Chicken Spur
By Paul Lundgren on Apr 26, 2010 in Weird Stuff
I first became aware two years ago that people refer to the Spur convenience store at the foot of the Blatnik Bridge in Superior as the “Chicken Spur.”
I found that out in the comments of a somewhat-related PDD post: “I’m old and I don’t understand anything, part one.”
The reason, of course, this Spur is called the “Chicken Spur” is it includes “Frank’s Fast n’ Fresh Deli,” which sells chicken, among other fried goodies shown in the photo above.
Anyway, I’m bringing all this up to point out that I’ve finally seen the words in print. The Spring 2010 issue of Stinger, the magazine of the University of Wisconsin-Superior, features an ad for the bar High Five’s on Fifth, which notes its location as “at the foot of the High Bridge in Superior behind Chicken Spur.”
Photos on this post are from Feb. 1, 2007. Some of the same corn dogs shown might still be sitting in the tray. (Rimshot, and thank you.)
I might be fat, but I am not even half as fat as I appear in that photo. Seriously. That’s all coat. Well, mostly coat.
Hey, thanks, Paul!
40 percent coat; 60 percent mozzarella cheese.
Back off, Lundgren. You don’t want to start this war. This is mutually assured destruction.
Perhaps I better throw myself onto my own sword (or roll myself onto my own toothpick). If we were to have a “Hey PDD, Show Us a Photo of Yourself Looking Like You Weigh 50 Pounds More Than You Actually Do” contest, believe me, I would win.
Jack Rendulich shot this gem for Lake Superior Magazine in 2006. I was wearing an over-sized shirt and an over-sized set of chins. (Although I had indeed just finished eating some kind of one-pound hamburger at Gronk’s.)
At this very moment I’m reheating some pizza for lunch. Maybe I’ll just have some oatmeal instead.
I always called it “Fried Spur” (never heard “Chicken Spur” before…).
Referencing the picture from the original “I’m old and I don’t understand anything: part one” post — gas was $4.05/gallon for regular?(!) Who could afford an extra egg roll and chicken wings with their gas at that price?
During my college years, it was always referred to as the “Greasy Spur.” As opposed to the “Ghetto Spur” in the heart of Duluth’s beautiful Central Hillside.
We’ve always referred to it as “Chicken Spur” because it served “Spur Chicken.”
But then again, we were always hammered-ass-drunk by the time we reached that spot, so who knows…
Coronary Spur
Slow And Painful Death From Obesity Spur
Yummy Spur
I love how “Ghetto Spur” is still called “Ghetto Spur” even after changing hands to SA.
Bad Cat!: Agreed. I also find the “ghetto” designation strange. Where is this ghetto that people speak of?
Ahem: “…of which people speak.”
I’m nerdy that way.
Anyhoo, back to the chicken and ghetto…
Yeah, well… I’ve become aware that generally, people in this area have a really simplistic, stupid name for pretty much anything you can pick out. ‘Soupy Town’ is a nice example. They probably spell it ‘supy town’ internally.
Vicarious: try going there at 1 am Friday. It’s a bit more ghettoey… Agreed though, the whole idea of the ‘duluth ghetto’ makes people look a bit unclear on what real ghetto is.
I now call it the “GSA (Ghetto Super America)”
Ah, Chicken Spur. The last stop on our annual pre-finals Superior Bar Crawl. It’s greasy but it still beats Hardees just down the road.
Well, after attending a 300-person SPAT out event at UMD this evening, I’m going to speak up here--I think calling anything , “ghetto,” in this glip/flip manner, whether intentionally or not, smacks of racist thinking--ghettos are places designed to segregate people (Jews, blacks, gays, poor people, etc.)
I vote with my voice for dropping the racism in calling it ghetto Spur, or calling anything else ghetto, unless we have a real ghetto, in which case, why the hell aren’t we all demanding that it be dismantled rather than using it as a circumspect nickname? I say get over it--it’s a harmful word to use casually.
Ugh. Here comes the PC Police. I suggest you quit taking everything so seriously.
http://www.perfectduluthday.com/nothing.mov
Ghetto Spur, Nothing!
Oops. Kinda sorry I brought it up.
Now, back to the delicious chicken and other fried goodness…
Yeah, davids, though coming across as seriously “PC” is pretty correct. It has always seemed to me that the reason people call it the Ghetto Spur is because, “Hey, I saw black people there!” However, like the term “retard,” you’re fighting a losing battle.
Otherwise, I have been in discussions with several high school children over the past few years in correcting the all-too-common reference to things as “ghetto” when it looks like it’s falling apart. What “ghetto” properly refers to is the ingenious use by the monetarily challenged of what’s available to make things work: like, for instance, using plexiglass to fix a broken window til you can afford to fix it, or tying your car bumper together with duct tape. See also: rez car.
Every fried chicken connoisseur knows that the Central Hillside Market makes the best. Now that its back in business.
Know what? Screw the Norshor. I think the city should re-establish the House of Donuts.
A friend used to eat their giant fast-food hamburgers all the time until he got sick from one. I still like the place on those rare occasions when I have a craving for fried everything (and they do have variety).
On the “ghetto” issue, while it’s true that Duluth does not have any true ghettoes (speaking as someone who has lived places that do), it’s telling to me that it’s so uncomfortable for Duluthians to actually talk about the racism that divides this city West from East and Core neighborhoods from periphery. It has nothing to do with PC. Real segregation does exist right here in Duluth; blacks and Natives have been relegated mainly to Central Hillside and the West End for generations. If you’re going to make this city less racist, the way to do that is to confront the racism and segregation that do exist, not try to sweep them under the rug out of embarrassment. It’s also to increase our diversity, which is why I personally welcome more folks of color moving in from the Cities and Chicago.
The actual name is Frank’s Fast and Fresh Deli. My godmother and my Dad’s cousin own that place … old family recipes.
I’m with Barrett -- we need the House of Donuts back.
I totally went there today because of this post!
Had to bust out the twit pic haha.
I’m hungry.
The Chicken Spur is strategically located across from the $2 a pint Hammond Steak House and Bar.
If you stand next to the fryer for 5 minutes, your pores will exude olestra.
Try it.
10 minutes, you’re immediately shitting your pants.
— MS
Yeah, HoD! Nothing better than a cheez-wiz sandwich at 3 am.
To heck with the chicken spur or ghetto spur, etc…. we need a HOOTERS up here! They serve chicken and have some of the friendlest waitress’s serving them, lol. I’m just saying…..
I once ordered a turkey taco @ HOD because my wife did not care for the greasy beef mix they had. The dude says “yeah we can do turkey” when I got home with my delicious meal I found out he had just laid cold slices of deli cut turkey in the shell. WTF? My greasy meat like sandwich was phenomenal so I figure that’s what you get for trying to get healthy @ The House of Donuts.
As far as chicken Spur goes I’ve also heard it called “Hammered Spur” kind of a play on the word Hammond and the way most folks are when they eat there.
Ghetto Spur is not intended to be a harmful name. we used to call it “Gangsta Spur” back in the late 1980s / early 90s so, davids, I suppose “Gangsta” is off limits too.
I can’t believe I’m the first person to mention that the Chicken Spur is advertising the addition of a drive-thru on their message board/sign thing.
I also can’t believe that I just typed “chicken spur” into a search box, but that’s different.
I just discovered the PDD blog and love it. I moved to MPLS 5 years ago. I couldn’t help getting in on the Chicken Spur discussion because when I lived in Soup Town, we always called it the Chicken Spur. Many different kinds of food -- all the same golden brown. It was a favorite after bar stop -- particularly for those heading back to MN back when WI was open to 2PM and MN was not. Also, for folks in Soup Town driving without insurance in MN, it is where the tow truck would unhook you after getting back to the WI side (because we didn’t legally need insurance here). I had a cousin that worked there too. Good memories about the Chicken Spur. One last thing though -- House of Donuts is gone? What!!???
The drive-through is now open.