A long time ago, in a place called "Greenwood" there existed a mecca for family dining. The place was known simply as Pizza & Pipes. And although the site of this North Seattle institution is now home to a Blockbuster Video (ugh!) the memories of pizza, pop, 1980's video games and organ music is still alive.

Now, before I get into reminiscing about this Seattle legend I should be completely honest about The Pipes: the Pizza was average, at best. The best thing about the pizza was that they had a window that you could go up to and watch the kitchen staff prepare it. This served two purposes. First, parents could put kids like me up at that window and it would keep them occupied until our food was ready. I wouldn't be asking about quarters for the Pac-Man or Galaga machines because I was too busy watching some guy make my pie. (I believe they also had Pole Position...and that refers to a video game of the 80's and not a strip club.) Second, the viewing window served as a "Big Brother" to the guys in the kitchen. Kitchen cooks were less like to pull something with your pizza if people are watching their every move. Seriously, don't think that wasn't a deterrent.

The pizza sucked, big deal. People didn't go to Pizza and Pipes for gourmet pizza, they went to Pizza and Pipes for the cheap pizza and the 3/17 Wurlitzer organ that was prominently displayed at the front of the restaurant. When the organist got that organ kicked up all hell broke loose inside of that place. Little kids started dancing around. Bubbles fell from the ceiling (courtesy of the Pizza & Pipes "Bubble-Machine")...pretty much anarchy. Complete and utter anarchy.

A few words on the Bubble Machine: while the Bubble Machine was not a primary reason why people came to Pizza & Pipes it served the important function of keeping people from leaving. The Bubble Machine was "the hook", if you will. The anticipation of bubbles reigning down from the rafters was enough to keep anyone from leaving during the organist's performance. While the pipe organ was the main course, the Bubble Machine was the dessert. Plus, what kid didn't like bubbles? Especially bubbles that fall from the sky during a rousing pipe organ rendition of "Roll Out the Barrel" while hopped up on crappy pizza and the World's Flattest Pop. In short, the Bubble Machine could captivate any audience.

Pizza & Pipes was the primary location for any end-of-the-season pizza party for a St. John's athletic team, primarily because you could bring 20 kids and their parents and eat all the pizza you wanted for like $30. The place was very large, at least when you think about the size of typical pizza restaurants. The Pipes didn't look like a Godfather's or a Round Table, instead it looked like a big banquet hall with a pizza kitchen in the back and a huge pipe organ in the front (along with a selection of video games jammed into one corner). And from what I can recall, there wasn't a whole lotta light that entered that place. It always seemed kind of dark...perhaps that condition was favorable for the organ and the pipes, I haven't a clue.

According to the Puget Sound Theater Organ Society (or as you might more commonly refer to it, the PSTOS) the original Pizza & Pipes organ was initially installed at Seattle's Paramount Theater in 1930, only to find it's way to Pizza & Pipes in 1973. After The Pipes was closed in the late 80's, the organ was sold and is now housed in Maple Valley. And although it has been over twenty years since it was heard at a St. John's 5th grade soccer team pizza party, no one can silence the memories of Pizza & Pipes.

For further information on the 3/17 Wurlitzer Organ, check out this article at TheaterOrgans.com.