You Know You Are From Simsbury When...

I remember the days when Mario’s Ristorante in West Simsbury sold wine for $3 per glass and the best Chicken Francaise in the state for $7.95. Conveniently located next to Mario’s was the OP (Open Pantry) on one side and a good old fashioned VHS rental store on the other.

Things sure have changed in Simsbury and today’s teens are hanging out at Starbucks and Peachwave instead of Abdow’s and The Pie Plate.

If you stroll through the aisles of Fitzgerald’s and bump into elementary school friends who returned to their hometown just like you did, chances are, you will relate to these 15 signs you grew up in Simsbury, CT……

1. You used to walk to Leaders after school to buy some Now and Laters or other candy.
2. You know who Abigail Pettibone is. And exactly how she (is said to have) died.
3. You spent hours searching for Abigail’s gravestone in the cemetery on Route 10. Or was that just me?
4. You got your ears pierced at Baubles, Bangle and Beads in the FVM (Farmington Valley Mall).
5. Speaking of the FVM, remember Joanne’s Nut House? D & L? Our kids would be so jealous if they knew that Simsbury used to have it’s very own arcade!
6. You once sat at the counter of A.C. Peterson Farms while sipping on a milkshake. Or, you were behind the counter making the milkshakes for your friends!
7. You climbed all of the many stairs up to the high diving board at Simsbury Farms. Only the bravest jumped. Some of us (eh-hem) walked right back down those stairs with shaky legs and a stomach full of knots.
8. You still to this day wonder whatever happened to George, the nicest grocery bagger ever to live in Simsbury, who happened to work at the now extinct Andy’s Grocery Store.
9. You partied with the likes of The Hartford Whalers and Oksana Baiul at Tickets. Or Double Downs. Or both.
10. Speaking of Simsbury. And bars. You remember (or if your like me, you don’t at all remember) West Street Grill and Finnegan’s. I still crave Reno’s delicious boneless wings. Maple Tree? We wouldn’t dare go in that biker bar.
11. You have tried time and time again to grill up the perfect hamburger at home and put it on a toasted English Muffin, but no matter what you do, nothing quite recreates the perfect One Way Fare Station Burger.
12. At some point, you and your friends, spray-painted your Trojan Pride, or your girlfriend’s name, on the big white kickboard behind the high school.
13. The athletes among us will recognize the names Joe Grace and Emmy Lou McLean.

Jim Hayes, '94 getting his ankle taped by Emmy Lou McLean.

14. The less athletic will remember the East Parking Lot, where smoking was… wait for it…. PERMITTED. And yes, for students.

15. You picked up your Simsbury Varsity Letter Jacket or 80s crewneck Simsbury sweatshirt at Vincent’s Sports Shop on route 10. While the crewneck sweatshirts have been replaced by hoodies and fleeces, Vincent’s Sport Shop is still Vincent’s Sports Shop. Isn’t it nice that some things never change?