Needed groceries and had no cash? We’d go to Chris’ Greek grocery store on Third South and the old Second West. For my dad and Chris, business was done with only a handshake.
Growing up, Saturdays were a big deal. That’s the day the family made the trek across Second West pulling an old wooden wagon to go to Chris’ store. Crossing Second West was like going to the big city. Chris’ grocery store was across the street from the impressive giant gold dome of the Greek Orthodox Church. It was always a sight we looked forward to seeing. It meant we had crossed the border. When we got to Chris’ store, he greeted us with his broken Greek English, and Dad did the same with his broken Spanish English. Somehow, it seemed so natural.
Chris' store was a major institution on our side of town. He had a running tab for his regular customers. His store was heaven — candy, fresh fruit and oiled wooden floors. He had big bins of beans and rice. We bought bananas, and many looked a little brown.
I didn’t know bananas were yellow until I was much older. Chris always gave my dad "el pilon," which in Spanish meant a little extra something. And every two weeks, on payday, my dad showed up at Chris’ to pay his tab. My dad always said a man only has his word.
On special days, the family would walk (cars were a luxury) to Sears, then located on the corner of Main and Broadway, to shop for clothes that we could put on layaway and pay a bit every month. It was easy then because there was a sense of trust. The big treat walking into Sears was the aroma of fresh popcorn that was irresistible — and Dad always bought us some!
We then walked over to Roe’s clothing store on the corner of State Street and Broadway. We had to pass by the expensive stores like Keith O’Brien, Paris and Auerbach’s — even if they had layaway plans. Roe’s seemed huge with tables full of clothes, wooden floors and a few racks at the back of the store. There we would rummage through the piles and pick a few more clothes and put them on layaway. As with Chris’ grocery store, every payday Dad would go pay a little something down on layaway until he could pay for it all.
Then, on the way home, we walked across the street to window-shop and buy a treat at Payless Drug. On the way, I would peek in the door of Kress’ to take in the smell of hot dogs and coffee they served at the long lunch counter. Next to Payless was the Success Market that always had fresh flowers on the sidewalk. It was a great store owned by George Zeese, who was one of the first to own independent chain stores in Utah. He was a strong advocate for education and hired many students to work there. I wonder how many successful people got their start there.
Our last store we saw was Schubach Jewelry. There, I was in awe of all the sparkling jewels and thought, “Someday, I’ll buy one for my mom.” By the time we got through wandering up and down Broadway, we walked back home exhausted, but delighted we could see all the beautiful things in my city.
Utah native John Florez served on the U.S. Senate Labor Committee and as Utah industrial commissioner. His White House appointments included deputy assistant secretary of labor and Commission on Hispanic Education member. Email: jdflorez@comcast.net