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The Cities Blog
Brandt Williams

Fire takes down a beloved pizza joint

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Photo by Brandt Williams

Beek's Pizza was more than a spot to get a really tasty thin-crust pie. For me and some of the people I grew up with, the little joint on Lyndale Ave. was a stage where we performed some of the ritual passages from adolescence to adulthood. Beek's is where many of us earned our first paychecks or went on our first nerve-wracking dates.

I heard about the fire that burned our beloved spot from some of my Facebook friends - many of whom I've known since elementary school. I asked them to share some of their memories to post online.

From Marit Brock:

I remember being excited in Junior High when I was old enough to go to a movie and pizza with groups of kids (and no adults). I am sure that the staff hated to see a big table of 13-year-olds come in and order cokes, but it was a great memory. I also remember a "double date" there, probably around the same time.

Of course for us, 'dates' back then usually meant a parent would drop you off down the block, maybe near the Boulevard Theater, famous for .99 cent movies. The Boulevard is no longer a movie theater.

Nicole Sela said:

A family tradition in my house was going to Beeks for my 'free birthday pizza.' It was the highlight of my day through the '70s and into the '80s!

Tonya Kenney worked at Beek's for six years:

I must say it was, aside from high school, it was one of the best time period[s] of my life. I made many friends and did not mind working weekends there all through high school!

I'm sure other folks I don't know have some Beek's stories too. What's yours?