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| A 1970 Lorain Phone Book Ad |
But did you know that Chez Francois was preceded at that same location in the 1960s by another French restaurant: L’Auberge Du Port?
L’Auberge Du Port (the name means “Inn of the Harbor”) opened in the spring of 1968 in a rustic building on Main Street converted from an old sail loft dating back to 1840. Didier Moritz and Erwin Mayer were the two young men who were the owners and operators of the restaurant; Vermilion’s Ted Wakefield had an integral role in establishing the restaurant as their mentor and chief supporter.
Here’s the article that appeared in the Lorain Journal on March 22, 1968 as the restaurant was about to stage its trial opening.
And on April 19, 1968 the Journal featured L’Auberge Du Port in its Golden Crescent Guide to Dining. It also provides some background information about Didier Moritz and Erwin Mayer.
The opening of a fine French restaurant in Vermilion was big enough news to even make it into the March 30, 1968 edition of the Passing Scene.
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In January 2018, the Toledo Blade published an article by Mary Alice Powell, its retired Food Editor, that caught up with Didier and Moritz in Fort Lauderdale. As the article notes, the two men stayed with L’Auberge Du Port until 1975, when they moved to Key West to operate the Southernmost Resort and La Mer, a guest house.
3 comments:
...Actually ate there once, not long before I left for the Air Force - it was the first time I'd ever run across a restaurant where they didn't list the prices on the menu, which led to a brief moment of panic as I wondered if I could afford dinner for me AND my date. :)
I went there in 1971 or 1972 after meeting a young Frenchman while working the summer at Camp Cheerful in Strongsville. I wanted to take him to a French restaurant in Cleveland, and this was the only restaurant in the Yellow Pages. Needless to say, it was a long drive from the near West Side to Vermilion back then.
By the way, my friend liked American cuisine better than the fare at L’auberge du Port. Ha ha.
We ate there on our first wedding anniversary in 1971. I very much liked a small brown ceramic pitcher that had a sauce and I asked to buy it - I love it to this day as it reminds me of all the amazing meals we've had there, as we had gone back many times. And though it takes us almost an hour, we make the trip to Vermillion still to the current restaurant for anniversaries and many special occasions, or just any occasion that eating there always makes special. Loved it then, and love it now. It is truly a unique and wonderful place with exceptional food, always!
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