Schlotzsky’s rolling door onto the patio. Photo by Carol Toler.
Steve Cole doesn’t just want you to have a Schlotzsky’s at his new store on Greenville Avenue. He wants you to have a bout of nostalgia.
Cole is opening his new sandwich shop in the spot known to longtime Dallasites as the Filling Station at 6862 Greenville Avenue (near Park Lane). That restaurant, so named because it first opened as a gas station in 1925, famously served Bonnie and Clyde during their crime spree heyday, but also served generations of SMU students, dating couples and yuppies riding Dallas’ financial waves (both up and down) beginning in 1975.
“I put a ton of effort into saving the old,” says the Lake Highlands resident, “including preserving the original brick and the original wood floors. There were 40 years of floors, all at different heights put in at different times as they expanded the building. I told want them I don’t want them sanded perfect, I just want you to get rid of the trip hazards.”
Cole restored the burger joint’s signature neon sign and he installed a rolling garage door out front, maintaining the “filling station feel.” It opens up to tables and chairs on the patio.
“That was an original opening,” says Cole. “I met Jeb Loveless, the grandson of the original owners, and he sent me pictures from the 1930s, 40s and 60s. He pumped gas there in 1964 for his grandparents. On nice days, that door will be up.”
Schlotzsky’s won’t be serving the Filling Station’s famous (notorious?) Tune Up alcoholic beverages or Peel Out potato skins but will have the Schlotzsky’s Original we’ve all come to love. (I really must branch out – I always seem to order the Albuquerque Turkey with roasted peppers, chipotle mayo and the jalapeno cheese bun. Yum!) Cole closed his Greenville and Caruth Haven store to make this move and says opening day will be Feb. 25.
The Filling Station’s signature neon sign. Photo by Carol Toler.
New Schlotzsky’s Greenville Avenue. Photo by Carol Toler.
The old Filling Station.
Inside the old Filling Station.
