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(Hunger) pangs over Valencia

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By Steve Otto Steve Otto

sotto@tampatrib.com sotto@tampatrib.com

Published: June 15, 2009

Far and away the most popular subject in the mailbag last week was the news of the closing of Tampa's historic Valencia Garden restaurant. Many of you mourned the loss of another part of our lives. Some of you just wanted to know where to go to eat now.

•Alice Funk wrote: "My family relocated here from Greenville, S.C., when Donaldson Air Force Base closed. MacDill AFB and Tampa became our home. In fact, Mom still lives in our growing-up home today in South Tampa. My dad (who has since passed) was friends with (Valencia founder) Manuel Beiro and our family frequented the Valencia so often that we all knew when a birthday, wedding or any celebration was coming we were going to the Valencia.

So surreal ... Mom was calling the Valencia all day yesterday as we were planning a birthday for my daughter. ... Now we know why nobody answered."

•I really enjoyed this letter from Jay Wisler.

"In the late 1980s I was actively involved in collecting and restoring WWII aircraft and related parts. Somehow (former Trib history editor) Leland Hawes got hold of me and did an article about my hobby. As a result I was contacted by Leonard Little about a visit to my house. The following day he arrived to see my B-24 turret collection. After a short conversation about his interest in turrets he wanted to see mine. Of course he had to see the tail turret first.

"As he looked at the turret, I could see a tear in his eyes. He asked if he could sit in the turret for a moment. We had a little trouble getting him in, probably just real cramped quarters I thought.

"Then came the rest of the story. This was the first time he had been in a tail turret since that fateful day in 1944. He told the same story you repeated in your column (about losing a leg and then parachuting from the dying plane). I have been in business since 1982 and heard many stories like his, but his is at the top."

•Ruth Frazier has a question for those who've been around for more than a few years.

"I remember an old swing out bridge my Dad worked on when I was in high school about 1913. My dad and one other worker had to unlock the bridge, then get a long steel pole (about 10 to 12 feet long) and put it into a socket; then walk around and around until the bridge was open. Then they had to reverse the process to close the bridge.

"It was called the Garcia Street Bridge as at that time the road dead-ended at Garcia Street and you had to turn right to get to Boulevard. Now there is a free-standing bridge on Boulevard. The men worked 24 hours on and 12 off. My dad's partner was called Dave Ducain. Are there any old Tampans who remember this?"

•Finally, Fred Jacobsen of Ruskin has some questions about the breadth of the Tampa Bay History Center's coverage.

"Steve ... Did you see anything there about Ruskin? Neither did I, except for a 'Heart of Ruskin' label on a stack of vegetable crates." He goes on to mention the "Capture of Juan Ortiz by Uzita Indians and his rescue by the chief's daughter (50 years before John Smith and Pocahontas); 50 years of the Ruskin Tomato Festival, the old Ruskin College, and the late Coffee Cup Restaurant."

I think he's right about remembering the Coffee Cup and its magnificent cream pies.

Keyword: Otto Graphs, for more of Steve Otto's musings.

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