Hallie's celebrates 10th anniversary Saturday

[October 19, 2012]  Hallie's on the Square will celebrate a decade of business in downtown Lincoln with an anniversary party planned for Saturday.

The anniversary special is a $5 blue-plate schnitzel with soda and chips. Timeless Presentations of Bloomington-Normal will give a living history portrayal between 3 and 6 p.m.

Brian Huffman, who owns and operates Hallie's, is the great-grandson of Blossom Huffman. Blossom once owned and operated The Mill restaurant, a Route 66 establishment known as "the home of the schnitzel."

Deborah Senger of Timeless Presentations -- in the persona of Blossom -- will host the anniversary party. She will share stories and folklore of The Mill, the Huffman family and Route 66.

The Mill opened on Stringer Avenue in Lincoln in 1929, under the name of the Blue Mill. Proprietor Paul Coddington served patrons grilled sandwiches at any hour of the day or night. A Dutch-themed building with blue trim, The Mill featured a revolving windmill and waitresses dressed in blue with white aprons.

In 1945, Albert and Blossom Huffman purchased the building, added a barroom and dance hall, and then painted the building barn red.

Over the years, the restaurant became famous for its fried schnitzel, originally made of veal and later of pork.

By the mid-1980s, the Mill had lost most of its Dutch-themed interior. Besides the fame of its schnitzel sandwiches and sauce, it was championed as a museum of strange objects, including a mechanical leg that protruded from a hole in the ceiling.

The Mill, which closed in 1996, is now under renovation by the Route 66 Heritage Foundation of Logan County as a Route 66 museum and tourist stop.

The famed schnitzel sandwiches, still made from Blossom's recipe, can be purchased at Hallie's, 111 S. Sangamon St.

Saturday's celebration is co-sponsored by Hallie's, Main Street Lincoln, the Route 66 Heritage Foundation of Logan County and Timeless Presentations.

Timeless Presentations has entertained Logan County residents over the past two years during paranormal investigations at The Mill, Ghost Walks along the Route 66 Ghost Bridge and through Coonhound Johnny and Blossom Huffman portrayals.