the quest for zest

A food & travel community from The Crossroads of America.

Eat Local. Travel Global.

Fort Wayne’s Famous Coney Island

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A story for every Coney dog.

The sign above Coney Island Wiener Stand in downtown Fort Wayne reads, “Fort Wayne’s Famous Coney Dogs.” While it’s arguable that “famous” is a stretch, there can be no doubt that during it’s ninety eight year history, it has certainly become part of the fabric of Fort Wayne. The narrow building on Main Street, with it’s long lunch counter has been a silent observer to generations of people enjoying a quick, satisfying lunch. Virtually everyone from Fort Wayne has been there at least once and they all have a story about their visit. For some, it’s a once yearly trip on a cold Thanksgiving night to grab a hot dog before the annual lighting of the old Wolf and Dessauer Santa Claus display. For others it’s where they were engaged, was their second home as a kid, or simply a weekly ritual. My story begins with a shaggy haired art student who moved to Fort Wayne from Virginia in 1966.

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Zesto Ice Cream

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A summer rite of passage.

As a kid growing up in Indiana, the only thing that really cut the heat of the steamy summer months was ice cream. Where we ended up usually depended on the nature of our visit to Fort Wayne. A stop at the mall always meant ducking into Breslers 33 Flavors for a scoop of orange sherbet on a sugar cone, and then eating it as sloppily as possible by the mall fountain. If we had brought our bikes in for a ride on the Rivergreenway, I knew my reward would be a scoop of strawberry or chocolate ice cream, again on a sugar cone, from the Atz location on Tilman Road. Curiously, even though there was a soft-serve ice cream shop in our little hometown of Churubusco, The Magic Wand, we rarely went there. There was a beautiful order to our ice cream universe, except for one wild card. No matter what we were doing, or where we were in town, it took very little convincing on my part to get my parents to take me to Zesto.

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Deli 620

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Thankfully, some things stay the same.

When I worked in downtown Fort Wayne, I rarely ate out for lunch. I preferred to pack my lunch because it was cheaper and it kept me from having to buy new pants every six weeks. Each month though, I would have to take a lunch break to drive out to the southwest side of town for a hair cut. For no logical reason, I used this regular event as an excuse to eat out for lunch. I eventually fell into a routine of heading straight to Deli 620 for a tuna salad sandwich, jalapeño kettle chips, and if there was a nip in the air, a cup of soup. It has now been over a year since I last worked downtown, or visited Deli 620, so I decided it was time for a return visit.

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Tacos from George’s Mexican Café

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Going local and international for lunch.

If you’ve never ventured to the south side of Fort Wayne to experience George’s International Market, you are missing out on one of Fort Wayne’s more interesting grocery stores. While the bulk of the groceries are Mexican, George’s is the only place in town where large tins of Greek olive oil, dates from the middle east, and sauces from South America can be purchased in one stop. I’m here almost weekly to pick up items for Mexican meals, or to just browse the shelves of exotic ingredients. On this visit though, I was only interested in one thing, the Mexican café at the front corner of the store.

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Blaine Stuckey, Mad Anthony Brewing

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Putting passion before profit.

Blaine Stuckey is like the cool cousin that you only saw at the summer family reunion when you were a kid. A little intimidating, because he was a slightly older and biger than you, which meant he could easily throw you in the deep end of the pool. Yet, cool as hell, because he always had fireworks for you in his car. When we met the towering yet jovial co-founder of Mad Anthony Brewing, he greeted us with a booming, “Guys, you don’t have beers! We can’t do this without beers!” Like that cousin, Blaine’s imposing presence was immediately offset by his generosity, gregarious nature, and infectiously positive attitude. He is a man who firmly believes in doing what you love, and is as passionate about his work as he is about his community. With a frosty Ol’ Woody Pale Ale in hand, Blaine talked with us about how they brew their beer, their focus on quality, and what he hopes is “brewing” in Fort Wayne’s future.

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Higher Grounds Grand Opening

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One of Downtown’s favorite coffee shops is officially open again.

On Tuesday, May 15th, Higher Grounds - STAR officially re-opened for business. Scott Thrasher Herndon, who was the manager of the old location on the corner of Wayne and Calhoun St., is now the proud owner of this location.

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