Zaharakos Ice Cream Parlor

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Zaharakos Ice Cream Parlor
Zaharakos Ice Cream Parlor - 8586969156.jpg
Zaharakos Ice Cream Parlor
Restaurant information
City Columbus
State Columbus, Indiana
CountryUnited States
Zaharakos Orchestrion Zaharakos Orchestrion.jpg
Zaharakos Orchestrion

Zaharakos Ice Cream Parlor is a restaurant in Columbus, Indiana.

Contents

History

The restaurant was founded in 1900 by James, Lewis, and Pete Zaharako, three candymakers from Sparta, Greece, who opened it as a confectionary shop. [1] [2] [3] [4] After visiting the 1904 World's Fair, they added ice cream to their offerings. [1] By the early 1910s, they had added soda fountains, a mahogany backbar, and a 1908 Welte orchestrion. [1] [2] By the middle of the century, there was a self-service area. [1]

The restaurant closed in 2006 when the youngest generation of the Zaharako family weren't interested in continuing to run the business. [1] The orchestrion was sold to a California collector. [3]

In 2007, Tony Moravec, a local businessman, purchased and restored the restaurant, including purchasing the orchestrion from the collector who had bought it, at a total cost of $3.5 million and reopened it in 2009. [1] [5] [6] The family living quarters above the shop were also restored, and Moravec also opened the space next door as a museum of 19th-century soda fountains and mechanical musical instruments. [1] [7] As of 2019, the orchestrion was the only one in the country available for the public to hear play. [3] By 2013, the building had been named to the National Register of Historic Places. [8] [9]

Moravec died in 2022 and his son took over the business. [5] [10]

The restaurant is also known for its Gom Cheese Brr-grr, a type of sloppy joe or loose-meat sandwich with cheese. [6] [3] [8]

The restaurant was used as the primary set for Robert Moniot's short film The Ice Cream Man about Ernst Cahn, a Jewish ice cream parlor owner in Amsterdam whose arrest sparked the February Strike. [7] [11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Crichton, Ginger (May 26, 2021). "A Scoop of Americana in Columbus, Indiana". Midwest Living . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  2. 1 2 Hartz, Michael (January 23, 2020). "Zaharakos: A Columbus favorite where history and tradition are served daily". WRTV . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Caruthers, Teree (May 19, 2015). "Zaharakos Ice Cream Parlor Serves Up Fizzy Business". My Indiana Home. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  4. ↑ Blair, Brian (August 25, 2022). "Hollywood producer from Seymour visits Zaharakos for video series". Seymour Tribune . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  5. 1 2 Sanderson, Emily (November 17, 2023). "This hidden gem in Indiana has an old-school soda fountain and a banjo that plays itself". WLWT . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  6. 1 2 Watson, Jenna (August 7, 2019). "The butter pecan, hot fudge sundae at Zaharakos will complete your summer". The Indianapolis Star . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  7. 1 2 "Columbus ice cream parlor ready for its close-up". Indiana Landmarks . May 10, 2023. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  8. 1 2 Blume, Aimee (June 4, 2013). "Zaharakos Ice Cream Parlor continues sweet 110-year-old tradition". Courier & Press . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  9. ↑ Jane, Tori (February 10, 2024). "The Historic Ice Cream Parlor In Indiana Where You Can Still Experience The Early 20th Century". Only in your state. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  10. ↑ "Business leader and preserver of historic Zaharakos dies". WKKG . November 10, 2022. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  11. ↑ "Story Of Jewish Resistance Fighter Targeted By The Infamous Butcher Of Lyon Wins Claims Conference Emerging Filmmaker Contest". Claims Conference . February 23, 2023. Retrieved September 8, 2024.

39°12′08″N85°55′15″W / 39.2022°N 85.9209°W / 39.2022; -85.9209

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