Peggy's Airport Cafe' Memories

by Michael R Dougherty
(California)

Some places feed you. Others hold you.

For generations of Anchorage locals--and for people who only passed through but never forgot-- Peggy's wasn't just a stop for a meal.

It was a familiar door to open, a warm room to step into, a slice of ordinary life that somehow became unforgettable. And there was the pie.

Peggy's story begins long before the first plate hit the table.

She didn't come to Alaska to open a restaurant

Peggy came to teach school.

That detail matters because it says something about who she was before anyone knew her name from a sign out front.

She arrived with a purpose rooted in people--in classrooms, in community, in the day-to-day work of building a life in a place that demanded grit and heart.

While teaching in Bethel, Peggy met Frank Lott, the man who would become her husband. Frank had left his home in England, pulled by the kind of hope that brought many north during the gold rush years--the idea that a person could start over and become more than their old life allowed.

Somewhere between those two journeys--hers to teach, his to try his luck--the foundation for Peggy's was quietly forming.

Merrill Field, and a café across the way

In 1932, Anchorage opened a new airstrip and named it Merrill Field, after a well known Alaska bush pilot. The airport sits near the west end of Mountain View, part of the city's growing rhythm--engines, weather, cargo, passengers, departures, arrivals.

Then, in 1944 Peggy and Frank opened Peggy's Airport Café, in a one-story building across from Merrill Field.

It didn't take long for the café to become a favorite for pilots and passengers using the field.

You can almost picture it: people coming in with the cold wind still on their coats, the sound of conversation at the tables, the comfort of being indoors when Alaska reminded you how big it is.

But even with the steady flow of airport life, what people remember most isn't only the location.

It's what was served.

The Pies (the kind you remember years later)

Every beloved restaurant has its legend. At Peggy's, it wasn't flashy. It wasn't complicated.

It was pie.

A baker named June Bowen baked many pies at the café. And during the 73 years Peggy's was open, the restaurant used the same handwritten recipe cards that Bowen had written down from Peggy's recipes.

Two favorites that stayed with people over the years?

- Banana Cream

- Strawberry Rhubarb

If you've ever tried to describe a truly good slice of pie to someone who wasn't there, you know the problem: the words don't quite hold it. But the memory does--especially when it's tied to a booth you sat in, or a time in your life you'd give anything to revisit for just an hour.

1954: a new name, a new address, the same pull

in 1954 Peggy's made two significant changes.

The name became "Peggy's Restaurant." And the business relocated to 1676 E. 5th Avenue, not far from its previous location--still only a short distance from Merrill Field.

The new location had something else, too: a second floor.

And that upstairs space became a favorite meeting place for local businesses and organizations. And that matters because it meant Peggy's wasn't only where you ate--it was where Anchorage planned, debated, laughed, and returned week after week.

A restaurant like that becomes a kind of living room for a community. And everyone recognizes the feeling: I belong here, even if only for a meal.

March 27, 1964 (the day Anchorage changed)

Mary of Anchorage Memories shared a story she remembers from her mother, Feodora Pennington.

Feodora was baking pies at Peggy's Restaurant on March 27, 1964, when the Good Friday earthquake struck Anchorage.

She later told Mary that when the quake first hit, Peggy Lott and Feodora ended up crawling around on the kitchen floor on their hands and knees, dodging pots, pans, and knives tossed around by the shaking.

It's a startling image--two people in the middle of ordinary work, suddenly dropped into survival, trying to keep each other safe in a room that had turned dangerous.

1988: a change in ownership, and a decision that mattered

In 1988 Peggy Lott decided to sell her much-loved restaurant.

An employee, Nancy Burley, stepped up to become the new owner. And one of the first decisions was to keep both the menu and the atmosphere of Peggy's Restaurant.

Nancy's decision proved wise--because people weren't only coming for the food. They were coming back to a feeling.

Then, in 2023

For 73 years, Anchorage--and Alaskans from all over the territory and later the 49th state--came to love Peggy's Restaurant.

And then, in 2023. The restaurant closed.

But a place like Peggy's doesn't disappear neatly. It lingers-in stories, in family conversations.

Because when a restaurant lasts that long, it witnesses lives: first dates, job news, post-game meals, meetings that mattered, grief shared over coffee, laughter that still echoes when you remember it.

Memories (the part that still belongs to us)

Now we can all be thankful for what remains: the memories each of us carries--big and small--of Peggy's Restaurant.

So let's keep them.

What were your favorite menu items?

And oh--those wonderful pies. What were your favorites?

If you're willing. Share your memory publically in the comments below. Even a few lines helps keep Peggy's alive in a way that matters most: in the people who loved it.

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“Always a great read” Tony