Remember when a trip to Woolworth’s could include lunch at the counter and still leave change in your pocket? This F.W. Woolworth menu appears to date to 1960 — the tiny print at the bottom reads “REV. 4-60,” suggesting it was revised in April of that year.
The prices are a time capsule all by themselves. A bacon and tomato triple-decker sandwich was 45¢, a baked ham and cheese was 50¢, a milk shake was 25¢, a slice of apple pie was 15¢, and the “Super Jumbo Banana Split” was just 39¢. Even a king-size Coca-Cola was only a dime.
For a lot of people, the Woolworth lunch counter was every bit as memorable as the store itself — sandwiches, fountain drinks, sundaes and pie served right in the middle of a five-and-dime shopping trip.
It’s also worth remembering that 1960 was a major year in Woolworth history. That February, the Greensboro sit-ins began at a segregated Woolworth lunch counter in North Carolina, becoming an important moment in the civil rights movement.
Did you ever eat at a Woolworth lunch counter — and what did you usually order?