Michael Guilio Tozzi

Old time Clifton Parker's and Shenendehowa friends, ready to feel really old? Take a stroll down Memory Lane. Let's travel back in time and remember the town we all love and were lucky to grow up in. Things gone forever from our past, but not to be forgotten. A comprehensive list of stores, restaurants, people, businesses... etcetera in Clifton Park and surrounding areas that are gone forever.. Enjoy the stroll:
Clifton Park / Halfmoon (South):
Tony's Pizza and Tony's Motel which became Dannys Motel, The Ranch Bar, Savemore Deli, Willard's Steak House, Spotlight Lounge (Jane and Crazy Larry with his different hats), New Chicago, Doc Albert's Clifton Park Game Farm (had a petting zoo that included lama's, snack shop, kids games, and the famous diving horses which would dive from a platform about 30 feet high into a huge pool below. The diving horses were the main attraction and big draw for the Game Farm), Mr. Cardin's Farm and Mr. Plant's Farm (two among at least 50 in the area), were both located on Plant Road which was named after Mr. Plant. In 1966 my father (Antonio Tozzi), bought his building lot from Mr. Cardin who scraped the farm and created Cardin Acres in the early 60's. Cardin Acres is a small housing development behind Walmart on Rt. 9., Daylight Snack Bar, (I worked there as a short order cook / clerk for several months in the late '70's) it was a fun place for kids in the area to hang out for the short time that it lasted., T.V. Repair Shop next to Hayner Heights, Stiles Market with the American Legion in the basement (some may remember going in there with 25 cents and getting handfuls of penny candy, a coca cola, and a balsa wood airplane, all for a quarter... and then get 2 cents back from the bottle deposit to buy more candy... That was way back when Route 9 was a two lane highway and we lived out in the country)., Halfmoon Market, Reich's Restaurant which later became The Owl's Nest, Ruddy's Garage, Country Dollar (Harry the butcher / owner & Gus the cashier / cart man), Country Dollar changed its name to The Trading Post for some years...then it became a Sysco store. , Country Liquor, Esquire Drugs, Saltys Pub & Grille (The final day of service was Sunday, 9/29/20 according to chef-owner John Marzilli)., Leisure Times Craft Store in Salty’s Plaza (opposite end), Friendly Service Station owned and operated by Georgie Messier (Guideboard Rd), Grandma's Pies, Romano's Italian Restaurant, great food and loved their salad bar! The building sadly became the site of the maniacal Keith Allen Raniere, an American felon, convicted s*x trafficker and the founder of NXIVM, That's some Charles Manson stuff right there folks...wow!, Serino's Insurance, Grock's T.V. Repair Shop, Rosen's, Fred's Candy Shed & Bike Repair Service (it was near Foxwood Apartments), Convenient Store Exit 8 (I worked there during college at HVCC after my time in the Marines. It was a short walk around the corner to my girlfriends house on Lapp Road. I was at her house when the siren's were blaring and all hell broke loose on November 15th of 1983, the day Dawn Cruickshank murdered her father and land developer G. Alan Cruickshank)., Downey’s Gas Station on the corner of Lape and Guideboard Road. Penny candy and 10 cent soda’s., Prescott's Pub which became Andrea's Pub, Grogan's Florist (now Garden Gate), Clamsteam Tavern, Kettel’s Farm, (they had great hay rides), Chippella’s Farm (had a hall that held dances. It was called “Chip’s Hall” for short & had Halloween dances & gambling in the basement), Klingbeils on Sugarhill and Grooms Road, The baseball field on Grooms, Herolds Garage, Hicks Dairy Farm. Brown's Service Station and Foxy's Bar where Stewart's is now at the Crescent Bridge., Sanspree's, Leque's in Crescent, Cohoes Savings Bank on Vischer Ferry Road. Halfmoon Beach before it became Krauses (Krauses is currently called Krauses Grove and is under development). Ruth's Bar and Grill and directly behind the grill was Carl's Barber Shop (both in the Island), located on the corner of Vischer Ferry Road and Route146, circa1947. Carl gave really bad flat tops., Little Red School house on the corner of Vischer Ferry Road and Clifton Park Center Road. The school was torn down for the Town Hall., Some of these places existed when Clifton Park was called Elnora and at one point in the '60's, the Northway ended at Rt.146.
Clifton Park North:
Lindsey's Country Store & Sweet Shoppe (the owners retired and closed the door Jan. 9th 2019. It's currently a car lot), Bracken's Ski Shop (sold bikes too), Phalen's Restaurant, Red Barron Pizza, Shenanigan's, Matt's Cape House, Texaco Gas Station (before Ling's, same location, and had an indoor swimming pool right next to it), Ling's Chinese Restaurant, Cinnamon Tree Restaurant, Regional Construction (my dad worked there) which later became Troy Savings Bank, Chaucer's Restaurant (I celebrated my 30th birthday there with an ex-girlfriend. The one who got away! Wow! That was 30 years ago...thanks Andrea!), Charity's Pub (a favorite act that some may remember was Dick Spass and The Coachmen who played there often), Grand Union, Foto Hut (in Grand Union parking lot), Star Market and Plaza (Hermie’s Music Store, Fern's Salon and a Barber Shop were all in the Star Market Plaza. My mother, Mary Ann Tozzi, had her hair done there every week by Jean for over 40 years), American Pie Pizza (near Turf Trailer Park, if you folded 50 pizza boxes for them, you would get a free slice of pizza!)., Towne Pharmacy, C'est La Vie Hair & Nail Salon (owned and operated by Valerie Parker), Bailey's Fish Fry owned and operated by Ted Bailey (Rt. 236), Albert's Bar (Mechanicville), J.R. Sousa & Son's, Clifton Car Care Center, Gus's Gas Station, Bumby’s Deli / Bakery, Woodbury's Lumber (I bought all the supplies to build my house from there), Phillips Hardware, Shenendehowa Free Library which served as an elementary school before the library, Clifton Park Hotel (a National Landmark) at one point it served as a tavern, jail, and court house at the same time. So if you got arrested in the tavern, you would be put in jail and your case would be heard the following day and never have to leave the building. At one time, Hank Williams and Hank Snow played there, Ted's Fish Fry's (later became Harbor House)., Castillion Lounge (later became Annie's), Judy's Card's (her Hoffman sister owns Wit's End...a Clifton Park landmark!), Parkwood Restaurant, Rt 9 Miniature Golf (across from Parkwood Plaza), Only Guitar Shop, Ye 'Ole Dater Tavern, Superior Vacuum on Myer Rd down from Ye 'Ole Dater Tavern, family owned and operated by the Bancroft family for nearly 50 years, Ferretti's Pizza & Italian Restaurant (great pizza and authentic Italian Cuisine), Gregory's Grocery Store. Also sold candy, stationery school supplies for kids, and housed a post office on the left side of the store. It was on Usher's Road.
Clifton Park West of Rt. 9 on Rt.146:
Fun Town which had Go Cart Racing / Batting Cages / Water Boats located right next to the mall before it was built. People used to cut through the grass field and future building site of the mall to get to this mini sports complex. It only lasted a few years, +/- '69 to '71 maybe. Years later, this site became Schenectady Savings Bank which started out in a trailer. One of the only banks in town at the time, as we also had Key Bank and Troy Savings both near Grand Union. After Schenectady Savings went out, the property housed multiple, constantly changing banks throughout the years including Northeast Savings Bank, State Bank of Albany, and Mohawk National Bank, (currently Bank of America). There's a very nice Plaza there today with some great shops. Interesting evolution on that site. Wow!
The Clifton Country Mall (CCM), old timers will remember how exciting it was when we learned that they were going to build a mall in Clifton Park! Here were some of the original stores: EZ Mart, Mr. B's, Razzmatazz T Shirt Shop, Flavorland, Hair 2000, Electric Circuit, Gold Mine, The Shed House, Scribble's and Giggle's, F***y Farmer's Candy, The Country Store, Mr. V boutique (changed to Joyclynn’s later), Frame of Mind, Olan Mills, Argersingers Clothes, Brooks Clothes, Leather Coat Store, Dru’s Jewelry Store, Pipe Den (had two locations in the hall connecting the old and new mall), Piercing Pagoda kiosk in the front lobby of the mall (It was a front row seat for the dog shows!)., Curtain Country (was later called Curtains and Home), Villa Pizza, Taco Bell, Giant Chocolate Chip Cookie Store, Piccadilly Circus, Photo USA (In the 80's they did kid's photos with the Easter Bunny, developed film, printed photo's, took passport photos, & sold film), DEB Clothing Store (near the Theater). Baskin & Robbins (31 flavors), Golden Crust Bakery (Pam Melvin worked there), Carl's, Caldor's, Zale's Jeweler's, Crystal Mansion, Record Town, Radio Shack, Consumer's, Kaybee Toys, Dynasty, Foxmoor, Stuart’s, Jade Gift, Weathervane, Barbara Moss, Steinbach, Denby's, The Place for Steaks (I started my first real job there as a dishwasher and worked my way up to food prep and then to the salad bar which was a primo job), The Ground Round, Market Research (next to Penny's), Strawberries Record Store, Walden Books, Chess King.
University Pub, Howard Johnson's, Builder's Square, The Godfather, Donovan's, Blockbuster Video, Hollywood Video, Sawyer's Sporting Goods, Dr. Forman / Dentist in the Snoopy Professional Building, Buccaneer & Roma's Restaurant's (where Ravenswood is now), Pizza Hut, Sonny's Pizza, Fay's Drug's, Mama's Pizza, Starburst Skating Rink, Joy Dept Store, Barker's, Schenectady Trust, Jamal’s Salon- Bill and Jim, The Glynn's Inn ☘️ (before Tiger's) owned and operated by Steve Glynn who sadly passed in 2002, Tiger's Pub 🐯 was a favorite hang-out for thousands of Shen Alumni and Clifton Park peeps, The $1 Theater, Albany Public Market, A&P Market, Jonesville Country Store (nicknamed Noises), Van Patten's Hardware (Jonesville).
North of Clifton Park:
The Bunk House (currently Double Vision), La Fiesta & Two Chefs Restaurant's (same building) across from the Bunk House, Red Mill Inn (currently The Mill), Lucky’s Greenhouse & Grand Prix Restaurant (Round Lake), Good Times Restaurant (Balston Lake)., Rigi's Restaurant, & Dunster's Arcade (both in Malta).
Interesting historical note about another Malta business which was on Rt 9 across from Dunster's. It was owned and operated by Leonard and Margaret Bosley where they had four business's on the site. The Bosley Motel; a Mobile Gas Station (still there) with repair bays / inspections, and a towing business; a beauty shop in the house called the Hedge Hair Salon run by Marylou Roberts (daughter of the Bosley's), and L&R Speedshop where they built and repaired stock cars for dirt tracks. It was a very popular place during the 60's - early 80's. A old photo of the Mobil Station and the retired Nascar driver Kyle Petty's #43 race car is posted in the comment section. The racers would stay at the Motel when they were in town for a race.
Saratoga:
The Country Gentleman, Rafters (loved by many Shen Grad's), Korvette’s / Hellman Movie Theater / Cine 1-6 (Northway Mall). Incidentally, the Northway Mall was demolished entirely.
Note: I elected not to even start with Saratoga Springs Downtown and especially Caroline Street...LOL. One could write a book about it.
Lake George:
Story Town & Jungle Land, Santa's Workshop, Gaslight Village; (T.V. ADVERTISING MUSICAL JINGLE- "Gaslight Village, yesterday's fun today, bodie-o-doe bodie-o-doe oh-oh.")., Dirty Sally's, that place was a Landmark! It was George and Joan Fagan's place. Howard Johnson's. The last surviving HoJo's was in Lake George. It closed in 2016 or 2017. Rachael Ray worked there as a teen.
South of Clifton Park & Mohawk River:
Saratoga Winners (Ted Nugent played there), The Great Gatsby (didn't last long), which later became Dave Denny’s Barn and changed hands many times throughout the years. It was originally a farm. The Lobster Pound. I worked there for 8 months
'77 - '78 as a dish washer and did food prep. They let the workers eat the great burger's, Manhattan and New England chowder's, and some other menu items. The free food was better than the paycheck! I used to love the lobster tank at the front entrance.
Latham:
Johnny’s Restaurant which later became The Stage, (who hosted dancers wearing bikini bottoms and nothing but fringed pasties on top...lmao. My three best friends from high school and I, used to get in there when we were only 15 or16 years old. The bar tenders served us while we were entertained by the gorgeous, half naked, dancing girls. Boy if my father found out I wouldn't be here typing this today...lol), Kirker's Steak House, The Colosseum which became Starlight Theater hosted many famous acts, some of which included The Fifth Dimension, Tom Jones, Kenny Rogers, Johnny Cash, Sammy Davis Jr., Tony Bennett, Temptations, the Four Tops, REO Speedwagon, Bob Hope, George Carlin, Rodney Dangerfield and even hosted a Mike Tyson fight. Guess who won?, Latham Drive-In, The original Latham Drive-In location was on "the V" of Rt. 9 and Old Louden Road. It was torn down (late '60's or early '70's) and relocated on the West side of Rt. 9 a few hundred feet to the North., Hellman Towne Theater (next to Latham Drive-In)., Hinsdale Turkey Farm predates the plaza and was located where Price Chopper (Market Bistro) is now on Rt. 9, Mickey's Mouse Trap, Two Guy's, J.M. Field's, Bradlees, K-Mart, Woodcraft Construction, The Down Under, Lum's, Shakey's, Ground Round, Roxy Cleaners, First Step, Sneaky Pete's, Annie's Restaurant, Fannie's Restaurant, Robert Hall Clothing, Mikes Submarine's & Neba Roast Beef, Dutch Touch Florist, DILLIGAFF, Miracles Dance Club, Carol's, Frost Top's, The Mirage Hair & Nail Salon (I re-roofed the place in 1991), The Lookout, Handy Andy's, Howard Johnson's, Hoffman's Restaurant, Hoffman's Playland, Hoffman's Turkey Farm which came long before the playland and restaurant on the same site. It was the farmer Hoffman who made enough profits with his Turkey farm to start the restaurant, playland and car washes. I doubt he (Mr. Hoffman), would've realized the thing that would be the mainstay, is the car washes! I graduated with Steve Hoffman (grandson of the multiple business founder) who started and own's the Raindancer Car Washes. It was his grandfather who started their legacy. Ted Pepper (molester), Fatso's. Last but not least, the famous Latham Circle which is still there and is a pre-curser to the future roundabouts that have popped up everywhere.
Cohoes:
Golden Crust Bakery, Cohoes Hospital, Zullo's, Fisher's, IGA, Cramer's Armory, Jupiter, Food Circus, Cohoes Savings Bank, Dzembo's Dairy. They delivered weekly to our house, delicious milk in glass bottles. Delivered by a Milk Man who wore a white suit and placed the milk bottles into our milk box insulated with cork. Those days of milk delivery are sadly long gone, Dairy Dan "the ice cream man." He delivered delicious soft serve chocolate, vanilla, or twist from his truck throughout Cohoes in the 1960's. Fond memories indeed!, Cohoes Manufacturing, Carlson's Pool & Lansing's Pool. Lansings pool may still be there.
Waterford:
Bob's Sports World, Grand Union Warehouse, Freihofer's, and their horse and carriage deliveries. That went out sometime in the 60's along with the Freddie Freihofer's local T.V. program with the kids. I think one of my classmates, Mike Cranston was on his show. Tragic that Entenmann's bought them out. Damn kids! The chocolate chip cookies were the best and will never be the same. It still annoys me to this day that Entenmann's put their crappy cookies in a Freihofer's box and peddles them to the public. What a crime!
Troy (The Collar City & Home of Uncle Sam):
Boardman's, Schatz's Stationary, South End Tavern, Red Barn.
Green Island: Montgomery Wards, Bendix, (my mother worked and retired from there)
Watervliet: Lucky 13, St. Patrick's Church torn down for a Price Chopper...TRAGIC!
Albany / Colonie:
Park V, The Americana, Whisper's, Rumor's, Service Merchandise, Cranberry Bog, Paddock Pools, Valle's Steak House, L-Ken's, Mohawk Drive-In.
West of Wolf Road:
Red Barn, Butcher Block, Central Steak, Robinson's Hardware, Durabuilt Construction, Barbizon.
Schenectady & West of it:
Martin Keller Roofing, Woolworths, Wallace Armer Hardware, Slick's Restaurant...best sandwiches in the Capital District! (They are still there, Psych! Had you nervous for a second, huh?), Morrette's Restaurant (best steak sandwiches in the area), Bavarian Chalet (Guilderland), Drome Sound / Marshall's / Rex Appliance's / Media Play / all in Mohawk Mall (Rotterdam), Steak & Ale (Niskayuna), The River House / Wilson's Marina / Allen's Pub / The Skyway all in Scotia (The Skyway in Scotia was a bar with a super large dance floor that had been a bowling alley. You could still see the bowling alley markers on the floor. They hosted many live musical acts including Joan Jett who played there in the 80s), Radio City Bar (Glenville), Ye 'Ole Homestead in Burnt Hills (burnt down...it lived up to it's towns name), Top Knotch in Galway.
East of Wolf Road:
Chuckie Cheese, Terminal Hardware, King's Dept. Store, Central Market, A&P Market, Loblaw's, Bob & Ron's Fish Fry, Bob's Big Boy, Clay's Fish Fry, Toy's R Us, Paulsen Lumber, Garrity Lumber, Coughtry's Stationary, Jillian's, Quintessence, Howard Johnson's, A&W, Huck Finn's Playland, Platt's Place, Hullabaloo in Rennselaer was a bar with live music. Once hosted a Tommy Tutone concert. Villa Valenti in West Sand Lake.
Way South: Catskill Game Farm.
Other things that faded away from our childhood:
S&H Green Stamps, flash bulbs, 8 track tapes, milk boxes, pay phones and party lines, bell bottoms, go go boots (these boots were made for walking), Polaroid Camera's, sissy bars, lava lamps, halter tops, mini skirts, hot pants, bobby socks, saddle shoes, rotary phones, Disco (sucks), Beatlemania, Wacky Packages, s**g rugs, velour shirts, silk shirts, leisure suits, fringe's on sleeves, afro's, watching Apollo missions in the classroom, game nights, selling cook books in 6th grade to raise money for a weekend field trip to Camp Chingachgook, square dancing in gym class (ugh), buying gym clothes at the book store, Tang, Easy Bake Ovens, Clackers, Chiller Theater, WPTR & Boom Boom Brannigan, 1 cent for white milk, 2 cents for chocolate milk in grade school (+/- '65 - '67), donating to Unicef and getting a pin for your collar, air raid drills, climbing ropes in gym class, Middle A & B, 9th grade Sock Hop, Adelson & Lewis, Tadora & Leighton, Tabano, Fredricks & Meyers, Enochian and Frank, B.P. Gas, odd / even license plate fill-ups during the Nixon energy crisis, handing out combs before class photo's, parties in the woods, Robin Hood, Senior Smoking Room, Senior Music Room to entertain the Senior Lunch Room. Lines of pay phones in the main lobby of the high school. Many bomb threats called in from those phones to get the day off, Watching weekend movies at Middle A auditorium and at St. Mary's Church across the road...Father Turner / yikes!
There are three things that should be noted and will never fade away that we all know and love. It is especially significant for me because I live in Ohio and miss these things that cannot be had anywhere except the Capital District.
Stewart's. Not only will they never go away, but they continue popping up new stores everywhere. It's hard to compare with the fine products carried including; their delicious milk & ice cream (so many great flavors), all freshly made from local dairy farms; their hot chili, meatballs, and soups from the crocks near the registers; and you can't get a great big buttered hard roll any where else but Stewart's.
Fish Fry's! Served by Harbor House, Ted's, and many fine restaurants in the area. No place in the country does it like the Capital District. Everywhere else in the country mostly uses beer battered fish topped with tarter sauce. Pathetically and sadly, their fish and style of preparation doesn't come close to the delicious fish fry's from our area. When they see me putting cocktail sauce on my fish in Ohio, they think I'm crazy. What the heck do they know anyway!
Helmbold's mini hot dogs served with the works by Gus's, Famous Lunch, Hot Dog Charlie's and a few other's. Man, do I miss those little beauties!
Honorable Mention and a brief Tribute to Francis:
Francis (the bicycle man), who we all know and love. He however, is not gone but is still with us and still going strong! It is most fitting that he be mentioned because he is a Clifton Park Legend!
Historical note:
Long before our time, it's hard to image Rt. 9 as a dirt road and where it meets the Mohawk River, no Crescent Bridge. I always find it fascinating to think back to those days where the only way of crossing that river was to swim or by boat. In 1790, a man named Eldert Vischer built a rope ferry to help people cross to and fro. He made an enterprise of it and before long, by 1800, a tavern and store were added to the site's location. Doesn't it always seem that a tavern is the first thing needed to civilize a primitive area? Lol. So as we list things of the past that have disappeared in our lifetime, let us not forget the farmers and hard work of others who came long before to settle the land. The ones who carved the first streets and laid the first corner stones. The people who worked together to establish commerce and unification. Clifton Park would not have been what we enjoyed in our childhoods, and what it has become today, without their vision.
Please feel free to comment with your own personal memories or any stories of these wonderful places and things from our past.
It's always fun to remember things that have been long forgotten. It allows us to revisit our childhood for a moment. This has become a collaborative effort and if you post things that were significant and have disappeared, please remind us and comment. Let us reminisce, and tell us a story about it. I will add it to my post. This will be an evolving document for a short while so keep checking in to look for updates.
This has been a fun little project! I am happy so many people like it and are participating. When reading through the post, one must realize what a great town Clifton Park is and how lucky we were to grow up during the town's Heyday when the town really started booming.
Thanks for your help! Happy New Year to all and may God always bless Clifton Park and it's past and current residents.

Post Script:
If you have the patience, scroll through the comments and you will find lot's of fun things gone from our past that I posted and did a lot of research on. Pictures of old buildings, restaurants, stores, places (Hoffman's Playland included), things like toys, movies, clothes, etc. The Twin Bridges, Crescent Bridge, expansion of the Northway, Milk deliveries and so on. I also posted a lot of factual information in the captions that you can read and learn more about these places we all loved. Information like when they came about and went away. Who owned them, the great flood of Troy, Freihofer's...and so much more!
Be sure to check them out. If you liked my main post, you will love what I did in the comment section. It's a lot of information and will literally take hours going though it. Have fun and thanks for commenting.

Lynn Raymond DeBiase
Studio 6 cake decorating and candy making supply store on Rt. 9
2y
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Irene Chouinard
Lynn Raymond DeBiase did not last long there?
2m
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Kim Verald-Hamm
This was awesome!! Thank you so much for the trip down memory lane. We were trying to remember what was at Grecian Gardens while we are here eating and I see it was Shenanigans 😊
1y
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Dan Hull
I moved to Clifton park in 69’. Grew up on Barney rd. Was the best of times there simply fun.Now I don’t recognize the place a nut house drive in. too many too much
8w
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