The Vegetarian Cafeteria. McClung Historical Collection.
THE BOWERY, BIG BISCUITS AND A VEGETARIAN CAFETERIA
I can’t imagine the surprised look on my face when a tour guest asked me directions to the Bowery. “The Bowery” is an old nickname that was used for Knoxville’s Central Avenue (now our Old City) in its rough and rowdy days of the early 1900s, so far removed from us now that I had rarely even heard someone speak the term. I knew immediately my guest must be from New York City, as this area was nicknamed after a similar raucous neighborhood there. Central Avenue’s proximity to the railroad gave it a bit of a transient flavor. Violence and mayhem were once not uncommon here, as the area endured such vices as drunkenness, prostitution, drugs, theft and even murder. It was said you could just as easily find a million-dollar wholesale house as you could a brothel, gambling den or cocaine parlor in this crime-ridden neighborhood.
But, as typical Knoxvillians, some searched out Central Avenue for the big biscuits. An establishment on Central with no name on the building was known as the “Big Biscuit” restaurant. It was so called because the biscuits served there were twice as big as biscuits served elsewhere in town. The biscuits were accompanied by big, thick slices of cured country ham, red-eye gravy, eggs and a steaming, rich, flavored coffee. Syrup was also available on the tables for patrons who wanted to add a bit of sweetness to their breakfast. The price for the meal was fifteen cents and included free refills of coffee. At the time, food prices could be kept low by a glut in the market. Fresh eggs were abundant and could be obtained for as low as ten or fifteen cents a dozen. A buyer could travel out to rural areas where money was scarce and purchase ham for as low as ten or fifteen cents per pound if he offered cash.
The Vegetarian Cafeteria. McClung Historical Collection.
The Big Biscuit served its bountiful meals to both black and white patrons. A thin partition separated the tables. It was common to see policemen near the Big Biscuit in order to keep the peace, as drunken men who had spent a night on the town in the Bowery would often engage in fights during the breakfast service. For a long time, saloons in the Bowery closed at 10:00 p.m., and then later on at midnight, but dance halls, nightclubs and the bordellos of the redlight district on the street adjacent to Central stayed open much later. Horsedrawn taxicabs were available at all hours of the night and provided curtained windows for passengers who preferred not to be seen or recognized in the Bowery.
On the other side of town from the Bowery, some folks were trying to promote a more wholesome, healthy lifestyle by establishing Knoxville’s first cafeteria—of all things, a vegetarian cafeteria—in 1922. Dr. E.A. Sutherland, who had been president of Walla Walla University in Washington State and later president of Madison Health Care Center near Nashville, established the Layman Foundation in Knoxville. The others who made up the foundation’s board were on the forefront on healthcare and the natural food movement of the day. They operated out of a new building at 507 West Clinch Avenue.
The lower level of the building housed Lovell’s Electro Turkish Baths. R.A. Lovell and his wife trained at the Battle Creek Health Center in Michigan. Their hot air baths were similar to a sauna and were followed by a warmwater wash and massage, providing the benefit of cleansing and purifying the body. The upper level housed the Vegetarian Cafeteria. The Layman Foundation had a large endowment of $1 million from Lida Funk Scott, of the Funk and Wagnall family of publishers. They established vegetarian cafeterias in Asheville, Atlanta, Birmingham, Chattanooga, Louisville, Memphis and Nashville similar to the one in Knoxville.
The Vegetarian Cafeteria menu stated that they would be glad to work with customers’ doctors who had prescribed a vegetarian-based diet for them. The dining room had seating for one hundred, a serving deck for fast service and a pleasant display area for food. Nuts, fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole wheat grains, milk and eggs dominated the menu. Soups and many varieties of salads were available, as well as mixed fruit salad with whipped cream or a chopped fruit mold. Soy beans, nut-meat and vegetarian potpie could be accompanied by a vegetable loaf, something called vegex gravy and more cream in creamed vegetable dishes. Surprisingly, the health-conscious cafeteria also offered breaded okra. It was the South, after all. Many desserts were also available, including pies made with whole wheat crust, apple dumplings, baked apples, a whole wheat sponge cake with (more) whipped cream, fruit shortcake, Bavarian cream, fig sauce and the pièce de résistance: Prune Whip. Beverages included a fresh spinach juice.
I often say that some restaurants close simply because they are ahead of their time. The Vegetarian Cafeteria, interesting concept that it was, closed in 1928, but it’s fun to know that Knoxville once had its own little version of a spa and health food restaurant.