Numerous times here at Kev-Mania I’ve taken a look back at the “good ole days”. And if you’re over 50 like I am you’re usually talking about the 1960’s and 1970’s. But something I noticed recently, is that the internet has really changed how we look at history and more importantly how we view the good ole days.
Today, you could almost say that anything prior to the mid 1990’s could be considered the good ole days. That’s because once people started using the internet we began to look at history in a different way. Now… anything that existed (and more importantly ended) prior to the existence of the internet is sometimes forgotten and becomes nostalgia.
Yesterday I noticed that 2 of my most popular posts here on Kev-Mania were about things that predate the internet. The most popular blog post ever at Kev-Mania, is about a 1970’s phenomenon known as Beetleboards (you can read it here). And coming in a close second, is my post regarding another remembrance from my younger days, Mister Donut (find that post here).
Even though I’ve been playing around with Kev-Mania since 2008, these 2 posts from 2010 have a common theme…. they touch on subjects that Baby Boomers like me fondly remember. But, since they were long gone by the mid 90’s there isn’t much to be found about them on the internet.
I came across another similar topic the other day, and like Beetleboards and Mister Donut I couldn’t find much on the internet regarding another fond memory from my youth; a popular family restaurant from days gone by… LUMS.
Sure, you can find out a bit about the history of LUMS on their minimal Wikipedia page, but other than a brief history of the restaurant chain, there’s not a lot to be had. I did find a few images online, including some pics of their menu, but not much more.
Most people who remember LUMS remember their hot dogs. See, their famous hot dogs were steamed in beer. And almost any time I’ve ever gotten into a discussion about LUMS with someone (and this has happened quite a few times) the hot dogs come up.
Sadly, even though I love hot dogs, I don’t remember theirs. My dad wasn’t a big fan of LUMS, so we only went there a few times. And I never got around to their most famous offering.
But amazingly, I do remember what I ate those few times we found ourselves at LUMS. One time I had their Hot Roast Beef Sandwich (which their menu proclaimed was “heaped high”). It wasn’t bad, but once I found another sandwich I never looked back.
My memories of LUMS (mostly from their location in Hannibal, MO) was of their hot ham sandwich, or as they referred to it on the menu, their “Imported Holland Ham Sandwich…Heaped High on Egg Roll, Hot or Cold”. You could order it with or without cheese. Now personally, I don’t know why anyone would order a cold ham sandwich when they could get a hot ham and cheese for just 10 cents more?!
I don’t even know who or what guided me to the Holland Ham, but once I tried it I don’t think I ever ate anything else at LUMS. And on top of that, I can’t even tell you if I had mine with french fries or onion rings. I’m betting onion rings, but not remembering tells me that they weren’t anything special.
Restaurant chains like LUMS are getting harder to find these days. I think because they harken back to a simpler time. A time when family restaurants were everywhere. And as a kid of the 60’s and 70’s, fast food and pizza were the norm, so anytime we got the chance to broaden our horizons… we did! And looking back all these years later I have only one regret. I never tried that LUMS Famous Hot Dog steamed in beer…. 
The original Lums was a hole-in-the-wall on 41st Street in Miami Beach that was a hangout for surfers and beach bums like myself.
It featured two things that made it famous; hot dogs steamed in beer and served on a bun piled high with sauerkraut and the coldest beer in the state of Florida. Their beer menu was limitless.
I don’t know who wrote the Lums Wikipedia listing but it is more wrong than right.
I had several friends who bought Lums franchises and got hung out to dry. It was John Brown who screwed the company by expanding too fast and not providing adequate training for the franchisees. Brown was all about the quick buck..he didn’t give a damn about the success of the business. He’d already cleaned up on Col Sanders.
Thanks for the info Mario. I’ve often wondered why there aren’t many details available about John Y. Brown’s ownership of LUMS. Much has been written about time with KFC and all of his years of ownership in the ABA and NBA, but little info is to be found about his ownership of LUMS.
I worked at Lums in the Roosevelt Field mall (Garden City, NY) for about 5 years. I loved those Ollie burgers.
my memory is with my grandmother, now 97 yo at a nursing home in watch hill RI, we spent many a day at LUMS in westerly RI. I never a bad meal there but I admit I have no recollection of what we ever ordered except the famous hot dog. I was much more enthralled in what my Grand mother had to say. I do remember the onions no onions option and to this day prefer onions on my dog. I suggest that my Grandma would have the best info if one were seeking such.
karen
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