February 15, 1990 — It appears that the Brookside Restaurant, at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains on U.S. 211 east of Luray, is being put in good hands.
Bob and Cece Castle of Fairfax County have purchased the long revered restaurant and gift shop from Lloyd and Katina Wakeman, who have operated the business since 1976.
The Wakemans plan to retire to farm life near Luray.
It’s only the third time the Brookside has changed hands. Page and Ollie Shenk opened the original section of the restaurant in 1937 or 1938, and expanded it in the 1940s.
Charles L. Fake Sr. bought the Brookside in 1965 and sold to the Wakemans 11 years later.
While tourists are always welcome and make up a significant segment of the clientele in the summer and fall, through the years the Brookside has been known as a local restaurant. And Castle wants it to remain that way.
~ From the public archives of the Page News and Courier
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