Painting and patio-building at Big Four Burgers NA.

When the patio's finished, I'll be back with a brief history of the building, which still is widely known as the place where South Side used to be.

New Albany: "New things where things used to be," or some such.

Big Four Burgers in the South Side Space on the West Bank.

Just opposite all those boarded-up windows on the furniture corner.

Maybe ... just maybe ... all this recent rehab activity on Main Street will trickle down. As we await the drips, congratulations to Matt, and best of luck to Big Four.

It's official: Big Four Burgers & Beer signs lease on New Albany space, by Caitlin Bowling (Business First)

The second location of Big Four Burgers & Beer will occupy a Southern Indiana landmark.

Owner Matt McMahan signed a lease on the historic South Side Inn, at 114 E. Main St. in New Albany. Though it has been through ownership changes, the inn operated for many years, under different owners, as a cafeteria-style eatery before eventually closing. The inn has been empty for about four years, McMahan said.

“I just really love the South Side building,” McMahan told Business First.

Hillary Clinton and the mystery cutlet.

It’s ironic that during the past week …

(a) I was supposed to be writing the next installment about my visit to Sarajevo in 1987, but didn’t have time.

(b) Hillary Clinton spoke about her dangerous visit to nearby Tuzla in 1996, but lied … er, I mean, “misspoke.”

(c) Sen. Clinton then came to New Albany and entertained her fans at the South Side Inn, but revealed nothing new.

(d) I contemplated protesting her visit to New Albany by holding a sign reading “No blood for kale,” but changed my mind.

Speaking personally, I’m an Obama man, though not for reason of sexism. As suggested by one of the bar patrons Saturday evening, I’m actually a virulent ageist, rejecting the older presidential candidates in favor of the one younger (46) than I am (47.

This means that Roger’s ageist trifecta is now complete: My doctor, my lawyer and my chosen candidate for the Oval Office are all younger than me, and all I can add is a heartfelt “Hallelujah.”

While readers can consult the mainstream local media for coverage of Sen. Clinton’s starchy South Side soiree, I’d like to pass along the single funniest thing I heard about yesterday’s epic clash between Clintonian liberalism and good ol’ country cooking. It comes from my friend Todd Antz, owner of Keg Liquors in Clarksville, which has the best selection of bottled craft beers in the area.

With regard to Mrs. Clinton’s stated preference for the delights of Southern cuisine, Todd wrote:

Do you really think she feels at home at the Southside Inn? Maybe she'll stop by the Keg for a six pack of Schlitz and a bag of pork rinds for the drive to the airport?

Bill would ... but that's a whole other story.

Hillary in New Albany: Steam tables for "change?"

Hillary Clinton will be in town Saturday to campaign. She will answer questions at the South Side Inn, circa 2:00 p.m.

I can't make it, but I have a question:

"Mrs. Clinton, can you describe the proper symbolism for 'change' truly befitting for a Democratic Party supposedly poised to regain power?"

And by the way, pass that plate o's starch 'n' carbs, will ya?

South Side Inn to rise again -- may its reflection one day be cast in real Schmitt windows.

Just imagine the extent to which New Albany’s starch-loving obstructionists are reeling this morning as the Courier-Journal reports that there is verifiable private investment downtown that can be traced directly to the much vilified Scribner Place redevelopment project.

South Side Inn to serve again; Downtown New Albany landmark gets update, by Dick Kaukas (Courier-Journal).

In recent weeks, a lot of work has been done to refurbish the downtown New Albany landmark under its new owners, C.W. Thomas and Brent Bagshaw …

… Thomas and Bagshaw, both of Henryville, are friends and production workers at Essroc Cement in Speed. They said they bought the business for about $40,000 and will spend about $100,000 to whip it into shape for an anticipated October reopening.

They said one of the reasons they decided to take on the effort was the traffic expected to be generated by Scribner Place, the combined YMCA and municipal aquatic center being built nearby for about $23 million. Scribner Place is expected to open in the fall of 2008.

That’s delicious (CHORTLE) irony, isn’t it?
Now that a return to regular portions of Friday fish and fixings finally is in the offing, the city’s $165,000 yearly investment in Scribner Place is looking even more reasonable than it was before, although Caesar's might yet conclude that $20 million can buy lots of Dom Perignon and caviar.

For our further edification, reporter Kaukas continues:

Across Main Street at Schmitt Furniture, President Louis Schmitt said he hopes (restaurant manager Kenny) Lynch is right.

"We're excited about any business that is willing to invest in downtown," Schmitt said, adding that the furniture store attracted business for the restaurant and "it was also a nice draw for us."

It's wonderful that Mr. Schmitt can see the importance of investment, and with a revitalized South Side packing them in, and the gleaming new Scribner Place project just across Main Street, perhaps it’s time for Schmitt Furniture to do its part and AT LONG LAST RESTORE THE BOARDED UP WINDOWS ON ITS BUILDING.

How about it, Mr. Schmitt?

South Side nostalgia index high, but business sale price falling, says C-J.

On Monday, the Courier-Journal noticed that New Albany still exists. Predictably, the ensuing article focused on a hidebound tradition lost, implying that the absence of one steam table of several is something to be mourned.

South Side's fans recall past with hunger pangs; Generations ate at New Albany icon, by Dick Kaukas.

Wait -- don’t say it.

As a business owner, I’m not in favor of any fellow entrepreneurs failing, and although mounds o’ starch ‘n’ carbs aren’t my gig, I’ve always supported South Side for what it is even if it isn’t my preference for dining out. But, having offered this disclaimer, permit me to point out that the most important section in the C-J article is this one:

But while (the South Side’s closing) is disappointing, it is not a disastrous setback for the city, said Greg Sekula, head of the Historic Landmarks Commission of Southern Indiana and vice president of Develop New Albany, a nonprofit group that works for economic development and preservation.

"It's a loss, but it's also part of the evolution of downtown," Sekula said. "Businesses will not last forever. Tastes change. It's certainly not a nail in the coffin of downtown."

He said he was optimistic that a new tenant will be found for the space at 114 E. Main St., "and we'll move on."

“Tastes change.”

Truer words have seldom been spoken hereabouts, and presumably you’ll not be reading them in political campaign literature any time soon -- yet the sooner we come to grips with it, the better.

The fact that I can’t conceive drinking mass-market light lager doesn’t mean that there isn’t a market for it. Conversely, the fact that certain New Albanians wouldn’t be caught dead sampling sushi doesn’t rule out a gifted culinary artisan crafting the metro area’s best in the same place where fried chicken and dumplings once ruled.

Kudos to Greg Sekula for speaking the truth for attribution, and let’s hope that someone puts something in the South Side restaurant space that mirrors the future hope symbolized by the YMCA complex currently rising yards away. After all, just because the building is historic doesn't mean the concept has to be.

A marvelous case for “adaptive re-use” (mushy peas division – last orders).

When it comes to sagas like this one, I’ve always been torn.

It is simply indisputable that generations of hungry New Albanians have revered the South Side Inn as a veritable Mecca of the steam table, where heaping mounds of gristle, starch and carbohydrates could be consumed for precious little out of pocket.

At the same time, such “traditional” bills of fare hold slight interest for me, and when they do, I hope for a better grade of comfort food than South Side has offered, at least lately. The last time I ate there some eight or nine years ago, it was colossally underwhelming, with every item I tasted overcooked, bland, fatty, or all three.

In the midst of a long-term slide, the South Side Inn changed hands last July. According to the Tribune:

Court records show Joe Peevor is paying $150,000 to take over the South Side Inn; current owners Mark Troub and Jeannie Burchfield bought the restaurant eight years ago.

At the time, and in jest, I expressed the hope that Peevor, an Englishman, would convert the South Side into a British-style pub, complete with lumpy gravy, eel pie, mystery cutlets, fish and chips, a curry dish or two, and hand-pumped “real ale” to make it all worthwhile.

But seriously, no bad Limey food jokes here; I’ve had some pretty good pub grub in the UK, and perhaps there’d even be hope for that stray haggis. It goes quit well with Brown Ale.

On January 11, the Courier-Journal reported that the South Side had closed, and its status was uncertain.

When the South Side will reopen hasn't been decided, said Joe Peevor, who bought the restaurant in July with partner Angela Hawley.

Peevor, who is from England, said he closed on Dec. 29 because a condition for getting a long-term visa was that the business have an annual cash flow of $50,000 and it isn't generating that much.

Speaking of seafood, something always seemed slightly fishy about a foreign national supposedly doing good business in Florida before abruptly determining that a declining cafeteria in New Albany, Indiana with a rapidly aging core clientele was a better deal.

Now we’re told that yet another restaurant offering a strikingly similar menu will be opening five blocks away from the moribund South Side at 223 W. 5th -- the former Pigasus/Backwoods BBQ location:

Lancaster’s Cafe coming to downtown New Albany; Grandson of Tommy Lancaster leases former Pigasus building on West Fifth, by Eric Scott Campbell (Tribune).

“It’s set up exactly the way I want for what I want to do, cafeteria-style,” (Troy) Lancaster said. “Unless you want fast food, you’re very limited to what you can have in New Albany anymore.

Leaving aside whether Mr. Lancaster has ever noticed the existence of La Rosita’s (Mexican), Federal Hill (Italian) and Bistro New Albany (bistro fare) in downtown New Albany, and the opening later this week of Treet’s, the city’s first downtown bakery in quite a while, it’s naturally good to see a vacant building come back into play.

Whether we need more mashed potatoes and roast beef is another question.

And so, getting back to the South Side Inn, Peevor’s misfortune might very well be another owner’s ultimate gain. With Scribner Place and the YMCA being built only yards away, now would seem an ideal time for an entrepreneur with vision to break with decades of insanely conservative New Albany tradition and offer – gasp – something approximating healthy cuisine where the fried chicken used to drip onto newspapers and the lard-encrusted and sugar-laden pies cooled on window sills.

Dare we hope for a two- or three-way and a few progressive pints? Best hurry, lest either antiques or furniture starts being sold there.