Cedar Rapids' home of the half-pound “Superburger” is healthy at 50

After 50 years owning and managing the Starlite Room, Jim Aossey still gets up at 6:30 a.m. two days a week to come in and bread a few hundred tenderloins.

When Aossey turns 79 later this month, it's a sure bet he'll still be joining in the breading, marinating, and tenderizing.

There's pride for Aossey in running an independent local restaurant that packs them in the old-fashioned way, with tasty homemade sandwiches and soups at fair prices.

“I like the people,” said Aossey, who has served four generations of the same family. “It's a place for me to hang out. It's the activity. If I weren't working, I'd be lost.”

The Starlite Room was a neighborhood bar in 1959 when a friend told Aossey that its owner, H & H Co., was looking for someone to manage the business.

Aossey had grown up in the surrounding Kenwood neighborhood, where his father, Abdoo Aossey, owned Aossey's Grocery.

“They said, “Jimmie, do you know how to run a bar?” Aossey recalled. “I said, “I can learn pretty quick.”

Aossey ended up buying the Starlite Room and managing it. His sister, Lucille Barber, worked for the business for 35 years until retiring recently, and about a dozen family members have worked for The Starlite Room over the years.

Aossey's big addition to the Cedar Rapids restaurant market was the half-pound “Superburger,” which at the time was a novelty in Cedar Rapids. One of his many stories involves a customer who ordered a lot of small burgers, and scoffed at the idea that half-pound burgers would satisfy his hunger faster.

The men made a bet that the man couldn't eat five half-pound burgers, which Aossey won. The customer gave up after eating one small burger, and three-and-a-half half-pound burgers.

Today, it's not unusual for customers to order two Superburgers in one bun.

“We have 11-year-olds who come in and eat an entire half-pound burger, no problem,” Aossey said.

Tenderloins are gaining ground. The Starlite Room recently added a non-breaded marinated version of its thick tenderloin, which is proving popular.

Other specialties include chicken sandwiches, French dip sandwiches, and homemade chili. Sandwiches are still served wrapped in waxed paper, and appetizers still come in plastic baskets.

The Starlite Room is a kind of litmus test for Cedar Rapids diners. Some love the relaxed atmosphere, fast service, and copious quantities of tasty foods. Others don't like the emphasis on fried foods and think it's too much like a bar.

It's hard to argue with the Starlite Room's success, however. Aossey has expanded over the years by moving into spaces formerly occupied by other businesses, or buying the properties and tearing them down for parking. Today the restaurant seats about 150, and has 18 chest freezers filled with carefully sorted and dated food inventory.

Some of the biggest changes have come in the past five years when Aossey built the adjacent Kenwood Plaza Shopping Center and added an outdoor seating area at the Starlite Room for about 25.

The shopping center still remains largely vacant, and Aossey believes one reason is the high parking needs of The Starlite Room. In fact, he's refused to lease to restaurants because it would cause a parking conflict.