1120 South Drive
Fesler Hall 302
Indianapolis, IN 46202-5114
317-274-5000
Web: http://medicine.iu.edu
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If you were a medical student in the ‘60s or ‘70s, you may remember a local joint called The Workingman’s Friend, with its cheap eats, cold beer, and no muss-no fuss atmosphere. Over the years, not much has changed at the tavern, which turns 90 next year.
Southwest of campus on the border of the historic Stringtown and Haughville neighborhoods, The Workingman’s Friend has been serving patrons since 1918. Go there any given day for lunch and you’ll find a mix of local politicians, corporate suits, university employees, and blue-collar workers. On the day we visited, an employee of the upscale Oceanaire Restaurant stopped in for a take-out order of burgers for his restaurant’s kitchen and wait staff.
Louie Stamatkin, a 25-year-old immigrant from Macedonia, first opened the tavern in a house at 234 N. Belmont and called it Belmont Lunch. He made and bottled his own whiskey to sell and ran the place until his death in 1946. Sons Carl and Earl took over then, and in 1950 they built a new building around the old house and changed the tavern’s name to honor their dad.
Becky Stamatkin, Carl’s daughter and the current manager of the family business, explains, “My grandpa let the local railroad workers run tabs until the end of the month when they got paid. He didn’t write anything down; it was an honor system. So the guys called him ‘Louie, the workingman’s friend.’”
Becky also relays stories of her grandpa bootlegging during prohibition and how the circus would call ahead from the train on their way in to town and order 200 half-pints of whiskey.
The tavern looks virtually the same today as it did in 1950. The fixtures and décor are original, with the exception of the neon beer signs, TVs, and ceiling fans. Some of the more interesting original artifacts include the cash register, two cigarette vending machines, the jukebox, and the bar.
Back in the day when both medical and dental students hung out there, Becky says a sandwich and beer cost only 10 cents. The tavern’s prices since have gone up but are still cheap by today’s standards. The house specialty, a double cheeseburger, will run you $4.75, and a 32-ounce fishbowl-shaped glass of beer is $3.25
“My mom says the medical and dental students would segregate themselves, with each group sitting on one side of the tavern,” says Becky. Her mom also reports the tavern was the site for a lot of doctor-nurse dates.
Becky isn’t sure why the tavern stopped being a regular student hangout. It’s still clear, though, that everyone is welcome at The Workingman’s Friend.
John Knote (MD’64), a radiologist on Indianapolis’ west side, frequented The Workingman’s Friend as a student and resident in the 1960s. He generously shares with us “data” from his “research of medical students’ diversional activities.”
“There was sort of a tradition when we arrived here that students went to ‘The Friend’ after exams, or on Friday or Saturday nights. There was a lot of camaraderie and commiserating about school. Later, as a resident, we often went there for lunch. The Friend was known for its cheeseburgers and sizzling steak, but not many students had enough money to buy steaks.
“There was a bowling machine and you used a kind of metal disk to knock down the bowling pins. Those games got a little more spirited as folks had another glass of “tea” or two. On the weekends they had a piano player – an old German fellow who sang with an accent. There was quite an uproar when he retired and they brought in a lady to sing.
“If a student over-imbibed, (owner) Earl Stamatkin would make arrangements for someone to take him home. Earl and (brother) Carl were big guys; they didn’t tolerate rowdiness.
“I remember one particularly long Friday of radiology when I was a resident. The department was just taking over interventional procedures and we had been training all day. We were supposed to also attend a regularly scheduled four-hour session that night. I suggested to the other resident and tech we skip the evening class and head over to The Friend. About 10 minutes later, our faculty mentor stopped by to make the same suggestion! We went and he treated us to cheeseburgers and beer.”
