Several Carbondale businesses are reaching milestone anniversaries this year, each marking decades of connection with the Carbondale community. The Neighborhood Co-op Grocery is celebrating 40 years of operation, Quatro’s recently marked its 50th anniversary and PK’s bar is approaching 70 years in business. Together, these establishments have adapted with the city’s evolving social landscape, offering spaces for dining, gathering and entertainment across generations.

Neighborhood Co-op Grocery celebrating 40 years

The Neighborhood Co-op Grocery traces its roots back to the early 1980s, when a handful of friends formed a buying club that gathered in living rooms to split bulk orders of food. Francis Murphy, now the general manager, was part of those early days. A three-time SIU graduate, Murphy has been involved with the Co-op for more than three decades.

“In the early ‘80s, a group of friends got together in someone’s living room with a catalog from a wholesale co-op in Madison, Wisconsin,” Murphy said. “They would drive a truck up there, load it with grains, beans, rice, cheese and nuts, and then bring it back to Carbondale where people would gather in houses and divide up the food.” 

That network of neighborhood buying clubs gave the Co-op its name.

By 1985, the Co-op had opened its first storefront at 102 E. Jackson St., later moving next door before relocating to the Murdale Shopping Center in 2006. That expansion, Murphy said, was a turning point.

“We quadrupled in size when we moved from downtown to here, and we did it by leveraging about $50,000 in cash into a $1.5 million project. The city, banks and more than 100 Co-op owners who made personal loans made it possible,” Murphy said.

Beyond being a grocery store, the Co-op has emphasized community connection. It sponsors events like the Feed Your Neighbor 5K and the annual Farm Crawl, while also hosting sales and activities in partnership with SIU and other local organizations.

This year’s 40th anniversary will be marked with a free celebration in Turley Park on Saturday, Aug. 30. The event will feature live music from bluegrass musician Mark Stoffel, the all-female rock band Loose Gravel and a variety of food trucks, vendors and local partners. Attendees can expect games, giveaways and activities ranging from volleyball to face painting.

“I just really hope the Co-op continues to build on its successes,” Murphy said. “The community built the Co-op and continues to support us, and I hope that continues into the future. More and more people are interested in eating healthy and living a healthy lifestyle, and I think that portends good things for the Co-op going forward.”

PK’s celebrating 70 years

Gwen Hunt and her husband, Tom Hunt, opened PK’s, originally known as Pizza King, in 1955, becoming Carbondale’s first-ever pizza restaurant. As more pizzerias popped up in Carbondale over the years, the Hunts shifted their focus, stopped selling pizza and became better known as PK’s – a staple of Carbondale nightlife. 

In April of 2018, Gwen Hunt died at age 84 after 63 years of service to the Carbondale community. After her death, the bar remained in her family’s ownership and was operated by a bar manager until 2020, when current owner Walter Witkewiz took over.  

Witkewiz moved to Carbondale in 2009 and had worked many positions throughout the building before purchasing it, starting as a janitor, then a door guy, later a manager and then eventually bought the bar during the COVID pandemic. 

After Hunt’s passing, her family began looking to sell the business, and when a buyer fell through during the pandemic, Witkewiz stepped in.

“I’ve changed the bar a little bit, but I feel like even she (Hunt) was evolving and changing the bar all the time,” Witkewiz said. 

He said that the venue’s intimacy is a big part of the reason it charms the community. 

“The band plays on the floor, there’s no big stage, you’re up close and dancing with the band, and… it’s just a really fun, good experience to have if you’ve ever seen a band there, especially one that you like,” Witkewiz said.

Events have become another defining feature of the spot, from holiday specials, such as an Oktoberfest event with contests and activities, to trivia nights and eating contests. 

The upcoming 70th anniversary will be celebrated Sept. 5-6 and will feature $1 PBR specials, giveaways and live music spread over two nights, capped off by a performance from The Copyrights.

Looking forward, Witkewiz said he hopes PK’s remains a place that connects people across the community. 

“PK’s is everybody’s bar,” he said. “It’s a better representation of the town than anywhere else, because everyone comes together. You have like a college student sitting next to a farmer and everyone is pretty respectful and welcoming and shares the space. It’s not like some exclusive place.”

On Aug. 24, the beloved PK’s alleyway beer garden that had become a second space for the establishment during the pandemic was deconstructed. The Hilton Hotel is adding on a parking lot to the north and the alley will once again be used for through traffic. 

With the upcoming anniversary, PK’s has asked that everyone be cautious and aware of vehicles moving through the alley where the beer garden once was. If drinking in the downtown entertainment district, it’s suggested that you grab a plastic cup rather than leaving with bottles or glassware. 

Quatro’s celebrating 50 years 

According to Quatros.com, Quatro’s Deep Pan Pizza first opened in 1975 when four Chicago friends launched a pizza shop in what had once been a doughnut bakery. The name, Quatro’s, remained even after the original owners filed for bankruptcy within a year.

In 1976, then 21-year-old Steve Payne, a college student with restaurant experience, purchased the struggling business. The website states that he renovated the space, replacing doughnut ovens with proper pizza equipment and expanded the dining area to include more seating.

That same year, Quatro’s garnered a boost in popularity when Carbondale became a rest stop for cyclists traveling across the country during the nation’s Bicentennial bike race. Quatro’s website states that more than 2,000 riders stopped in that summer, helping spread the word about the restaurant far beyond southern Illinois. By fall, Quatro’s had become a steady presence in Carbondale’s food scene.

The Carbondale Chamber of Commerce recently hosted a ribbon cutting and Business After Hours on Thursday, Aug. 21 at Quatro’s to unveil some of the restaurant’s most recent renovations. The event brought together community members, local leaders and longtime customers to mark the milestone.

As part of the 50th anniversary celebration, the city issued an official proclamation honoring Quatro’s for its role in the community, which was read during the Carbondale City Council meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 26. The proclamation highlighted the restaurant’s decades-long presence in Carbondale and its reputation as a gathering place for students, residents and visitors alike.

Quatro’s ownership could not be reached for comment by the time of publication.

Staff Reporter Annalise Schmidt can be reached at [email protected]. To stay up to date on all your southern Illinois news, be sure to follow The Daily Egyptian on Facebook and Instagram @dailyegyptian

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