Employees and Readers Share their Creekside Memories

Yesterday, celebrated its .

The celebration continues all month for the Brecksville staple. I asked the owners, employees and customers to share some of their memories from the restaurant.

Owner Matt Harper said that the memory that stands out most for him was a story he’d already told to Brecksville Patch—the story of how the community came together for the . William Moskal was Harper’s neighbor who died in the attacks on Sept. 11.

Here are some of the other Creekside memories that were shared with Brecksville Patch:

Shirley Harper, owner, via email:
“Anniversaries are a time for celebration and recognition, but they are also a time for reflection. One of my enduring memories was in April 2008 when we completely remodeled the main dining room in just FIVE days! On Sunday night we began demolition, gutting the entire room. Construction crews worked nearly non-stop. We were partially open for business on Tuesday and completely open on Friday at 4PM for dinner. This was an unbelievable task and all of our employees pitched in to assist with whatever was needed. As we celebrate the past, we are extremely grateful for the dedication of our team members – each and every day!

In addition we sincerely thank our customers for their friendship and loyalty to The Creekside. We look forward to the pleasure of their company throughout the year.”

Mark Murray, employee, via email:
“One of my favorite memories of the Creekside has happened not too long ago.
 
We remodeled the main dining room in what turned out to be 5 days, with only closing down one of them! Remodeled as in scrapping all booths, partitions, carpet, wallpaper, everything! We moved walls, gutted server stations, you name it.

That was all started on a Monday. Tuesday we opened the bar with a make shift menu because at the same time of the dining room getting done our kitchen line floor was getting re-tiled, talking about crazy!
 
We reopened the dining room at 5 PM Friday evening and had everything, almost, in place. We could not have done it without the great dedication and work ethic of our entire staff. The employees here are very hard to come by in any walk of life. The great teamwork, and hard work goes without saying. You just don't see it much.”

Holly Murray Rose, employee, via email:
“I am a current (formerly former!) employee of the Creekside. I worked there part-time when it opened 20 years ago, and after having a career in two office jobs for 17 years, I was hired in August as an all-around utility player at the Creek. After the pain of losing a job of 11 years, I have found great comfort in working with people who knew me "back in the day." It's been fun to reconnect with "the regulars" after all these years, and to get to meet new people on a daily basis.  

Matt and Shirley Harper are great to work with, and they have given me the opportunity to challenge myself in new and often fun ways on a daily basis. And it's also pretty cool to work with the general manager, Mark Murray, my brother!”

Reader Jeanne Travaglianti left :

“My favorite memories go back to the very beginning, when Tuesday mornings meant meeting the girls for breakfast at Eddies. We'd gather every week for coffee, breakfast and catching up with each other over a two egg omelet special, often laughing the morning away. I sure miss those days, and a weekday breakfast spot. I miss a few of those gals, too ... but nothing can take my memories. Happy Anniversary!”

And reader Tricia Ptak for the anniversary.

Do you have a special memory from Creekside Restaurant? Add it in the comments!