A nostalgic restaurant for "air-pane" lovers
Ava has a new passion and it's one that I wasn't quite expecting. Airplanes. She loves watching for them, hearing their approaching sound and waving to them as they fly overhead. I never thought living near an airport would be anything more than a nuisance, but now it is a daily form of entertainment. She says, "Hi air-panes! Oooooh! Wow! Buh bye," as she waves her little hand backwards as they fly off and out of sight. Air-panes are now fun for the whole family.
To fuel the excitement we took her to lunch at the 94th Aero Squadron – a restaurant that sits right on an airport runway. The cottage-y replica of a French farm house feels as if you have stepped back in time. As we walked up the wooden, spiral staircase we could hear Bing Crosby and the Andrew Sisters playing through the speakers. The rafters hang vintage aircraft memorabilia, while the cozy fireplace and wood paneling give this old fashioned steak house a sense of warmth and romance of a bygone era. I could easily envision my grandfather sitting at the brass-rimmed bar enjoying a brandy or scotch on the rocks. So how can this place be baby friendly?
Once we told the hostess about our miniature aviation-enthusiast, she sat us right up against the window with a prime view of the runway. They brought out a high chair, an airplane themed activity book for her to color on and the best part of all… a styrofoam airplane souvenir! You remember the kind – you slide the wings through the slots, place the plastic tip on the nose and viola! You have yourself a 3-D, indoor glider (something similar to this). The hubby and I had tons of fun throwing this around our living room. Probably even more fun than Ava.
There is also plenty to look at in and outside of the 94th. Airplane wings and military artifacts adorn the dining room, bar and banquet areas while vintage planes, jeeps and large scale replicas decorate the lawns. The highlight of the day for us was going outside to their patio and watching the planes take off and land. Ava had a blast running around, oohing and aahing as the helicopters and airplanes soared away (this can be very loud and might be a bit scary for sensitive little ones, but Ava loved it). For a little change of scenery, she would run over to visit the ducks swimming in their gated pond. "Ah! Cute!" she'd exclaim while blowing kisses at them. We also chose the perfect day to visit – the middle of the afternoon on a weekday. We practically had the place to ourselves.
The ambience, the tasty food (they serve large, reasonably priced portions at lunch time and pricier, classic American style dinners in the evenings), the activities and the time spent as a family made it a perfect day.
The 94th Aero Squadron has several locations throughout the U.S.: Van Nuys, CA; Miami, FL; Wheeling, IL; College Park, MD and one in San Diego (although I'm not sure if this one is affiliated even though it looks nearly identical).
The 94th Aero Squadron
16320 Raymer St.
Van Nuys, CA 91406
Phone: (818) 994-7437
I've been wanting to come here since I was a kid... it's still on my list of places to review. :)
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Posted by: Dave | January 12, 2009 at 05:26 PM