Far East Chinese Restaurant

Far East Chinese Restaurant
Source – pictured in 1967

In 1920, the very first Chinese cuisine restaurant opened in Berks County at 739 Penn Street in Reading by Chee Yuen Hong and his father Sik Que Hong. Back then it was called the Far East Tea Garden and was ran by various members of the Hong family through the following decades and moves. In 1929 the family moved the restaurant a block away to 837 Penn Street where it remained for over three decades and became Far East Chinese Restaurant.… Read Full Article

Shillington Theatre

Shillington Theatre
Shillington Theatre
Shillington Movie Theatre pictured in 1957

The Shillington Theatre was located at 29 E Lancaster Ave between Liberty and Brobst St. It opened Sept. 3rd, 1949.

Shillington Theatre
Sept 3rd, 1949 Reading Eagle Ad for Shillington Theatre
Shillington Theatre
1956 ad

It was not until the late 1960’s that the Shillington was able to run movies on Sundays due to the local municipality refusing to repeal and continuing to enforce Pennsylvania’s antiquated “blue laws”.… Read Full Article

Sno-Kist

Sno Kist Rt. 222
Sno-Kist
Photo taken by C.E. Werley

Sno-Kist was a beloved summer ice-cream place that was located along route 222, just south of Shillington. It was directly across the street from an Adult Video store called the RT. 222 News Outlet and was just north of Simotas Dairy Bar.

Sno-Kist
Source

The building had been an ice cream stand since the 1950s, always called Sno-Kist, but only operated under the most recent and final management since 1988, when it was purchased by Dimitrios Kiritsis.… Read Full Article

Arthur Treacher’s Fish & Chips

pictured in 1980 on Lancaster Ave in Shillington

Arthur Treacher’s Fish & Chips is a fast food seafood restaurant chain. At the peak of its popularity in the late 1970s, it had about 800 stores. As of May 2018, there are only seven remaining: three in New York and four in Ohio.

Despite the English name and branding, the chain was founded in 1969 in Columbus, Ohio.… Read Full Article

Berks Nostalgia