Bob's Big Boy is a restaurant chain that started in the 1930s. I think I first heard about them when I was in high school in the mid-'60s and remember being absolutely stunned that they had two patties in one hamburger sandwich...so innovative!
After I got married and my kids were old enough for us to enjoy a restaurant experience, we would go there. After trick-or-treating one particular Halloween when they were about four and five, we went there. My son was the cowboy, and my daughter was the little witch all dressed in black. In those days, they were young enough to share a fish and chips dinner and be full afterwards. They passed along the salad to one of us because neither of them wanted it. Of course, we had to take a picture next to the tall Bob's Big Boy statue out front. My husband and I remember when the time came for them to each get their own dinner. They were growing up.
Years later, when my husband and I were at the brink of breaking up, I took the kids to Bob's Big Boy for lunch, and I told them what was about to happen. They were 12 and 13 at the time. My daughter, unusually quiet, sat there, just absorbing the words; but my son spoke up. He said, "Great. That's all I need...divorced parents." My heart vaporized within me.
Back then, I was singing nearly every night in a local rock band, so the kids stayed with their dad, in their own home. He worked weekends, so I spent most of mine with the kids. We enjoyed the local mountains or the beach or Balboa Park; but quite often, those weekends included a meal at Bob's Big Boy, so we collected many more memories.
These days, sighting a Bob's Big Boy is quite rare, but there is still one in town, so I invited my son, his wife, and their two daughters for dinner tonight. We oohed and ahhed over the Original Big Boy Combo and the hot fudge cake dessert on the menu, looking the same as they had more then 20 years earlier.
Kevin and I laughed together has he told his two daughters, ages nine and five, about him progressing from sharing a meal with his sister, to having his own combo plate, to moving on to the spaghetti with chili. Lily dabbled at eating her mac and cheese; but Kyra had the best applesauce and the best cheeseburger (only meat and cheese for her) ever! We found out that kids eat for free, so you know they'll be back.
And, once more, my son and I stood out front next to the Bob's Big Boy statue and took photos.
Tonight at dinner, I got the warm glow of having a reunion—not just with family, not just with one of my children, but with my entire past and with my children as teenagers and youngsters.
Bob's Big Boy proved to be more than just another restaurant tonight. It was a "Way Back" Machine of sorts, taking us 'way back' into happy memories while creating yet another for us to tuck away for future smiles.
