Jul. 22—SHENANDOAH — "Cheers to 75 Years" is how the Schuylkill and Greater Shenandoah Area chambers of commerce are describing the scheduled ribbon-cutting to mark the 75th anniversary of the iconic Vernalis Restaurant.
The Schuylkill chamber ribbon-cutting is set for 9:30 a.m. Friday for the 32 S. Main St. eatery, according to the chamber flyer. It is a free community event.
The chamber asks that those planning to attend to register in advance by calling the chamber office at 570-622-1942 or emailing the Schuylkill chamber contact, Samantha Day, at sday@schuylkillchamber.com.
To celebrate the milestone, Vernalis has events planned for Thursday and Friday.
It will be Customer Appreciation Day on Thursday beginning at 10:30 a.m. with the eatery giving away a free hot dog to the first 75 people to arrive.
Beginning at 10 a.m. Friday, Vernalis will have an outdoor food stand featuring Shenandoah kielbasa eggrolls, gyros, pastitsio (a Greek lasagna), Polish noodles, desserts and other fare.
In 1948, the late Peter A. and Mary Logothetides Vernalis founded the restaurant. Their son, the late Peter Vernalis, owned and operated the eatery for decades before he passed away in 2019. He and the late Shenandoah hardware store owner/proprietor Ted Souchuck spearheaded the effort to establish the Pennsylvania Anthracite Miners Memorial that stands at Main and Washington streets at the entrance to Girard Park, Shenandoah.
Peter and Charlette A. Vernalis' children, Michael and Lisa, who grew up helping at the restaurant, now ensure the eatery operation continues.
For more information, call the eatery at 570-462-4115.