As Mel Mioli and I chatted yesterday afternoon about the imminent relocation of Westport Pizzeria to 143 Post Road East, we remembered the many Main Street businesses that his narrow restaurant outlasted.
We didn’t chat about chain stores. Our trip down memory lane was all about the “real” stores that — once upon a time — defined downtown.
Back in the 1970s, a Mobil station sat opposite Westport Pizzeria. Today, it”s Vineyard Vines.
All of these places existed during the 45 years Westport Pizzeria has been a Main Street mainstay:
- Achorn’s Pharmacy
- Bill’s Smoke Shop
- Charles Market
- Chez Pierre
- Charles of the Ritz Hair Salon
- County Barber Shop
- Dorain’s Drug Store
- Klein’s Department Store
- Liquor Locker
- Mark’s Place
- Remarkable Book Shop
- Sally’s Place
- Selective Eye
- Sloane’s Furniture
- Soup’s On
- Sport Mart
- Swezey’s Jewelers
- Westport Food Center
- Welch’s Hardware
And that’s just off the top of our heads.
Mel and I came up with the name of just one Main Street non-chain business that was there in 1968, and still remains. In fact, it started out a few doors down, a couple of decades before Mel and Joe Mioli opened their pizzeria.
Congratulations, Oscar’s! You’re the last of a great bunch left on Main Street.
Oscar’s Delicatessen (Photo/Videler Photography)