At St. Pete Rising, we are constantly providing comprehensive coverage on everything new and coming soon to the Sunshine City, but we think it’s also important to take a look back at our city's rich history.

Historically St. Pete, a monthly column on St. Pete Rising written by Executive Director of the St. Petersburg Museum of History Rui Farias, covers everything from the legend of underground mobster tunnels to the buildings and people that created the Sunshine City.

This month we look back at the rise of cafeteria culture that swept through the Sunshine City in the 1910s and 1920s.

Orange Blossom Cafeteria, located at 220 4th Street North | St Petersburg MUseum of History

Walk around downtown today and it’s impossible not to notice the surge of new restaurants in St. Petersburg. One hundred years ago if you walked these same city streets, you would have witnessed a similar culinary explosion.

But opening throughout downtown in the 1920s weren’t taco joints, Asian fusion restaurants, or sandwich shops. Instead, residents and visitors celebrated the birth of the cafeteria culture in the Sunshine City.

We’re not talking about your high school cafeteria. These were surprisingly elegant restaurants that provided delicious home-cooked, affordable meals with military-like efficiency.

This concept, although foreign to Florida, was perfect for a city that saw its population nearly double during the winter months with snowbirds filling downtown hotels, apartment buildings, and boarding houses.

Tramor Cafeteria, located at 123 4th STreet South | St Petersburg MUseum of History

Although the cafeterias came in all sizes and themes, the concept was the same. You stood in line with your tray and chose from entrees like fresh Gulf snapper, melt-in-your-mouth roast beef, or the ever-reliable Salisbury steak. And of course there was an abundance of vegetables, salads, potatoes, and desserts to choose from.

Dinner was less than a dollar, plus a 10-cent tip for a friendly staff member who carried your tray to the table. All of this with many cafeterias offering live musical performances during the meal.

Dinner may have been the favorite meal with some cafeterias serving more than 2,000 people daily, but lunch and breakfast were popular with the downtown work crowd. Most cafeterias offered their favorite breakfast meals for less than 25 cents.

The Garden Cafeteria, located at 232 2nd Street North | St Petersburg MUseum of History

By 1928 there were at least 26 cafeterias within walking distance of each other on or near Central Avenue.

On 1st Avenue North there was the Dixie, Crown, Driftwood, and Home Dairy. Central Avenue boasted Morrison’s, Atlantic, Spanish Bob’s, Myer’s, Palmetto, and Merritt’s.

Over time residents and visitors would choose their favorites and become loyal regulars. But four of these eateries off Central Avenue became the talk of the town—the Orange Blossom, The Garden, Tramor, and Webb’s Old South.

When it came to price wars, which these cafeterias frequently engaged in, nobody could compete with Webb’s located off Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street and 1st Avenue South. Doc Webb would sell meals for pennies knowing it would lure customers into shopping in his numerous stores and departments at Webb’s City.

Driftwood Cafeteria on 34th Street and 1st Avenue South | St Petersburg MUseum of History

The Garden, located at 232 2nd Street North, was originally a Baptist Tabernacle—until its food became almost as famous as its walls. Inside its jungle-themed dining room, murals painted by famed Works Progress Administration (WPA) artist George Snow Hill adorned the walls. The Garden was eventually demolished to make way for a Sundial parking lot.

The Mediterranean Revival building at 123 4th Street South was home to the Tramor Cafeteria. Its wrought iron balconies, fountains, Spanish tile and star-lit painted ceilings made it feel like you were dining alfresco in a Spanish courtyard.

Named as an advertising ploy—promising more food on your tray—the Tramor was purchased by the St. Petersburg Times in 1981 and acted as the newspaper’s cafeteria for years before being sold to the short-lived Hofbrauhaus Beer Garden.

Growing up in, and roaming the streets of downtown since 1967, the Tramor was my favorite. I can still picture the chef in the big white hat slicing the roast beef by hand.

A 1941 ad in the Times for Webb’s City christmas dinner | St Petersburg MUseum of History

The Orange Blossom, located at 220 4th Street North, didn’t rely on glitz and gimmicks, but on the quality of its food. Outlasting its competitors, the restaurant closed in 1986, later operating as a catering and banquet hall before being sold in 2016 and reopening as Voodoo Brewing Co.

In 1942 the city’s cafeterias became an integral part of the war effort. Over 100,000 service members invaded St. Petersburg for World War II military training. Our famous cafeterias were transformed into eloquent mess halls, feeding hungry soldiers.

As downtown St. Pete began to suffer economically in the late 1960s and 1970s, so did the cafeteria culture. Fewer retirees were spending the winters downtown, opting for senior living communities around the county.

Shopping centers popped up in the suburbs and eventually in 1972, a shiny new Tyrone Square Mall opened.

By the late 1980s “God’s Waiting Room” was nearly vacant, and the last of the once treasured downtown cafeterias served their final meals.