ST. LOUIS – A south St. Louis landmark known for breakfast day and night and countless memories made over the past six decades closed its doors for the last time late Tuesday morning.
The iconic neon sign along South Kingshighway Boulevard remains for the time being, but the lights are out at Uncle Bill’s Pancake and Dinner House.
“I’m telling you; we’ve been working nonstop ever since they made the announcement,” Janice Farmer, a 14-year employee, said. “At 7 o’clock in the morning, we had a line around the place. On the sidewalk. And we ran out of food and that’s why we’re not open. We had to close the doors.”
Owner William Choi is retiring; and with him, the iconic 24-hour pancake house.
“My son, who is in Chicago, in his last year of college wanted a placemat,” Ryan Degenhardt said. “So, my wife said to go get a placemat. They used to come down here when he was in high school. And I used to come down here when I was in high school.”
Some stopped by just to try and snag a memento as a reminder of the restaurant that started out as a bar before flipping to flapjacks and more.
“I just wanted to see it one last time,” Natalie Mayor said. “Take a mental picture of the place.” Mayor enjoyed many a breakfast here in her youth, as did her father. “So, lots of good memories.”
“Bill Ernst was the original owner,” Tom Charleville said. “He had a bar here and my dad knew him. Then Bill learned about pancake houses in California. My dad said, ‘Do you think you ought to do that?’ He said, ‘As a bar, it’s not doing very well.’ Uncle Bill learned about pancake houses and that’s what he did; he changed it from a bar to Uncle Bill’s Pancake House.”
And while the west St. Louis County Uncle Bill’s will remain open, losing the iconic, inn-like vibe of the original stings for some past patrons.
“That’s one of the most important things about Uncle Bill’s,” Jimmie Taylor said. “It’s a great icon and place to stop and rest your bones and get some grub in your belly.”
