[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 89 (Wednesday, July 8, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S7695]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       SHOLL'S COLONIAL CAFETERIA

 Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, I would like to take this 
opportunity to salute Washington, DC's beloved Sholl's Colonial 
Cafeteria for 70 years of prospering business and never-ending 
dedication to its customers and employees. People have come from all 
around the world simply for a sampling of Sholl's down home hospitality 
and great food.
  I cannot count the number of meals I have eaten at this Washington 
institution, but as I am sure many of you who have also visited this 
landmark know, the memories of dining at Sholl's are endless. Each 
person who has dined at Sholl's has their own memory of what has made 
it so special to them. For some it was simply a piece of their apple or 
rhubarb pie. For others it was the unique experience of dining amongst 
close friends, colleagues or even new friends you made during a visit.
  But for everyone who has frequented Sholl's, there are fond memories 
of the wonderful people who worked at this restaurant and made it such 
an enjoyable place to start or end your day. The friendly hello from 
the late Evan Sholl, Cafeteria founder, and his beloved wife, Gertrude, 
or their son-in-law and current proprietor, George Fleishell has kept 
us all returning to Sholl's over the years.
  Patrons of Sholl's have described members of the Sholl family, who 
have owned and operated Sholl's over the last 70 years, as having the 
biggest hearts in Washington.
  Sholl's is not just a business. It is more like a home where friends 
meet regularly to get together and enjoy some good food and have a good 
time. Whenever I dine at Sholl's, it is like going to dinner at a 
friend's house.
  I have enjoyed eating at Sholl's Colonial Cafeteria for many years--
since the days when I was an intern in 1963 until today. I hope that we 
will all be able to enjoy many more home cooked meals at Sholl's 
Cafeteria for many more years to come.
  Recently reporter James P. McGrath chronicled the ``70 Years of 
Nourishing Body and Soul'' of Sholl's Colonial Cafeteria in an article 
in the Washington Post. I ask for unanimous consent that this 
inspirational story of hard work, perseverance and determination be 
printed in the Record.
  The article follows:

               [From the Washington Post, March 15, 1998]

                         (By James P. McGrath)

       Most city dwellers of a certain age have fond memories of a 
     great cafeteria they patronized at some point in their lives. 
     Given the velocity and scope of urban redevelopment, however, 
     many of those grand, old dining palaces are gone, but, 
     happily, the flagship of them all survives: Sholl's Colonial 
     Cafeteria at K and 20th streets NW in downtown Washington. 
     Although the Sholl's at Vermont and K closed in 1984, the 
     Sholl's cafeteria a half-dozen blocks away managed to 
     survive, and today it celebrates its 70th year of operation.
       In this city of monuments, Sholl's is a monument unto 
     itself. Long before multiculturalism came into fashion, 
     diversity was its hallmark. Its current staff of 40 
     represents 17 nations, and at one time or another, every 
     Latin American country has had a representative on staff.
       Humanity, generosity and kindness also have been Sholl's 
     standards. A family atmosphere permeates the place--from the 
     lounge at the entrance, to the vastly long steam table laden 
     with delectable food, to the huge dining room, where 
     customers can seek out a seat in their favorite nook or 
     cranny.
       Sholl's is not interested in political correctness, and it 
     makes no bones about its religious sentiments. While its 
     owners don't proselytize, neither do they hide their 
     convictions. On a simple plate in the cafeteria lobby is a 
     supply of `grace-before-meals' prayer cards, featuring 
     Protestant, Catholic and Jewish devotions. Cafeteria founder 
     Evan Sholl and his beloved wife, Gertrude, both devout 
     Catholics, regularly invited visiting clergy of all 
     denominations for complimentary meals.
       Those meals were and are as basic and all-American as apple 
     pie (and, boy, what delicious apple pie Sholl's makes). The 
     cafeteria's famous powder-milk biscuits are world-class (eat 
     your heart out, Garrison Keillor). Food preparation at 
     Sholl's emphasizes freshness too, with all items prepared 
     daily from scratch, on the premises, in as-needed quantities, 
     with no leftovers for the next day.
       Some might consider such Sholl's fare `square,' but the 
     cafeteria routinely ranks among Phyllis Richman's `Best 50 
     Restaurants in Washington.' In an Oct. 19 review, The Post's 
     food critic wrote, `Every city needs a down-home cafeteria, 
     and few have one with more character than Sholl's. It's been 
     a D.C. fixture . . . long enough to qualify for Medicare. . . 
     .'
       Sholl's has attracted its share of notables over its long 
     career. When Harry S. Truman was vice president, he enjoyed 
     dining there, as did H. L. Hunt, the parsimonious billionaire 
     from Dallas. It is easy to imagine Truman and Hunt sitting 
     across from one another and enjoying a good old fashioned 
     `rhubarb.' That, of course, would be rhubarb pie, a daily 
     Sholl's delicacy.
       The late Evan Sholl, who died in 1983 at the age of 85, and 
     his son-in-law and current proprietor, George Fleishell, are 
     responsible for the cafeteria's amalgam of great food and 
     good works. Both gentlemen have dispensed generosity, 
     wholesale and retail. The amount of free food distributed by 
     Sholl's over the years would have fed an army many times 
     over. In addition, shortly before his death, Evan Sholl 
     distributed a year's profits in bonuses to his employees on 
     the basis of $100 for each year of service.
       Many believe that a nation's greatness is best measured by 
     how it treats its old, its disabled and its young. Using that 
     yardstick as a standard, also has earned high marks, giving 
     meal passes to the needy, many of them elderly and/or 
     disabled, and donating thousands of food baskets to the poor 
     at Thanksgiving and Christmas. The cafeteria keeps its prices 
     down too, and low-, modest- and fixed-income people, many of 
     whom are elderly, flock to the cafeteria. Dining room 
     employees gently guide infirm customers to convenient tables, 
     carry their trays for them and routinely decline tips.
       Sholl's is popular with the young and hale too. Tourist 
     buses, looking for the best food buy for the buck, routinely 
     drop off throngs of kids at the cafeteria's doors, and from 
     the decibel level, the kids seem to be having a whale of a 
     time.
       The dining room walls at Sholl's are covered with wonderful 
     memorabilia and pictures of yesteryear as well as awards from 
     the food industry and other organizations. The one that says 
     it best, however, is from the Cosmopolitan Club, which 
     saluted Evan Sholl in 1982 as `the citizen who has performed 
     the most outstanding, unselfish service to the Washington 
     Metropolitan Community.'

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