Sadler Paper Co. employees Kelly Webb and Nikki Phipps recall the good pizza and good times they had at the old Linden Loft Pizza in the 1980s.

“I liked the garlic bread, it had the alpine sauce,” Webb said about the popular ’80s hang-out. “Linden Loft was one of the first places with an alpine pizza, then everyone else started having it.”

“I used to take my boys with me,” Phipps said. “We used to sit and watch the toy trains go by on the walls.”

Webb and Phipps recalled the good old days while having lunch at — Linden Loft Pizza.

Johnny Linden, who operated the pizza place on York Street from 1974 to 1988, set up the new loft in the basement of Shadowwood Mall, 401 W. Broadway. He serves pizza, a salad bar, hot sandwiches and the alpine garlic bread.

Yes, he said, the electric trains are coming soon.

With bright blue and yellow paint, the new place doesn’t look too much like what people remember about the old place, which had a stone fireplace and balcony seating.

“I remember it had a lot of video games and they had a train that went all the way around the building,” said Donnie Rooks, who now works at the new pizza place.

After working at pizza places in Kansas, Linden opened J&S; Pizza Palace in 1974 on York Street and Broadway. The store later changed its name.

Linden said people began missing the old place almost as soon as it closed.

“For 20 years after that, everyone told me they had the best pizza in town there,” he said.

Linden spent those years working at other pizza places in the area.

“Finally, we got the opportunity to open up again,” he said.

Webb said the new pizza is just as good as the old.

Linden said he uses fresh dough each day, hand tossing each pie crust. He also uses whole milk mozzerella cheese.

Webb and Phipps said they look forward to seeing the train come back. It would be yet another reminder of the place they used to like more than 20 years ago.

“It was just a good place to take the family,” Phipps said.





Reach Cathy Spaulding at 684-2928 or cspaulding @muskogeephoenix.com.