Hello, Wow, this takes me back to the old Westside hot rod/speed shop days. The location is/was the original Joe Mailliard Automotive Speed Shop from earlier years. Joe Mailliard moved closer to downtown Long Beach and our old high school, on the busiest street in that area. Then Mickey Thompson moved in all of his “stuff.” It lasted until they outgrew the location and opened up a second larger shop just around the corner in the same neighborhood. It was still about three miles to Lion’s Dragstrip. From 1410 Cota to 1470 Cota Avenue, still in the same industrial shops and buildings of the Westside Long Beach location. Then as time marches on, they finally moved to the last shop next to our favorite Italian Foods store on the main street of the Westside of Long Beach. Santa Fe Avenue. On any day, if one was shopping for sandwiches or Italian foods of all kinds, the folks from Mickey Thompson’s Shop would be at two places. One was the Santa Fe Importers next door or down the street at the Golden Star Char Broiled Hamburger Restaurant. As a matter of fact, those two food places, drew the attention of most hot rod speed shops and parts dealers in the whole area to the top notch food sold at each location. The top notch food sold at each location. Santa Fe Importers and across the street is the Mexican restaurant, while down the street on PCH, is the now defunct Golden Star Char Broiled Burger Restaurant. Back then, this burger place was the first restaurant to feature “char broiling all meats” on the new grill. Those places were the hot rod/drag race central at lunch time for all hot rod shops nearby. Jnaki Now, the only place still open is the Santa Fe Importers Italian Deli and Food Store. It is still going strong and the food remains, top quality… Now, I probably should drive an hour and a half to get a couple of sandwiches… ha! YRMV
The Jalopy Journal
