Tag: The Peanut Shoppe

Categories
Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

The Peanut Shoppe to Reopen Saturday, March 12th

The Peanut Shoppe owner Rida AbuZaineh is getting the new location in shape for the grand opening. (Credit: Michael Donahue)

The Peanut Shoppe will hold the grand opening for its new Downtown location at 121 South Main Street at 11a.m. Saturday, March 12th and Sunday, March 13th.

“We’re giving popcorn all day long,” says owner Rida AbuZaineh. “Complimentary bags of popcorn.”

The new Downtown location of The Peanut Shoppe. (Credit: Michael Donahue)

The original store at 24 South Main Street closed Christmas Eve, 2021.

AbuZaineh says he wasn’t told until a few months before the sale that the building was going to be sold and turned into apartments and condos.

 The new store has the same space as the old business, but it’s in a different shape, he says. It’s more rectangular, more spacious in the front.

While it’s in a different design, everything about The Peanut Shoppe’s new location gives it the feel of the old location.

The wallpaper with the peanut design is back because AbuZaineh used some extra leftover rolls.

The same cabinets are back. “We just laid them down in a horseshoe shape. We just gave it a new look. We cleaned them.

“We added some new cabinets to help us during Christmastime for the gift items. And also for storage.”

“The Peanut Shoppe” sign on the south wall originally was on the front of the old location. “‘The Peanut Shoppe’ is the old awning. And we salvaged it. We wanted it to be a curtain to divide the store. To hide the back from the front. The storage area. Unfortunately, I couldn’t clean it well because of the elements.

“We cut the name ‘The Peanut Shoppe’ and we trimmed it and we supported it.”

And, he says, “We painted the corners and we put it up above the frying area on the south wall. There are future plans to add to that, but I’m going to keep it a secret. A surprise.”

“The Peanut Shoppe” sign from the old location’s awning adorns one wall at the new store. (Credit: Michael Donahue)

The most iconic piece from the old location also stands in front of the south wall. That’s the roaster with the life-size – or maybe bigger – Mr. Peanut straddling it like he’s riding a horse. “I gave it a little bit of a clean-up look. And greased it and oiled it. And I already tested it twice and it’s working perfectly.”

The roaster with Mr. Peanut astride it is back at the new location. (Credit: Michael Donahue)

AbuZaineh will include the equally-iconic sign that accompanies the roaster: “Hi there! I’m Mr. Peanut! I was born in 1947 & my roaster was born in 1929! Please don’t hurt us; WE’RE FRAGILE!”

The Mr. Peanut roaster is “the life and the soul of The Peanut Shoppe. Without it we are nothing. The Peanut Shoppe is the roaster. The roaster is The Peanut Shoppe itself.”

Mr. Peanut from The Peanut Shoppe roaster. (Credit: Michael Donahue)
The Peanut Shoppe owner Rida AbuZaineh. (Credit: Michael Donahue)

Customers might think the large red “Peanuts” letters on the center wall were on view somewhere in the old location, but they weren’t. “No, it was stored.”

The sign dates “probably from either the early ‘50s or late ‘40s. Or maybe longer. Nobody told me about it. I inherited that with the store when we bought it years ago.”

The letters originally were neon, but AbuZaineh covered it with LED lights.

The shiny new floor is the color of peanuts.

The Peanut Shoppe’s previous location, which opened in 1949, was the second store opened by Planters in Memphis, AbuZaineh says. He heard it originally was on Madison before moving to Main Street in 1951, but he’s not sure.

The Abuzaineh and Lauck families became owners and partners of the establishment on January 8th, 1993.

Some new additions to the shop are the photos and memorabilia of Memphis and The Peanut Shoppe. “Little by little we’re adding more stuff to it. It will be related to Memphis.”

Owner Rida AbuZaineh points out memorabilia about Memphis and The Peanut Shoppe that are on view at the store’s new location. (Credit: Michael Donahue)

The center wall also is dotted with colorful tins of candy and nuts. “This is part of our job, marketing and advertising. We do gift items. So, we had different designers. Different sizes.”

Asked how he felt now that The Peanut Shoppe is about to reopen, AbuZaineh says, “I feel optimistic. A little bit tired.”

But AbuZaineh is ready to get behind the counter and start selling candy, nuts, and popcorn again.

And making memories for a new generation of children, who will think of the new location of  “The Peanut Shoppe” as their own Downtown treasure.

Categories
Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

The Peanut Shoppe About to Open at New Location

The “Peanuts” sign on the old building is up for grabs with some compensation for the business, owner Rida AbuZaineh says. (Courtesy The Peanut Shoppe)

Wake up and smell the peanuts. 

The Peanut Shoppe is about to open in its new location at 121 South Main Street.

“If everything goes fine with the red tape and inspections and protocol, maybe — only God knows — in about three weeks,” says owner Rida AbuZaineh.

The original store, a downtown landmark at 24 South Main Street, closed December 31st. That store, which opened in 1949, was the second store opened by Planters in Memphis, AbuZaineh says. He heard it originally was on Madison before moving to Main Street in 1951, but he’s not sure. He says he wasn’t told until a few months before the sale that the building was going to be sold and would be turned into apartments and condos.

Generations of Memphians grew up buying peanuts and candy at the long, narrow shop near Court Square. As for the new shop, which is where the old Center for Southern Folklore was located, AbuZaineh says, “It is roomier. The same space in total like the old business, but a different shape. This is more rectangular, more spacious in the front. And I am putting everything back where it was before, but a different design. A different layout. Little by little adding other stuff.”

The new location of The Peanut Shoppe at 121 South Main Street. (Courtesy The Peanut Shoppe)

He wants to “make the space useful,” AbuZaineh says. He doesn’t want to waste any part of it.

“It looks amazing. At this moment we are stripping the whole floor. And we are putting in a new floor on top of the old terrazzo floor, which was hidden under glue and old paint.”

The new floor will be “the colors of peanuts,” AbuZaineh says.

“There’s a new paint job inside.” That will also be the colors of peanuts as well as “three colors from the wallpaper.”

That’s one of the surprises for customers, who remember the old wallpaper with the peanut design that was in the other shop, AbuZaineh says. The wallpaper for the new store is “the same quality, the same kind, but I did not rip it off the wall. We had a few rolls saved out of it. And I say it was made in either the late ’40s or early ’50s.”

Familiar peanut wallpaper will be part of the decor at the new location of The Peanut Shoppe. (Courtesy The Peanut Shoppe)

Also, AbuZaineh says, “We gave a new facelift to the glass cases. And we have added a number of new cabinets adjacent to the walls behind the serving counters. 

“The only thing I’m missing here is the front store shelves. I don’t have a window case.”

As for other fixtures, AbuZaineh says, “We were supposed to have an old Planters Peanuts neon sign inside, but, unfortunately, it broke. And there’s no way it can be fixed. Neon is more expensive these days. It’s gone. It’s bits and pieces.”

But there will be a replacement, he says. “We’re also keeping it a surprise.”

What about the mechanical Mr. Peanut that tapped on the glass in the front window at the old location? “He was not the original,” AbuZaineh says. The one that was at the old shop before it closed was a copy. And it was broken. AbuZaineh couldn’t find someone who could put a new motor in it. “The other one used to tap 12 times a minute. This one, before it broke, tapped only three times a minute. See how slow it is? It’s not powerful and makes noise like the other one.”

So far, nobody has taken the huge “Peanuts” sign on the front of the old building, AbuZaineh says. “Nobody is serious about it. I’m willing to give it for free if they just compensate a little. Just a donation for the history of the shop. Just to cover some of the expenses. Come and grab it if you want. I found out the sign came from the first Peanut Shoppe in New York. The first Peanut Shoppe that opened in New York.”

The “Peanuts” sign on the old building is up for grabs with some compensation for the business, owner Rida AbuZaineh says. (Courtesy The Peanut Shoppe)

Asked how he felt, AbuZaineh says, “I feel good, but I’m feeling very dry. I hope I don’t run out of money.”

Categories
Food & Wine Food & Drink

Popular Restaurants Mixed it up in 2021

Pantà dining room (Photo: Pantà/Caleb Sigler)

An interesting aspect of the 2021 Memphis food scene was the number of heavy hitters making changes to their restaurants.

Kelly English decided to move his popular Restaurant Iris to the space previously occupied by The Grove Grill in Laurelwood. In June, English said in a Flyer interview that the new location is a much bigger space. “The dining room in Laurelwood is bigger than the entire property Iris is on,” he said.

He opened Pantà in Iris’ location at 2146 Monroe Avenue in October. English told the Flyer he went with a Catalonian concept. It was something he wanted to do since he took a six-month trip in his early twenties to Barcelona. “I really do love this type of food and the way they live,” he said. “And what we want is to be known as a later-night establishment.”

Explaining the name, English said, “Pantà is the Catalonian word for ‘swamp,’ which is reflected in the mural around the bar. Growing up in Louisiana, swamps played a big part of my youth. Mostly my mom trying to keep me out of them.”

English plans to open the new Iris at 4550 Poplar Avenue “right around Easter. We are thrilled to see that come together.”

Chef Jason Severs and his wife Rebecca moved Bari Ristorante e Enoteca from its old location in Cooper-Young to 524 South Cooper. The new location, which opened in August, is more than 300 square feet bigger. They can still seat 40 people in the dining room, but they also can seat 40 more outside on the patio and more people at the bar in the front of the restaurant.

The new restaurant features wide, open spaces as opposed to the old restaurant, which, Jason said in a Flyer interview, was “a bunch of different, small rooms.” And Rebecca said, “You couldn’t expand there.”

The food is the same as what they served at the old location, Jason said. “Southeastern Italian. Lots of fresh vegetables. From the earth. All local when we can.”

Chefs Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman, who own several restaurants, reopened their popular Hog & Hominy at 707 West Brookhaven Circle after a fire in January 2020. The restaurant was rebuilt. It opened in November.

In a Flyer interview, general manager Evan Potts said the new restaurant is about twice as large. They expanded it as far as it would go in all directions.

Hudman said he told his wife how the restaurant now has an “old Art Deco diner feel.” That rings true, from its silver metal lettered sign out front to the fluted light fixtures in the dining room and the general vibe.

They are serving Neapolitan-inspired pizzas and “fun takes on traditional Italian fare,” Potts said. And their craft cocktails, which the establishment is known for.

Finally, it’s not a restaurant per se, but people have been known to eat inside. Or maybe just pop a few cashews in their mouth. The Peanut Shoppe is closing at the end of the year at its old location at 24 South Main Street, where it has stood since — co-owner Rida AbuZaineh believes — 1951, and moving to its new location at 121 South Main.

AbuZaineh told the Flyer they weren’t informed until a few months before that the building where his shop is now located was going to be sold. It will be turned into apartments and condos, he said.

The new location is similar to the current location. “The new one is rectangular shape. This one is rectangular shape but so narrow. The width is the difference … three times the width of this narrow store.”

AbuZaineh said he will be open “through Christmas Eve. It’s an excellent day if it falls on the weekend like it does this year. We are always the last people to leave the area.”

Which means Santa will have plenty of time to stock up on nuts and candy to fill all those stockings.

Categories
Hungry Memphis Uncategorized

The Peanut Shoppe’s “Peanuts” Sign Still For Sale

The "Peanuts" sign on the front of The Peanut Shoppe (Credit: Rida AbuZaineh)

The giant “Peanuts” sign on the front of the building that houses The Peanut Shoppe is still for sale.

As far as he knows, the sign will not move when The Peanut Shoppe moves early next year from 24 South Main Street to its new location at 121 South Main Street, says co-owner Rida AbuZaineh. His last day at the old location will be December 24th. He hopes to be in the new shop in January.

He’s had offers for the sign, but, AbuZaineh says, “I don’t think anybody is serious about it.”

They’re curious, he says, and they will ask, “How much do you want for it?”

But, AbuZaineh says, “They did not get back. I never gave them a price. I said I’ll work with them.”

He doesn’t want the iconic sign to end up in a scrapyard.

The sign, which spans two stories on the front of the building, is “really valuable. It used to belong to a Planters factory. I believe so. Somewhere in Michigan. They had branches in different areas of the country.”

They originally got two signs, had them restored, and combined them into one sign in the ’90s, AbuZaineh says.

The sign is made of thin metal with plastic trimming and colorful lights. The letters are in blue and the background is white. The major frame is yellow with yellow flickering lights, which go in sequence. The sign is not neon; the letters are lit underneath.

The Peanut Shoppe opened in 1948. AbuZaineh heard it originally opened on Madison before moving to Main Street in 1951, but he’s not sure. The AbuZaineh and Lauck families became owners and partners of the establishment on January 8th, 1993.

AbuZaineh says they weren’t told until a few months before the sale that the building where his shop is now located was going to be sold. It will be turned into apartments and condos, he says.

“We shall be operating and serving you through Christmas Eve,” AbuZaineh says. “Come on down and walk through memory lane. It is an end of an era for this historical location.”

And, he says, “I have never missed a Christmas Eve in the 29 years I have been here. That is the truth. God is my witness.”

Categories
Hungry Memphis Uncategorized

The Peanut Shoppe Prepares to Move to New Location

The iconic Mr. Peanut at The Peanut Shoppe (Credit: Rida AbuZaineh)

Yes, the peanut roaster with the giant Mr. Peanut astride it is moving to The Peanut Shoppe’s new location at 121 South Main.

“It’s a four-minute walk from the shop to the south end of the West side of Main Street,” says owner Rida AbuZaineh. “It used to be the Center for Southern Folklore. It’s next door to Maggie Moo’s ice cream. It’s in Pembroke Place.”

And, he says, “I’m excited, but I’m running out of time.”

His last day at the old location at 24 South Main will be December 31st. He hopes to be in the new shop in January. “The sooner the better,” he says.

The Peanut Shoppe opened in 1948. AbuZaineh says he heard it originally opened on Madison, before moving to Main Street in 1951, but he’s not sure. The AbuZaineh and Lauck families became owners and partners of the establishment on January 8th, 1993.

AbuZaineh says they weren’t told the 24 South Main Street building was going to be sold until a few months ago. It will be turned into apartments and condos, he says.

AbuZaineh thinks the new location will be better. “It’s more congested there,” AbuZaineh says, adding there is a new hotel planned for across the street, the post office is next door, and there is a bank nearby. “There’s more foot traffic in that area.” 

His new location is similar to his current location. “This one is a rectangular shape but so narrow,” he says. “The width is the difference. The [new store] width is three times the width of this narrow store. The Belz family who own the building are so kind and helpful to work with us and support us.”

Asked what will go to the new store, AbuZaineh says, “The roaster and the glass roaster. All has to move. I’ll add more counters and cabinet tops.”

Mr. Peanut at The Peanut Shoppe (Credit: Rida AbuZaineh)

And, he says, “I’ll have more space behind the counter to maneuver around. Over here it’s very tight. Especially at Christmas time. There’s only one counter to do all my gift-packaging.”

As for that roaster, AbuZaineh says, “The Peanut Shoppe is the roaster. The roaster is The Peanut Shoppe. Without it, The Peanut Shoppe is nothing. They think it was made in 1928. It’s a unique piece — a smaller version of the standard size. It’s operated by gas.”

The Mr. Peanut statue, known as “The Rider,” which sits on the roaster, is made of Fiberglass and papier mache, AbuZaineh says. “The estimation is it was made when they started to make them around 1947.”

AbuZaineh attached a sign years ago that says, “Hi, there. I’m Mr. Peanut. I was born in 1947 and my roaster was born in 1928. Please do not hurt us. We are fragile.”

Mr. Peanut on the roaster at The Peanut Shoppe (Credit: Rida AbuZaineh)

So far, AbuZaineh hasn’t sold the enormous “Peanuts” sign on the front of the building. He hopes somebody will buy it so it won’t go for scrap.

Meanwhile, it’s business as usual for AbuZaineh, who was popping fresh corn for a customer as he talked. He’s had “lots of mental and physical support and financial support from the good people down there in Memphis. I’m not going to deny it. I’m so grateful to them. How to repay these people, I don’t know. I’ve been serving this community forever. This is another boost for me to continue with my service.”

Categories
Hungry Memphis

Who Wants to Buy The Peanut Shoppe Sign?

The Peanut Shoppe sign is for sale. (Credit: The Peanut Shoppe)

“You see the big sign on the building where it says ‘Peanuts?” asks The Peanut Shoppe co-owner and long-time manager Rida AbuZaineh. “Who wants to buy a peanut sign?”

AbuZaineh is selling the gigantic arrow-shaped sign that vertically spells “Peanuts,” which graces the front of his legendary Downtown store. “That goes towards generating some money.”

The Peanut Shoppe at 24 South Main Street will close December 31st, AbuZaineh says. The building was sold and he’ll be forced to move.

The sign, which points downward, is “two-story height. The sign by itself. It’s a three-story building.”

Recounting the sign’s history,  AbuZaineh recalls, “We got it up in the early ‘90s. Either ’94 or ’95. But we got it from a factory and there were two signs. We got them and we had them restored and put them together in order to make it work. If I’m not mistaken, I think the name was Memphis Sign Co.”

The sign, he says, is made of “thin metal, a little bit of plastic trimming and those colorful lights. Blue lettering. White background behind it. The major frame is yellow with yellow lights. Those flicker. Go in sequence. It’s not neon. They are lit underneath the letters.”

(Credit: Mariah McCabe)

They had to have a crane move it, AbuZaineh says. The letters are all part of one sign. They don’t come off individually. “The facing of the letters come off in case we need to change the lightbulbs.”

Those are who interested in the sign can come by and talk to him, AbuZaineh says. “I don’t believe anywhere we go we can put it up, honestly.”

Whoever buys it can wait until the end of the year to get it, or get it now. “We can have them take it down. Bring it down and show the community that we mean business. That this is going to be closed. The Peanut Shoppe on this location at 24 South Main Street will not be in existence by December 31st. The oldest business/landmark established on Main Street, it will be history. It will be the end of an era. We are forced to leave the premises. We have no other choice.”

The Peanut Shoppe at 24 South Main Street. (Credit: Mariah McCabe)

The store, which opened in 1949, was the second store opened by Planters in Memphis, AbuZaineh says. He heard it originally was on Madison before moving to Main Street in 1951, but he’s not sure.

The AbuZaineh and Lauck families officially became the owners and partners of the establishment on January 8th, 1993, he says. 

The Peanut Shoppe co-owner Rida AbuZaineh. (Credit: The Peanut Shoppe)

An engineer by trade, AbuZaineh had been in the restaurant business on the West Coast. When The Peanut Shoppe came up for sale in late 1992, AbuZaineh’s wife and brother-in-law came to Memphis for a visit. They looked at the shop while AbuZaineh stayed in California. Then they moved to Memphis.

Abuzaineh says they weren’t told until a few months before the sale that the building was going to be sold and would be turned into apartments and condos.

To date, around $8,125 has been raised on The Peanut Shoppe’s GoFundMe page.

And that ain’t peanuts.

“My brother-in-law and nephew from Canada participated in it. And also my nephew from Malaysia. They donated a good number.”

AbuZaineh is grateful to everyone “for participating and making it happen.”

As for The Peanut Shoppe signage, AbuZaineh says, “I have a neon sign inside. It’s a very, very, very old sign. It says ‘Planters Peanuts.’ It’s red.”

Is he keeping that one? “Heck, yeah. If I move to a new place, I will put the new transformer on it and we’ll display it lit all the time for our customers.”

An old sign inside The Peanut Shoppe. (Credit: The Peanut Shoppe)
(Credit: The Peanut Shoppe)
Categories
Hungry Memphis

Update on The Peanut Shoppe Closing

The Peanut Shoppe (Credit: Mariah McCabe)

People haven’t been banging down the door to buy peanuts and popcorn since the recent announcement about The Peanut Shoppe, closing its doors December 31st.

But that’s okay, says Rida AbuZaineh, manager/co-owner of the iconic business at 24 South Main Street.

“I’ll tell you why,” AbuZaineh says. “I’ve been in the business 29 years. August is a slow month because it’s back to school. Lots of kids this year are going back to school. Not virtual. They need uniforms, supplies, and so on. So, parents, they spend quite a bit on that. So, that’s why.”

And, he says, “This business thrives in the spring,  early summer, and the fall and Christmas. When the weather is nice for walking. That’s what it is. ‘Cause this business depends on walk-in traffic.”

That doesn’t mean people aren’t supporting him. His Peanut Shoppe social media pages blew up, he says. “Same day you did the article, Nurah (AbuZaineh’s daughter) posted something about the closing and finale of The Peanut Shoppe. And that post generated over 12,000 hits on Facebook. On Instagram, I don’t know. On Twitter, under 50,000.”

Lily Montague, he says, “started a GoFundMe behind my back. The reason [I haven’t done one] is I have pride and integrity. I’m not going to open my hand begging people for anything. But people say to me ‘Rida, it’s okay. You’re in need and you’re desperate and you’re penniless.’ Which is the truth.

“Now, this girl, she had the goal of $2,500. The first half a day she reached about $1,200. She renewed it again. Now, I think it’s up — until a couple of days ago ‘cause I only checked it twice since day one — to $4,500 ‘cause she raised the value to $5,000.”

The total is now up to $4,600.

The Peanut Shoppe opened in 1949. AbuZaineh heard it originally opened on Madison before moving to Main Street in 1951, but he’s not sure. The AbuZaineh and Lauck families became owners and partners of the establishment on January 8th, 1993.

Rida AbuZaineh and his pal, Mr. Peanut, at The Peanut Shoppe (Credit: Terry Jones)

AbuZaineh says they weren’t told until a few months before the sale that the building was going to be sold. It will be turned into apartments and condos, he says.

As for a new location for The Peanut Shoppe, AbuZaineh says,  “We don’t have a location. We have one more potential future location. We are trying to get there with the help of the owners of the building.”

People have told him, “Go to (the other end of) South Main,” AbuZaineh says. “I’m not going to wait for people to come home after 7 so I can open the doors for them.”

Others say, “Go to Beale Street.” AbuZaineh doesn’t want to “have some drunken people walk in my store. Come in with their drinks in their hand and show no respect. No.”

AbuZaineh stops and checks his GoFundMe Facebook page. “I swear to God. I just opened this. It’s only the third time I opened the page. The top spenders are 300, 250, 200, 100, 100, 100, 100, 100. I don’t know what to say.  I’m about to cry.”

The Peanut Shoppe (Cedit: Mariah McCabe)
Categories
Hungry Memphis Uncategorized

The Peanut Shoppe To Close, But Memories Remain

The Peanut Shoppe is closing December 31st. (Credit: Mariah McCabe)

It made me very sad when I read the email about The Peanut Shoppe at 24 South Main Street closing December 31st.

That’s not only because I grew up with that long, narrow magical place called The Peanut Shoppe; it also was my first job, and the hardest job I’ve ever had.

I first called The Little Tea Shop owner Suhair Lauck, who is one of the The Peanut Shoppe owners along with the Abuzaineh family. “What can I say?” she says. “They sold the building and we need to do something else with it [the business]. What can we do? But we have to go forward.”

Rida Abuzaineh, co-owner and longtime manager of the shop, has been running The Peanut Shoppe by himself with some help from his wife, Ameerah, and his daughter, Nurah, since March. “I cannot afford to even hire anybody.” 

The store opened in 1949. “It was the second store opened by Planters in Memphis.”

Abuzaineh heard it was originally on Madison before moving to Main Street in 1951, but he’s not sure. “Nobody’s given me a good answer about it.” 

The Abuzaineh and Lauck families became “officially the owners and partners of this establishment as of 1:45 p.m. on January 8th, 1993. On Elvis’s birthday. Of course, we didn’t plan it.”

An engineer, Zaineh had been in the restaurant business on the West Coast. “When this business came for sale in late 1992, my wife and my brother-in-law came to visit Suhair from California. And they looked at it while I stayed working in California. Then we moved. We made the big move to be close to Suhair and to be one family together.”

Abuzaineh says they weren’t told until a few months before the sale that the building was going to be sold. “And suddenly we were hit.”

It will be “turned into apartments and condos,” he says.

Which breaks Abuzaineh’s heart. “The Peanut Shoppe is the oldest-existing business landmark on Main Street. If it’s gone, it’s over. It’s the end of an era. A legacy is gone.”

Everything Zaineh says hits close to home. As a child, my brother and sister and I loved being taken Downtown to The Peanut Shoppe back in the 1950s. We loved watching the cast iron mechanical Mr. Peanut tap the silver dollar taped to the front window.  We loved the giant Mr. Peanut sitting on the roaster. My dad bought us just about every Mr. Peanut/Planters Peanuts trinket (and there were a lot of them) you could get. We got the plastic mugs shaped like Mr. Peanut’s head, little plastic Mr. Peanut figurines, and metal nut trays with Mr. Peanut’s picture on it.

In 1969, I applied and got my first real paying job (mowing yards didn’t count) at The Peanut Shoppe. I had to run the shop by myself. This was when Main Street was still a street. A bus stop was in front of the shop. And when a bus stopped, people poured into the store to buy peanuts and candy. 

In addition to selling, I had to keep oil in the roaster, as I recall, and at the end of the night I had to sweep that long floor and then mop it. My pay was peanuts; $1 an hour. And I didn’t eat a single piece of candy or any peanuts because I didn’t want my face to break out.

I only stayed a week. I got a job at Seessel’s grocery store on Perkins. That was the créme de la créme job for a teenager in those days. I kept changing my mind, though. I remember leaving a note on the cash register at The Peanut Shoppe saying I wasn’t going to quit. I remember owner Justin Adler telling me to make up my mind. I went to Seessel’s. And with my Peanut Shoppe paycheck, I bought a pair of then-popular white buckle shoes.

Abuzaineh’s memories include watching kids run up and down the long aisle. And, he says, “Customers coming in after many years and I remember them by name and what they eat and what they like.”

He says “customer-owner relations were more like family relationships than customer service.”

Abuzaineh says he knocked on doors trying to find a new location for The Peanut Shoppe, but he had doors slammed in his face. “I have one good location Downtown in negotiation, but the price is really really high compared to what we pay now. If that location does not work for me, I promise you, the whole thing is going to be liquidated here and it will be the end of it. And I will go find a job in order to survive in my old age.”

And that’s sad for Abuzaineh because he loves The Peanut Shoppe. “That’s my baby.”