It can be a little disorienting to see snow on the roof of a restaurant when it’s 100 degrees outside.
But that’s part of the charm of Clearman’s North Woods Inn of San Gabriel. Walk inside the log cabin-style eatery and that cool, north woods feel continues with low ceilings, rough-hewn wooden tables, sawdust on the floor and two ferocious looking stuffed bears in glass-enclosed cases.
“When you come in it’s like being inside a big log cabin,” said Richard Selvik, the restaurant’s general manager. “One of the unique things we do is put peanuts on the table. People can eat them and throw shells on the floor.”
Clearman’s, which exudes a unique kind of “fancy-casual” atmosphere, will celebrate 50 years in business next month. Many of the restaurant’s die-hard customers have been frequenting the place for much of that time.
“I’m a long-time customer,” said Patricia Jacobson, 67, of Eagle Rock, who stopped in with her husband on Wednesday. “My mother and father used to bring us here for special occasions when I was a teenager. I love the Tiffany-style lamps and the stained-glass windows.”
Clearman’s will celebrate its 50-year anniversary during the entire month of August with $50 gift certificate giveaways and a drawing that will give customers the chance to win a magnum-sized bottle of the restaurant’s signature wine.
So how has Clearman’s survived — and thrived over the years — while so many other restaurants have failed? Selvik said it comes down to the basics.
“Our salads and cheese bread is what people think about when they talk about Clearman’s,” he said. “But the other thing is we have excellent service. I get a lot of customers who will go out of their way to tell me that. They’ll call me up front. It’s always good to get that kind of feedback.”
Jot Condie, president and CEO of the California Restaurant Association, said any restaurant that can last half a century is something special.
“When you can survive for 50 years that goes beyond rare and becomes extraordinary,” he said. “Especially when you consider that the average restaurant will last about seven years.”
Clearman’s serves up everything from red cabbage salads, lumberjack steaks and pulled-pork sandwiches to roasted chicken and a variety of seafood, including Alaskan king crab legs, rock lobster tail and jumbo shrimp.
Originally located in Monrovia, the business was moved piece by piece to its current San Gabriel location at 7247 Rosemead Blvd. in 1966 to make way for construction for the 210 Freeway. And Clearman’s North Woods Inn of San Gabriel is only a piece of the family-owned enterprise.
There are two other Clearman’s North Woods Inns in Covina and La Mirada as well as a Steak ‘N Stein Inn in Pico Rivera and a Clearman’s Galley adjacent to the San Gabriel location.
“That’s more of a sports bar,” Selvik said. “It’s a completely different atmosphere.”
Founder John Clearman launched the restaurant enterprise in the 1940s and the business is still family owned.
One thing is certain: Restaurants are big business in California. Figures from the National Restaurant Association show that there were nearly 70,000 eating and drinking establishments in California last year and sales at California restaurants are projected to top $79 billion in 2016. The state’s restaurant industry currently employs nearly 1.7 million workers — about 11 percent of the state’s workforce — and that’s expected to increase 10 percent by 2026.
Customer Fred Santo said he’s been coming to Clearman’s since the 60s.
“I used to go to the Monrovia location and I kept coming after they moved,” the 80-year-old Arcadia resident said. “It’s the quality of the food … it’s everything.”
And the snow?
“At my age I don’t care about that anymore,” he said.
This article has been updated from an earlier version to correct the date that Clearman’s moved to San Gabriel.
