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| The Great Wolfie's Diner |
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| A Wolfie's Cheesecake Being Sliced |
Our last day was a sad day, and not just because we were leaving. On our last day -- Saturday -- we had lunch at Wolfie's, the world's greatest New York diner, and an institution in Miami Beach since 1947, only to find that it would be closing the following Monday. April 1st, 2002 -- April Fools Day in a cosmic twist that I'm sure means something -- was Wolfie's last day. The owner, Mr. Joe Nevel, had died just two weeks before, at the age of 81, and his children had wasted no time in selling out to a developer. The building was scheduled to be demolished.
We had seen Mr. Nevel in his restaurant almost every year when we visited. He always stood straight and wore a suit and tie, though last year he had to wear slippers on his feet. He was obviously so proud of his creation, and we were so sad, for him and for all the customers and even for the employees (there was one busboy who was 93 years old -- and still pretty spry).
David Nevel, Mr. Nevel's son, says that Wolfie's will reopen in some form, but I'm skeptical. Will it be the same? Call me a cynic.
Judi had the corned beef plate, with potato salad and a basket of bread. More flavorful corned beef you will never find, and the only comparable potato salad is the one that Judi makes herself, from scratch. And Wolfie's was legendary for its bread. I had a Rueben. Then we got a whole cheesecake to go!
After lunch we loaded up and drove away. We put the top down on the convertible and Judi blew streams of bubbles from her bubble-blowing machine. It drew smiles from people in other cars.
I think Mark Twain said it best: