Jessie’s – Royal Cafe – Golden Crown

This shuttered business in Castor Alberta has had many names over the years – Jessie’s Cafe – Royal Cafe – Golden Crown – but later tenants never bothered to change the old sign. It goes back something close to seventy five years (give or take) and maybe kept out of sentiment or just for budget reasons. In any case it adds to the vintage vibe of the old place and that’s something we all like.

Jessie’s (et al) is every bit the archetype of small prairie town eatery, that offered unpretentious stick-to-your ribs fare, and amazingly it remained in business well into the 2010s. Let’s jump forward to the Royal Cafe, however, which first makes mention in the early 1950s. We’ll get back to the other in a moment. We’re using old phone books for reference and these are a pretty solid way to track the lineage of a business in modern times. Back then you might hear locals call the restaurant Lew’s (or Lewie’s) and this was in reference to the owner Bob Lew.

Even after Lew sold the business (to one Leo Chang), the Lew’s/Lewie’s nickname still stuck around for a time it seems. The Royal Cafe remained in business into the early 1980s although for a year in the early ’70s does not make mention in directories. Perhaps it was sold in the interim, or who knows what?

Royal Cafe was a common name for small town “Chinese & Western” eateries and there were several using the same name in this region of Alberta. Interestingly there was an earlier Royal Cafe in Castor, elsewhere in town, back in the early days, but there’s otherwise no connection between the two.

The building, as was common at the time, had a set up with an upstairs apartment as living space for the owner and family. At some point a single story block addition was added to the back of the building. What’s up with that shed up there, that looks suspiciously like an outhouse? No, it’s something else…please…tell me it’s something else.

The Golden Crown came on the scene in the early 1980s and remained in business until 2017 when the owner retired. It was affectionately known as Andy’s after its long time owner Andy Wong, and even today seems more know by this moniker than the actual trade name. We spoke with locals and when we called it by it official title many sounded puzzled, until we clarified it further. “Oh, Andy’s?” That place – yes!

It seems Andy was well liked in the community and the food at the Golden Crown got good ratings. Keep in mind, it was a dive and nothing more and not a place for trendy cuisine. Think feedbag. They had typical offerings, burgers, fries ‘n’ gravy, plenty of coffee, and North American-ized Chinese fare. All the usual suspects are there and you know, sticky red sauce rules out in the country! We’ve eaten at countless places just like this, in small towns, and there’s a marked similarity between them all – just an observation. Similar menu, similar décor, similar vibe and that strikes us as uncanny.

The current Google Streetview images from Castor show the building with a for sale sign out front but that’s gone now. It’s an old structure, certainly in need of repair and no doubt a tough sell. Did they simply give up? Note the steel-bar brace on one side that’s helping prop up a buckling wall. It’s sagging as you can see and there can’t be a straight edge or square corner in the entire place.

Back to Jessie’s now. It’s the earliest known incarnation of this business, but still, it makes no mention in old phone books. By default, though, it has to be before the other two. In the old days, a small town business serving a local market didn’t always need a phone line to make a go of it. Everyone knew who you were, your hours, your business and every other aspect of your life no matter how private or personal. Small town talk predates the Internet and is still quicker than 5G.

We did find a brief newspaper piece referencing Jessie’s, circa 1948, but that’s all we got. One can assume they operated at least until the Royal Cafe phase, but for how long before is unknown. We chatted with a neon sign expert and they think it to be of the era just after the war, so that fits. It’s in rough shape and with only a few segments of neon tubing left. Bet it looked good when new and lit up.

So the trail ends, for now and we’re left with holes in the timeline. The further we go back, the more clouded the info, so it’s not surprising. Still, we hate coming up empty like this and wish we had the time or resources to dig deeper.

The Jessie’s Cafe – Royal Cafe – Golden Crown building is clad in that fake block tar paper popular in the old days. One wall is of textured metal cladding, however.

Castor, in Central Alberta, dates back to about 1910 (with the coming of the railway) and present day home to about eight hundred folks. The Jessie’s Cafe – Royal Cafe – Golden Crown building seems to date back early in the town’s history and a couple old postcards were found showing it somewhere in the background in images from the 1910s. It looks much as it does today, but it’s unclear what firms were active there at the time. It’s too far in the distance to make anything out. Jessie’s (et al) sits at the far end of downtown and on the main street (50th).

It’s possible it’s been a restaurant most of the time or maybe functioned as something else. Old phone books are rather silent on the subject, but the further we go back, the less help these directories are. Rural business often did without an outside connection, as eluded to before, and it was not necessary when the market was strictly local and everyone knew you anyway.

Just up the street another old building advertising Castor’s homecoming in 2010. No doubt it’s an old structure too, clearly home to a business at some point, and perhaps one day we’ll scan phone books for a hit. We’re curious that way and often need very little convincing.

If one craves a little Chow mein or ginger beef, there’s still a different restaurant in town you can patronize. Locals mention it’s pretty darn good in it’s own right, but go on to say it ain’t no Andy’s (or Lew’s). It seems everyone we spoke with lamented the loss of this eatery and were eager to chat on the subject.

The road calls and we turn for one last look. Painting a picture in the mind’s eye and look a that, Andy’s is open once again, but only for tonight. The dinner rush is in full swing – mom, dad, the cousins from out of town, plus all the kids – it’s noisy and chaotic. Let’s order something exotic…”Pork Balls, said in unison”! Old timers gather for coffee and their daily, often heated chit-chat on the subject of politics, grain prices and whatever. Deere vs Massey! Them’s fighting words.

The Leafs are on the box, but no one can hear it and anyway the pictures all scratchy. Put some foil on the antenna and that’ll help with reception.

Andy’s holding down the fort single-handily, as it’s said he always did, and in spite of the mayhem, somehow keeps up. The Golden Crown (Jessie’s) is lit up like a Christmas Tree and while there’s nothing else going on in downtown Castor, here it’s joyous mayhem. If only for a few hours…or so we imagine and now it’s all quiet again.

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More small town awesomeness…
Catonio’s Groceteria.
Downtown Bassano.
Random Rowley.
Downtown Hilda.

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Date of adventure: May, 2022.
Location: Castor, AB.
Article references and thanks: Medicine Hat & District Genealogical Society, a number of Castor locals, neon sign expert Paul and the town of Castor Alberta.

Jessie’s – Royal Cafe – Golden Crown: Castor Alberta.

Just up a the block.

The backside view – owners lived upstairs.

What’s up with that outhouse looking structure?

Old power lines.

A brace helps secure a buckling wall.

The old sign was never replaced.

From the mid-1980s.

It remained in business into the 2010s.