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Audio articles in Wilson County News made possible by C Street Gift Shop in downtown Floresville |
“After breakfast at Barth’s, I knew our vacation was really beginning, because Barth’s was a part of it.” Wilson County News reporter Gregory Ripps found this vintage postcard of Barth’s restaurant in Kenedy among his memorabilia. The restaurant was demolished in September, after the site was sold to make way for a meat market/bakery.
Barth’s restaurant in Kenedy may no longer exist, but the hometown eatery is fondly remembered by many. Wilson County News readers
In September, we shared a photo of John Wiatrek, who snapped the image of the rubble left behind after the old restaurant was torn down to make way for a new business in Kenedy. The only identifiable thing left was the Barth sign.
We invite readers to share their memories of Barth with us.
We hope you enjoy this walk down Memory Lane.
Bridge Y buffet
“My memories of Barth go back almost 60 years,” said Nancy Lyons-Harvey. “It’s where we used to go after church for our family lunch.”
Her parents were Kenedy and Runge natives, and she still owns the family farms in the Kenedy area, though Nancy now lives in Bandera.
On September 13, 2022, the Wilson County News shared the news that Barth’s Restaurant in Kenedy is now just a memory.
“Barth’s is where my grandmother, Annie Lee ‘Ted’ Lyons, and my mother, Joyce Goff Lyons, played bridge,” she shared. Many of his childhood memories are associated with the restaurant.
“It’s where we used to go for the buffet, where I always got too much!” Nancy exclaimed. “The best desserts were at Barth’s.”
With the restaurant fading into local lore, he is saddened by the loss of the local icon.
“The family would gather, visit and meet friends at Barth’s,” he recalled. “It breaks my heart to see it, like so many other Kenedy landmarks, destroyed.”
Handsome telephone Market Stall
Richard Halliburton Jr. also remembers enjoying family time and making memories at Barth’s Restaurant.
“My family and I have enjoyed eating at Barth’s over the years, both because of the food and the staff,” the Floresville native told the Wilson County News. “But the best memory I will keep is the old phone booth. It was a beautiful piece of handcrafted wood of elegance. I enjoyed sitting in it and imagining all the people from the past who had used it for conversations of all kinds.
“I hope the cabin has been saved from demolition.”
holidays it started a barth’s
Barth’s memories are also part of Wilson County News The childhood memories of reporter Gregory Ripps.
“Growing up in the 1950s and 1960s, my family would take a trip or two to Corpus Christi every summer, and Barth’s Restaurant was a part of that,” he recalled. “When we left our home in southeast San Antonio, we purposely left at 5 am to get to Barth’s around 6 am, when the restaurant opened. I usually ordered the large pancakes, which were served with round balls of butter that looked like ice cream.”
He also loved the old phone booth.
“I always enjoyed looking at the old phone booth on the corner, which still had a working phone for many years, and taking advantage of a free lollipop, which seemed to shrink with age,” Gregory recalled. “After breakfast at Barth’s, I knew our vacation was really beginning, because Barth’s was a part of it.”
And as for me, my fondest memory of Barth’s is of the delicious donuts. When one of our donut aficionado staff members left in search of new adventures several years ago, we sent a family member to Barth’s early the morning of his last day to bring some of the famous pastries to Floresville. so that I could taste what real donut must be!
I hope someone saved the recipe. If you have it and want to share it, I’m here on paper…
