Eating away at the term, 'buffet' and its unique meaning in Arizona
Bar, nightclub, restaurant, or some hybrid establishment: just what is the historical definition of the word “buffet” in Arizona?
These days, many people associate the word with the diet-shattering smorgasbords made famous in Las Vegas. These buffets were loss leaders offered by casinos to entice patrons to gamble before or after their pig out. The concept was sort of like a cafeteria on steroids, where you served yourself as much food as you wanted. Customers loved to sample a wide variety of food for one low price; it was a Vegas treat.
In Phoenix, there was the Copper State Buffet on Washington at 20th Street, which operated from the 1940s until at least 2006. The painted outdoor sign touted "Cocktails," "Dancing," "Live Music," and "Package Liquors," along with a mural of a dancing couple outfitted in 1970s attire. If the buffet offered food, it was a decided afterthought.
So, was the word “buffet” historically used in Arizona as another term for bar or nightclub? A check of an old Yellow Pages listed Copper State Buffet under cocktail lounges. But the same reference under the "Buffets" heading, noted, "See Restaurants; Also Cocktail Lounges.”
Saratoga Café & Buffet, located at Central Avenue and Washington Street in Phoenix in the 1940s, was in the Yellow Pages under "Restaurants." Ephemera from the business, which promoted itself with the motto, “Good Food is Good Health,” seemed to support the notion that this place was meal-oriented. But on its vintage postcard, the buffet has a separate entrance from the café, and the business is officially called “The Saratoga Café and Cocktail Lounge.” So maybe, the buffet was the cocktail lounge?
Two renowned Grand Canyon State historians weighed in on the buffet etymological rabbit hole.
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“I think it’s a nod to the buffet cars on American trains that served drinks and light snacks,” says Demion Clinco, executive director of the Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation. “The Buffet Bar in Tucson references the connection in the graphic of the sign, which is a yellow streamline train on the outer edge.”
Arizona state historian Marshall Trimble recalled a business owned by Frank and Nora Gumm in his hometown of Ash Fork. In the 1950s, it was Gummies Buffet, but by the 1970s it was called Gummies Bar by the 1970s. “The place was where you could find the town doctor if he wasn't in his office,” Trimble says. “I don't recall them serving any food except maybe hard-boiled eggs from a jar.”
Trimble added that there are several definitions of a buffet. "One is a piece of furniture. It also means to strike repeatedly. I think it is most commonly used to describe serving yourself."
But Ash Fork’s buffet was most certainly a saloon. “Maybe Frank and Nora just liked the sound of a French word because it placed their establishment on a higher plane than the other bars in town,” reflects Trimble.
Douglas C. Towne is the editor of Arizona Contractor & Community magazine, arizcc.com.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What is the historical definition of 'buffet' in Arizona?
