at predictable intervals along the earliest roads and towns of any size had a few eating establishments on their principal streets.

In the 1880s, Lewiston had an establishment known as John Hibbert’s Lunch and Oyster House. It was at 134 Lisbon St. near Ash Street. Somehow, I never pictured an oyster house in downtown Lewiston 120 years ago.

About 10 years later, there was a restaurant called Sam Hibbert’s Eating House at 195 Lisbon St. Was it the same family?

Old photos show a long, ornate bar with swivel stools on one side of the dining room. It appears that tables or booths on the other side were screened by curtains or doors.

Today, restaurants have changed from necessity to lifestyle statements. We pick a place to dine almost the way we scan the movie and TV listings for whatever show seems to fit our mood. And there seems to be an option for every imaginable desire.

We have had a lot of new restaurants coming into the Twin Cities in recent months, and it’s interesting to share assessments of them with friends.

Is that new spot as good as expected? Is your old favorite changing? Have you tried what’s-its-name yet? I hear whatcha-ma-callit is coming.

It is not an easy business. Some restaurants stay around a lot longer than others, and the longer they stay, the more deeply the memories run.

I talked a few days ago with Fern Comeau, owner of Korn Haus Keller in Lewiston. It has closed after 30 years of operation by Fern and his parents, Raymond and Murielle Comeau.

It is a sad occasion for Fern and his family, but he reminded me that the business brought a lot of joy to many people.

He described the site when Malenfant’s Dairy had three large buildings there in the 1950s. There was a sign dominated by a very large wooden milk bottle. When his parents bought the property, their first venture was an ice cream “smorgasbord” where you could dish up your own concoction of flavors and toppings.

Many people will remember Joe, the big black Newfoundland dog owned by the Comeaus. Kids often got rides in a sulky that Joe would pull around the yard at the ice cream shop.

Fern said many a youngster would innocently offer their ice cream cones for the ever-slobbering Joe to take a lick. Before they knew it, the whole scoop of ice cream had disappeared into Joe’s mouth.

His father always replaced the cone for the tearful youngsters, Fern said.

Korn Haus Keller, as well as many other area restaurants, figured in unforgettable chapters in our lives. We may have met in the function rooms with relatives after a funeral. Maybe it was a wedding rehearsal dinner, a retirement party – so many things that were milestones in our lives. Restaurants are important keys to those memories.

Everyone will come up with different names, but the long-gone places I remember include Eddie’s Diner of the late 1950s in back of the original Edward Little High School. It seems like it was right out of the “Happy Days” TV show, with hamburgers, fries and milkshakes every afternoon as hit records spun on the jukebox.

Another high school hot spot of the ’50s was Sim’s ,across from the Rollo-Drome in New Auburn. It was a drive-in diner with car hops. I still hunt for lobster rolls like they made, though I’ll never find them at their price of 35 cents.

Our friends from Lewiston High School often headed for Cooper’s on Sabattus Street for the fried clams and burgers.

Our parents might dine at Steckino’s or the Nanking. These were the up-scale restaurants several decades ago.

At the other end of the spectrum, there was Jimmy’s Diner on Minot Avenue in Auburn. It was open all night and there were always truckers at the counter and maybe a mother and father with their kids in a booth, mid-way on a long trip or headed home after a late night out.

Breakfasts never tasted better than at Jimmy’s at 1 a.m.

Those are only a few of the restaurants from L-A’s past – some than I remember and some that I would like to know more about. From banquets attended by national politicians or celebrities to a special dinner on a first date, our restaurants are where the important history took place.

Dave Sargent is a freelance writer and an Auburn native. You can e-mail him at dasargent@maine.com.

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