An Esquire to remember

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The Esquire Restaurant, which operated in downtown Elgin from the late 1940s until the mid-1960s, was one of the city's busiest and most elegant restaurants of the time, recall Leo Manolis and Mary Manolis Robertson, children of the restaurant's owners.

One look at the top hat and cane on the front of the menu and residents of the watch city knew they were in for a surprise, they add.

Leo Manolis was a boy of 9, and his sister, Mary, was just an infant in 1948 when their parents, Phil and Stella Manolis, acquired 12 South Grove Ave. -- a building previously occupied by Elgin Fruit and Candy.

"The décor of The Esquire was like nothing Elgin had seen before," Manolis said.

Chicago designer Jim Efston included grand murals, terrazzo floors, carved wooden planters with up-lighting, leather booths, elegant horseshoe-shaped seating, and brass and crystal ball chandeliers.

"Those crystal balls were a nightmare to clean," Manolis recalls. The design made the Esquire a near replica of Efston's noted Charmette's Restaurant, located across the street from Chicago's Water Tower at the time.

Owner Phil Manolis, also known as Phil Anaston, was an immigrant from Greece who arrived in Chicago as a young man in 1922. Self-taught, a born leader, and entrepreneur, Manolis quickly found his way into the restaurant business, said his daughter, Mary Manolis Robertson.

These included a number of successful diners, each called The Spot, on the near northwest side of Chicago. With a flair for showmanship, Manolis attracted factory workers to his eateries by placing a doughnut-making machine in the front window. When the opportunity arose to open a new, fancier place in booming post-war Elgin, he seized upon it.

A chocolate candy section occupied the front of the Esquire when it first opened. This area featured showy displays of luscious candies made on site by a Chicago man, according to his own private recipes. "When the man passed away," says Manolis, "so did the candies."

The candy section was removed and replaced by a counter and additional seating. "My father was a showman," Manolis added. "He knew how to promote."

The Esquire also featured spinning rotisserie chickens near the front window to attract hungry shoppers as they passed by.

"This was done long before rotisserie chickens were popular elsewhere," adds Robertson. She says she still remembers the aroma of the barbecue sauce which greeted customers as they walked in the door.

About 1960, owner Phil Manolis took another aggressive step at modernizing the restaurant when he moved the kitchen from the back to the front. This "open kitchen" concept, although common now, was a new idea then. It allowed customers to see the cooks at work and their food coming out on the stainless steel counters under warming lights, explains Robertson.

The Esquire also featured "broasted chicken" prepared in patented pressurized deep fryers that produced a delicious crispy fried chicken in just minutes. Previously, fried chicken was cooked in Sunbeam fry pans, a process which took up to 30 minutes to prepare.

The new restaurant was expansive, with counter service up front and two long aisles of booths and a private dining room in the back. It was just one storefront wide, but stretched nearly 200 feet from the front door on Grove to the back door at the river.

"From fried eggs to South African lobster tail, the menu offered a complete fare to fill the long hours of operation," says Robertson. "At lunchtime, the restaurant was packed with customers stopping in for a Jewish-style deli sandwich. Ham, roast beef, or corned beef piled high on rye or a Kaiser roll was the most popular lunch item, in addition to The Esquireburger," she adds.

"We brought a menu to Elgin that wasn't available in many places outside of Chicago, and Elgin clientele loved it," recalls Manolis. His sister Mary says she still savors Southern-style specials by Chef Bob Hall, including turkey wings and dumplings. Others specials included spicy beef tenderloin tips and baked Alaskan halibut with creamy homemade macaroni and cheese.

The creative side of owner Phil Manolis was also at work with menu name choices such as the Moon Glow Salad, Honolulu Salad, or Omaha Salad. Fountain creations, made right before the eyes of the customers, included the Hawaiian Special, Fresh Pineapple Skyscraper, and the Tower Sundae, named for the Elgin Tower Building across the street. Manolis says the superb taste of their ice cream was due to high quality ingredients for the product made right on the premises during the 1950s.

Everyone in the family was expected to work in the restaurant over the years. Leo Manolis worked the soda fountain, while his mother Stella did hostess duty. Leo's sister Mary ran the cash register, and another brother Louis, now deceased, made the ice cream while attending college.

Phil Manolis' sister, Yiota Thanos, shared hostess duties before opening a nearby Andes Candies in the mid-50s. And, of course, Phil, the owner, was always in except for an occasional Cubs baseball game.

Open from 5 a.m. until midnight, regulars included policemen, lawyers, dentists, and of course, many shoppers. "An array of colorful regulars streamed in and out every day," says Robertson. "I pretty much grew up in the restaurant and I wouldn't trade it for a more traditional childhood," she adds. "It was fun, much like living in a sitcom. Customers and employees all were like family to me."

Bobbie McNamara, who was hired as a teen in 1951 and remained employed until the restaurant closed in 1965, has fond memories of the Esquire. "It was a bit of Chicago right in Elgin. The restaurant was elegant. As a part of my training, I was sent to management and culinary school."

"We wore green gabardine jumpers, white shoes, white starched blouses, and aprons. Our uniforms were dry-cleaned, not washed. The end strings of the aprons had to hang at the correct height."

"The customer always came first in my father's thinking," said Manolis.

But, eventually the restaurant's run came to an end.

A 1966 fire did substantial damage to the business and Manolis decided not to rebuild. The site would eventually become part of the expanding First National Bank of Elgin, an area now occupied by Fountain Square on the River parking area.

The Manolis family went on to open a chain of smorgasbords and pubs, including the Nordic Pub in West Dundee, a site previously occupied by a longtime area favorite, The Evergreens. But, the memories of this Esquire Restaurant still linger.

"Elgin lost someplace special when the Esquire closed," notes McNamara. "So many people, including me, really loved it there."