Danny Salmas and The Chuck Wagon, San Diego

It has been 5 years since the passing of local San Diego celebrity and 60s/70s lounge singer, Danny Salmas.

Long ago, I created a webpage tribute to Mr. Salmas, containing his obituary as published in the San Diego Union-Tribune. That obit discussed Mr. Salmas' heyday as a lounge singer at the Gaslight and Longbranch rooms of the long gone Chuck Wagon restaurant and supper club. Mr. Salmas even had a couple of albums: "Have you Heard?" and "Gassers at the Gaslight".

Try as I might, I could find almost nothing about the Chuck Wagon, which existed at the corners of Rosecrans and Midway, in San Diego. However, I recently stumbled across a jumbo-sized postcard that has excellent pictures of the Chuck Wagon, as well as of the Gaslight Room and the Longbranch Room (the other rooms being the Main Dining Room, the Calico Room, and the Fireside Room).

For you supper club and lounge singer afficianados, I hope you enjoy. And please take a moment to remember Mr. Salmas.

The postcard

Text of the postcard:

Midway Chuck Wagon
Midway Drive at Rosecrans
San Diego 6, Calif.

Delcious choice of prime ribs -- all you can eat for $2.29 is the slogan of the Midway Chuck Wagon. Customers are invited to dine "Chuck Wagon Style" in a quaint Western atmosphere. Enjoy your favorite cocktails in the unique Gaslight Bar or the Longbranch Saloon where top names in the entertainment world will entertain you. The policy of giving the people what they want in quality... price... and service... has made the Midway Chuck Wagon the outstanding eating and entertainment attraction of the West.

Great postcard find....that brings back lots of memories. My family used to go there to eat pretty often. I think there was a special on Wednesday nights as I remember. It was a cafeteria style line where you picked your food from. Of course with me and my sister being little kids, our family never made it into the lounge area. I remember thinking so many times....oooooh a secret room...wonder what goes on in there. Right next to the Chuck Wagon (on the actual corner was a carwash. My Dad used to have our car washed there. :)

I also remember Oscars, that was the drive-in on the corner of Rosecrans and Midway. And does anyone remember the name of that Chinese restaurant that was about a block away further down on Midway? We used to go there and eat to. I think it was buffet style too?

I don't remember Danny but I sure remember the Chuck Wagon on Rosecrans and especially the one out El Cajon Boulevard. I was a graduate student on a limited budget. For $2.39 plus tax, one could go to the CW for all one could eat including prime rib. There was the huge neon sign of an Indian woman in a headdress that is now in storage somewhere. That was the life. Used to go to the one on Rosecrans before attending the San Diego Gulls hockey games in 1966-67. The reason I did not pay much attention to Danny was that I was focused on eating. I miss all of that.

I bussed tables there in the early 70's. My Mom was a waitress at the same time and many years earlier my Dad was Chef at the Campus Chuck Wagon. The owner had a few restaurants at the time. The help got an abbreviated menu, but I swear they had the best fried chicken.

Aug-31, 2016 Note to VampiressRN : The Chinese place was China Land on 3135 Midway (there's a pic of a matchbook if you Google). They advertised as a "Drive in" restaurant.

[ Edited by: JFSD 2016-08-31 11:34 ]

When they went out of business my dad bought 12 of their divided plates. They were brown stoneware with branding-iron symbols around the edge. As kids we loved not having our sauces mix on our plates.