TOP THREE:
Derby Dinner Playhouse Christmas show
A News and Tribune Publication
DECEMBER 15, 2016 — Issue 142
It's Out of this world Little Chef gets a makeover with Lady Tron’s
CONCERT: KT Tunstall in Louisville
2 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2016 | SOIN EDITOR
Jason Thomas
DESIGN
Claire White
STORY
Danielle Grady
PHOTOGRAPHY Josh Hicks
WHERE TO FIND SOIN:
• ON RACKS: We offer free copies of SoIn at numerous hotels and restaurants around Clark and Floyd counties. • IN YOUR PAPER: Every Thursday in the News and Tribune • ONLINE: newsandtribune.com /soin • ON FACEBOOK: facebook.com/YourSoInWeekly • ON TWITTER: @newsandtribune
ON THE COVER:
The owner of Lady Tron’s, Summer Sieg, left, poses with her brother Wilfred Sieg III and one of his hand-painted creations, a metal robot waitress. Lady Tron’s is located on the corner of Bank and Market streets in New Albany and will open Monday, Jan. 2. | STAFF PHOTO BY JOSH HICKS
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The Little Chef building that could
Pancakes the size of a dinner plate. Albany resident, will always call any business Nothing tasted better at 3 a.m. after a few that occupies that particular corner of Bank and adult beverages. Spring streets the Little Chef, no matter what The Little Chef building means a lot of things name the new owner bestows upon it. to a lot of people. For Summer Sieg, it represents Sieg is cool with that. If it ain’t broken, a dream. don’t fix it. And Coqui’s Café’s owners, for the She’s putting the finishing touches on Lady record, didn’t think the building was broken — Tron’s, her new restaurant that replaces Coqui’s they just wanted more space. JASON THOMAS Café at 147 E. Market St., that landmark buildWhich cleared the way for Sieg, who has SoIn Editor ing that puts a smile on people’s faces. labored in area kitchens for years. Now she’s in Sieg has given the building a makeover, charge of her own. painting it a wild orange, blue and yellow with spaceship Like the newly decorated building, Sieg promises details. Last weekend, Sieg bolted a cut-out of a cartoonsomething unique with her menu: sandwiches with a ish robot cook to the sidewalk and attached a sign to its twist. “This is the only place where you can come and get roof: Lady Tron’s, it proclaimed, Danielle Grady writes the sandwich you’re going to get,” Sieg told Grady. in today’s centerpiece. Beam me up, Sieg. Turns out Little Chef was actually the name of a particular model of mobile diner sold by the Valentine Man— Jason Thomas is the editor of SoIn. He can be reached by ufacturing Co., incorporated by Arthur Valentine in 1947, phone at 812-206-2127 or email at jason.thomas@newsandGrady writes. People like Wavie Sharp, a former New tribune.com. Follow him on Twitter: @ScoopThomas.
More interesting stories around Southern Indiana.
Turn it up with KT Tunstall live SOIN THE KNOW
• WHAT: KT Tunstall in concert • WHEN: Feb. 17 • WHERE: Bomhard Theater, Louisville
• INFO: Purchase tickets in per-
son at The Kentucky Center box office, by phone, 502-584-7777 or online at kentuckycenter.org
LOUISVILLE — Two years ago, KT Tunstall thought she was done with music. Not done as in she’d never again play guitar or sing, but done playing professionally, at least for the foreseeable future. “As an artist I feel like I died,” she says. “I didn’t want to do it anymore.” She’s changed her tune, and will perform Friday, Feb. 17. at the Bomhard Theater in Louisville. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, Dec. 16. “I was utterly burnt out,” she said in a Production Simple news release.
KT Tunstall will perform Feb. 17 at the Bomhard Theater in Louisville. | SUBMITTED PHOTO So the singer put her stuff in storage, sold all of her property in the UK, and started again, at what felt like the ends of an entirely different earth, in a little house in Venice Beach, Calif.. She lived a quiet life for the better part of a year, until, like a little imp waiting in the wings for Tunstall to get really comfortable
in her state of blissed out California calm, one day the urge to rock began to return. The music that Tunstall has written since moving to California is, she says, the most impassioned and inspired of her life. A new album coming this September, is, in spirit, the follow-up to her debut.
SOIN | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2016
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3 TO GO
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Where to go and be seen in Southern Indiana
COUNTRY CHRISTMAS • WHAT: "The Honky Tonk Angels Holiday Spectacular"
• WHEN: Through Dec. 31 • WHERE: Derby Dinner Playhouse, 525 Marriott Drive, Clarksville
• INFO: For ticket information call 812-
288-8281; derbydinner.com This holiday musical follows the comic escapades of three country gals as they reunite for a holiday show like none other at “The Hillbilly Heaven Club” in Nashville, a Derby Dinner news release stated. There are surprising twists and turns in this musical comedy revue, including a gospel soul sister who also happens to be a psychic. “The Honky Tonk Angels Holiday Spectacular” was written by Ted Swindley, the creator of “Always...Patsy Cline.”
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ON THE ROCKS • WHAT: Shop, Dine and Skate • WHEN: Through Jan 29 • WHERE: Downtown Jeffersonville
Through Jan. 29, check out Jeffersonville’s Shop, Dine and Skate. Ice skate at Jeffersonville’s “Little Rockefeller Center.” Enjoy hot chocolate and cookies, and shop in historic downtown Jeffersonville, along Market and Spring streets, during the holidays. Noon to 9 p.m., SundaysThursdays; Noon to 10 p.m., weekends, Nov. 25 - Jan. 29. Ice Skate, Cost: $8 per person, $40 season pass. Info: www.JeffMainStreet.org/ event/jeffersonville-ice-skating-rink
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BARGAIN BOOKS • WHAT: Holiday sale at library • WHEN: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17 • WHERE: New Albany-Floyd County Public Library annex building
• INFO: Call 812-944-8464
Christmas is almost here and the Friends of the New Albany-Floyd County Public Library will have one more holiday sale on Saturday, Dec. 17, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Annex Building. There are still Christmas-themed books, music, and movies selling for regular prices of $1 hardback and 50 cents paperback. For more information, call the library at 812-944-8464 or e-mail friends@nafclibrary.org.
GOTTA GO: Interested in seeing your event in our 3 To Go? Email SoIn Editor Jason Thomas at jason.thomas@newsandtribune.com
The Little Chef that could Lady Tron’s inspires extra-terrestrial trip down memory lane
U
By DANIELLE GRADY danielle.grady@newsandtribune.com
p until recently, the Little Chef building in New Albany at 147 E. Market St. had been the same colors for years: a classic, Coke-brand red and white reminiscent of the 1950s-era in which the diner was built. Summer Sieg changed that in November. The Southern Indiana native and her family painted the Market street building a wild orange, blue and yellow with spaceship details. Last weekend, Sieg bolted a cut-out of a cartoonish robot cook to the sidewalk and attached a sign to its roof: Lady Tron’s, it proclaimed. A new name for a new look to a new restaurant in a New Albany landmark.
OUT OF THIS WORLD CHANGES Sieg plans to open Lady Tron’s on Jan. 2. Her restaurant will serve a small rotating menu of soup and sandwiches. Classics. But Sieg will modernize her menu items with innovative twists. Her fish sandwich, for example, will be battered, served with a spicy sauce and given a sweet kick — with what, Sieg’s not sure yet. But she does know that she wants her sandwiches to be different than the ones at surrounding restaurants. “This is the only place where you can come and get the sandwich you’re going to get,” she said. Her decor will be as unique as her food, and not just on the outside where Sieg’s changes to the Little Chef building are most evident. Her brother, Wilfred Sieg, has painted the building’s ceiling with cosmic scenes of planets and stars. Sieg also plans to suspend spaceships from the ceiling, and her mom has already helped her modify the diner’s
CONTINUED ON PAGE 5
Lady Tron’s hand-painted sign gets delivered by the artist himself, Wilfred Sieg III, left. | STAFF JOSH HICKS
F PHOTOS BY
Lady Tron’s is located on the corner of Bank and Market streets in New Albany and will open Monday, Jan. 2. The vibrant makeover was created by Wilfred Sieg III, the owner, Summer Sieg’s, brother. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4 10 stools with fabric displaying more intergalactic vehicles. Sieg really isn’t a sci-fi nerd. She’s never seen “Battlestar Galactica” or “Firefly” and she doesn’t obsess over “Star Wars.” Instead, her restaurant’s space theme comes from the connection between the genre and the 1950s. Plus, she just liked the name Lady Tron’s — a nickname for her that seemed to fit her chosen furnishings. Mostly, Sieg is happy to be owning her own restaurant. She’s a kitchen veteran, having worked in local restaurants for years. “I think pretty much anybody that works in the restaurant industry or in kitchens cooking — this is, like, the goal,” she said. Sieg and her father started looking for a restaurant location when they found out that the Little Chef
building was available. The diner’s previous tenant was Coqui’s Café, whose owners wanted to move to a bigger location. Sieg’s dad agreed that the Little Chef building could work as the site of her first restaurant, and now they’re the owners of the building and property. Sieg has since learned about the history of the building and its standing in the community. Parts of it, anyway. It’s a long story.
THE MOBILE DINER Little Chef was actually the name of a particular model of mobile diner sold by the Valentine Manufacturing Co., incorporated by Arthur Valentine in 1947. Valentine Diners were built in Kansas and transported all over the United States. Diner owners could pay off their purchases by slipping a percentage of their profit’s into a wall safe, which would be emptied by a
Valentine employee. Blair Tarr, curator at the Kansas Historical Society in Topeka, has studied the special diners for several decades. He estimates that 1,000 to 2,000 Valentine Diners were sold before their manufacturing company closed in 1975. Valentine Diners are worth studying, he said, because they were transported all across the country and even to England. Most diners were concentrated in New England before Valentine’s Diners came around. Most of the diners have disappeared or have been converted into other businesses since the ’70s. Tarr knows of one that’s a dog training center. It’s significant that New Albany’s Valentine Diner is still being used for its original purpose, he said. “I like seeing businesses like this stay open,” he said. “It says something.”
SEE LADY TRON’S, PAGE 8
6 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2016 | SoIn
ENTERTAINMENT
This week's entertainment releases
JOYFUL
HOLIDAY SEASON
MOVIES: DEC. 16
é “Rogue One: A Star Wars
Story” “The Space Between Us” “Collateral Beauty”
T.V. PREMIERES: DEC. 16
é “The Man in the High
Castle” (Amazon) “Barry” (Netflix)
BOOKS: DEC. 20 é “The Cat Sitter and the Canary” by John Clement, Blaize Clement “Take Back the Sky” by Greg Bear
Celebrate the New Year in your PJs SOIN THE KNOW
All signs point to a great year, and we have customers like you to thank for it! We greatly appreciate your support and we look forward to your continued friendship.
We wish you and yours all the best this holiday!
www.newsandtribune.com
• WHAT: Dine in your PJs • WHEN: 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 1
• WHERE: Noosh Nosh, 4816
Brownsboro Center, Louisville
• INFO: Call 502-205-2888
LOUISVILLE — As you ring in 2017, save some celebratory spirit for New Year’s Day and join Noosh Nosh for breakfast, brunch or lunch in your pajamas. On Sunday, Jan. 1, guests are invited to dine in their flannel pants, robes and slippers from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the restaurant, 4816 Brownsboro Center. This familyfriendly event will feature an award each hour on the hour for the most creative and festive PJs, and all who wear pajamas will be entered into a giveaway offering prizes that include restaurant gift cards and branded travel mugs, a Noosh Nosh news release stated. Chef Anoosh Shariat’s signature breakfast dishes will be available including French toast, breakfast pizza and a variety of sweet and
On Sunday, Jan. 1, guests are invited to dine in their flannel pants, robes and slippers from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Noosh Nosh. | SUBMITTED PHOTO savory crepes and omelets. Vegetarian, vegan and healthy options such as the tofu Florentine and skinny omelet offer nutritious choices for those looking to kick off their New Year’s resolutions. Shariat also plans to feature traditional Southern good-luck-themed entrees made with black-eyed peas and collard greens. Breakfast will be served for the
entire event and lunch, including small plates, pizza, soup, salads and sandwiches, will begin at 11 a.m. Additionally, the restaurant will feature a build-your-own Bloody Mary bar, signature cocktails and specialty coffees including cappuccino, espresso and macchiato. For more information, call 502205-2888 or follow Noosh Nosh on Facebook.
SoIn | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2016
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LOCAL SOIN HAPPENINGS Feeling left out? Send your establishment’s and/or organization’s upcoming events/new features/entertainment information to SoIn Editor Jason Thomas at jason.thomas@ newsandtribune.com
LIVE MUSIC AT WICK’S
WHAT: Live on State WHERE: Wick’s, 225 State St., New Albany Friday, Dec. 16: Wicked Fridays featuring DJ Mpose; Saturday, Dec. 17: Bella Blue Band; Friday, Dec. 23: Ugly Sweater Party with Juice Box Heroes; Saturday, Dec. 24: DJ Dance Party with DJ Mpose; Friday, Dec. 30: Wicked Fridays featuring DJ Mpose; Saturday, Dec. 31: Rachel Timberlake
JAM ON AT THE LEGION
WHAT: Entertainment at the American Legion WHERE: Bonnie Sloan American Legion, 1930 McDonald Lane, New Albany Every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 7:15 to 10:15 p.m., Bingo
CORYDON LIVE
WHAT: Live country music WHEN: Shows start at 7:30 p.m. WHERE: 220 Hurst Lane, Corydon INFO: Admission, adults $12; children 6-12, $7; under 6, free. For tickets call 812-734-6288. Saturday, Dec. 17: Christmas Show: Amber Martin, Glen Rice, Clinton Spaulding, Natalie Berry and Santa; Saturday, Dec. 24: Closed; Saturday, Dec. 31: New Year’s Eve Celebration: Ricky Puckett, Tiffany Puckett and David Graves
GET DOWN WITH DULCIMERS
WHAT: Corydon Dulcimer Society holiday concert WHEN: 7 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15 WHERE: New Albany-Floyd County Public Library, 180 W. Spring St., New Albany The Corydon Dulcimer Society will be performing a holiday concert at the New Albany-Floyd County Public Library, 180 W. Spring St., New Albany, 7 to 8 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 15, in Strassweg Auditorium, located in the lower level of the Library. This evening concert will feature classical, contemporary, spiritual, and original holiday selections. Guests of all ages are welcome at this free event. For more information, please contact the Reference Services Desk at 812-9493523.
WATCH A MOVIE
WHAT: Documentary Film Series
WHEN: 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17 WHERE: Jeffersonville Township Public Library, 211 E. Court Ave., Jeffersonville The library welcomes adults 18 and older to join it for the next movie in our Documentary Film Series. The next film brings the audience into the capital punishment conversation, interviewing both the criminal and the victims of his crime, to explore why people kill and why capital punishment is legal. This film will be shown at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 17, at the main location of the Jeffersonville Township Public Library. For more information on this program, visit jefflibrary.org, Events Calendar or call 812-285-5635.
F ALLS OF THE OHIOO FALLS IINTERPRETIVE NTERPRETIVE CENTERR After 390-million years, it’s brand new again.
PEN TO PAPER
WHAT: Creative Writing Contest WHEN: Deadline is Friday, Dec. 30 The Jeffersonville Parks and Recreation Department is seeking young writers for the 2016 Christmas Creative Writing Contest. Winners will receive a 2017 season pass to the Jeffersonville Aquatic Center. Contest Details: There will be one winner from each division, three winners total: Kindergarten through second grade, third through fifth grade, and sixth through eighth. To enter the contest, write 100 to 500 words describing Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer’s cousin that likes to sing and dance. Be creative. There is no entry fee to enter the contest. Limit one entry per person. The deadline for the essay contest is Friday, Dec. 30. Entries will be accepted by U.S. mail or by hand delivery. Mail to: Jeffersonville Parks and Recreation Department Essay Contest, 500 Quartermaster Ct. Suite 212, Jeffersonville, IN 47130. Hand deliver to Parks Office located on the second floor of City Hall. All entries must include the author’s name, address, phone number, current grade, school name and teacher’s name. Entries will not be returned. Entries will be judged anonymously based on the following criteria: originality and creativity. For more information contact the Jeffersonville Parks and Recreation at 823-285-6440.
ENJOY A RANCH BURGER
WHAT: Days of Old WHEN: 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17 WHERE: Floyd Knobs American Legion Unit 42 Floyd Knobs American Legion Unit 42 invited the public to come out and enjoy the original recipe served at the Ranch House in days of old, 4 to 7 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 17, at the post home. The “Hip Replacements” band will be back in December, playing the music people love to hear — that “old time rock and roll.” There will be no Ranch Burger Day in January but will return the third Saturday in February.
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farms you want to Family n d. ds whe orchar the city behin e v a le
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A BUBBLING BEER SCENE
Beer make s better and everything w the best c e’ve got six of raft brewe ries aroun d.
N flavors New Ne flf rss for flavor f foodies ffoodi fo oodies d s Come hungr gr y. Leave amazed.
CLARK & FLOYD COUNTIES INDIANA JEFFERSONVILLE . CLARKSVILLE . NEW ALBANY
8 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2016 | SOIN
LADY TRON'S: Resident says diner will always be 'Little Chef' to him CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 He knows about New Albany’s diner. It was likely transported to the town in 1957, its serial number is 2031 and he’s even visited it. The year was 2005 and the building was still owned by Diana Miller.
THE RESTAURANT THAT WAS A HOME
Miller bought the Little Chef building in 1989 — back when it was still called Little Chef. She thought about changing the name to Elbow Room because of its small size, but decided against it. “I liked the old traditional style so I just tried to keep it pretty much as close to the same I could,” she said. She bought it from a woman who bought it from someone else, who Miller thinks bought it from the original owners. Little Chef’s first owners were likely Ferne Olive White and her husband Raymond. White’s Evening News and Tribune obituaries say she was the original owner, and her
husband is listed as the first lessee in Floyd County Assessor’s records, according to a 2012 News and Tribune article. The most significant thing Miller changed about Little Chef was its hours. She made it a 24 hour diner to draw in the bar crowd. People flocked to her restaurant, including Wavie Sharp, a former New Albany resident. “It was a place where you felt loved, you know?” he said. Miller was a “rough cut diamond” — generous to a fault, he said. So was her daughter, Amanda, a “big, happy appearing girl always bantering with the customers.” Sharp liked the other employees, too. “Each shift had its own personality,” he said. The restaurant’s customers were just as unique. Attorneys sat next to those with no jobs, who chatted with working class patrons. Sharp, whose mother was in the last years of her life, found solace at Little Chef. But Miller sold the restaurant in 2011. She didn’t want to, but she had health problems, she said. “I’m not exaggerating when I say it was, it
Good Rockin’ Live! at Derby Dinner
In 1950, a former disc jockey moved to Memphis, Tenn., with a dream to revolutionize the music industry. Converting a run-down auto parts store into a recording studio, Sam Phillips created a launch-pad that forever altered the course of music and popular culture. In a few short years, SUN Records produced superstars such as Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and B.B. King. Good Rockin’ Live! is at 6 p.m. Jan. 3-4 at Derby Dinner Playhouse, 525 Marriott Drive, Clarksville. For tickets, call 812-288-8281 or go online to www.derbydinner.com. | SUBMITTED PHOTO
was devastating,” Sharp said. He wasn’t the only one who was hurt. Fifty to 100 customers and regulars met at a local park for a Little Chef reunion six months after it closed. Miller still cannot set foot in the building. “It’s too sad for me,” she said. David Scott, the owner of Antiques Attic next door to the restaurant, bought Little Chef from Miller. His brother leased it out for a hot dog restaurant. A health drink venture fol-
lowed, then Coqui’s. Sharp visited Coqui’s once. He liked it, he said, but the restaurant will always be Little Chef to him. And to many. “I know lots of people that lived here — they still call it Little Chef,” Sieg said about the Lady Tron’s building. “Even when it was Coqui’s it was Little Chef. And people still might call it that — ‘oh, let’s go to Little Chef.’” Sieg is OK with that, she said.