Reader: The Furr's selection was divine for a very young man -- simply divine

Furr's got its start in New Mexico in 1946, when Roy Furr opened his first spot in Hobbs. From there it grew into a regional chain of family restaurants, ultimately morphing from Furr's Cafetaria to Furr's Fresh Buffet & Family Dining. But today if you want to dine at any...

By Patricia Calhoun

January 29, 2014

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Furr's got its start in New Mexico in 1946, when Roy Furr opened his first spot in Hobbs. From there it grew into a regional chain of family restaurants, ultimately morphing from Furr's Cafetaria to Furr's Fresh Buffet & Family Dining. But today if you want to dine at any Furr's, your closest option is back in New Mexico -- the last Furr's has closed in Colorado. Its disappearance brought back a lot of memories for Denver native Bree Davies, who writes: "But that's the problem with a place like Furr's Cafeteria -- it is celebrated for what it used to be, a place frozen in a time when jello is still considered a side item (not just a thing you eat when you're sick and your body can only process red dye #40-colored collagen from pigs)." Her memories of Furr's inspired many more.

Says Douglas:

My family struggled financially when I was a child. Still, once a month we went out to eat and it was at Furr's. The selection was divine for a very young man. Simply divine.

Says Christie:

I will always have fond memories of Furr's and Wyatt's. Nothing said weekend at Grandma and Grandpa's like a stop at one of these locations. It was a kids heaven! Mac and cheese, mashed potatoes and gravy, turkey and endless dessert. Sure, as I've grown into adulthood and my palate has developed significantly, that would not be a favored choice. However, I would give anything to have one more dinner with my now passed loved ones at any of these places. Bittersweet memories.

And Beth not only has memories, but a good explanation of why Furr's is gone:

We ate there a lot when I was a kid, and when my kids were little. Always makes me think of family. The food used to be good, but I the past ten years or so, the food quality went down, and the servers slopped your food in a dish, like they were pissed off that you were there. We finally quit eating there.

Did you eat at Furr's? What other old-time places do you miss?

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Patricia Calhoun is editor-in-chief of Westword, the alt-weekly she co-founded in September 1977. She’s been inducted into the Colorado Press Association Hall of Fame, the Association of Alternative Newsmedia Hall of Fame and the Colorado Restaurant Association Hall of Fame. She’s also received dozens of local, state and national awards for writing, including first place for feature writing and first place for column writing with the Society of Professional Journalists. Patricia is a weekly commentator on Colorado Inside Out, PBS 12's public affairs roundtable, which has won two Emmys.

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