BY KECIA BAL
REELS CORNERS — Still the same place with the same friendly folks, the restaurant formerly known as Adele’s Diner is connecting to its roots with a new name.
New Manager Tammy Blough has renamed the Route 30 eatery the Heritage Highway Restaurant.
“We had a lot of people tell us we should change it,” Blough said.
Now there’s more than just a framed collection of old photos and newspaper clippings of the gas station-turned-diner to remind visitors that they’ve taken a storied route to lunch.
“As far as I know, there was always a restaurant portion,” Blough said, pointing to a black-and-white photo from 1936 of the spot along Route 30 that started as a gas station. Later, the pumps were removed and an ice cream stand was added.
Faithful luncher Mike Shaffer has heard visitors comment on the new name and the route it refers to. “It has a long past,” he said.
Separately, plans are under way for vo-tech students in four counties, including Somerset, to design and build giant displays along the state’s 200-mile stretch of the Lincoln Highway – from North Huntingdon Township in Westmoreland County to Gettysburg in Adams County.
A $49,340 grant from the Community Connections-Pittsburgh 250 Initiative will pay for the giant exhibits as part of the Lincoln Highway Roadway Museum, a collection of 75 roadside exhibits to mark the road’s heritage with barnside murals, historic markers and unusual landmarks.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
More information about the project is at lhhc.org.
