The Embers, R.I.P.

We just finished watching the first two seasons of MTM, and there have been at least a couple of times so far when a group is trying to decide where to eat, and someone says, "Well, the Embers is good." I lived in Iowa back in the late 70s and early 80s, and remember eating at the Embers on trips to the Twin Cities. And it was good -- nice enough for a special night out, but not pretentious or expensive, just a cozy place with really good food.

I got curious as to whether the Embers chain already existed when the show started, or if it was just a made-up name that someone appropriated a little later on. Turns out the first Embers opened in 1956 and became a chain a couple of years later. The only remaining one closed just last year.