Located in Broadwell, the former Pig Hip Restaurant was my all-time favorite stop on Route 66, and not just for the wonderful memorabilia or the photo friendly building and sign. The main attraction at the Pig-Hip was the proprietor, Ernie Edwards, who ran the restaurant from 1937 to 1991 before turning the place into a museum. In his late eighties when I first met him in 2005, Ernie ambled out of his adjacent house after I had rudely arrived after closing time, pulled out a wad of keys, and opened up. He was then nice enough to give me a personal tour. We sat back afterwords, and Ernie made sure not to leave out any of his legendary tales of old 66, even after his wife, Francis, stopped by to join us, obviously with dinner waiting on the stove back at the house. I politely took my leave a couple of stories later, but made it my business to stop by a couple of times after that just to say hello to the Edwards, with one final visit in 2008 to see how they were coping after the museum burned to the ground in 2007. I found that Ernie, with his sense of humor intact and the stories still flowing, was now entertaining visitors on his back porch. He was even gracious enough to invite me into his home that day. Sadly, I don't know if Ernie's health allows him to greet visitors anymore, a huge loss for all of us. Log Book: 176 mile motored on old 66.
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