“During that time, my mother
worked 12 hours a day for 25
cents.”
Not knowing a word of
English, Christ traveled to
Warren, Ohio, where his uncle
lived. He landed a job at the
Victory Restaurant as a dishwasher
and worked 14 hours a
day for $17 a week. He began
to learn English by listening to
the radio and looking at books.
Also, the waitresses would
spend time talking with him.
With a strong desire to succeed,
he moved up to being a cook,
but not long after that, the
Korean War interrupted his
American dream to open his
own restaurant. He joined the
Army in 1952. Although he was
in Korea as a soldier, he still
was able to do what he liked
best. After learning of his history,
the Army assigned him to
the kitchen as a cook.
When he returned from service
in the Army, he knew that
he would buy a restaurant, but
the prices in Ohio were too
steep. He found a good deal on
a restaurant in Florida and in
1964 bought Crystal’s
Restaurant in downtown Fort
Pierce. He stayed here for 11
years serving breakfast, lunch
and dinner to judges, lawyers
and other folks who yearned
for his down-home style cooking.
He sold Crystal’s and started
Chris’ Restaurant on U.S. 1
and Avenue H. At that time, the
Fort Pierce Hospital was only a
couple of blocks away and construction
work was booming.
The power plant and the bridge
to the south of the Fort Pierce
Inlet were both being built. “I
loved cooking and, boy, did I
cook at Chris’,” he says. “I went
through four cases of eggs a
day and served 700 people each
day. It was a busy place, but I
loved it.”
Wanting to expand his business,
he sold Chris’ and opened
COOKING
Darlene and Chris Humphreys sit in the booth where they first met at Dino’s Restaurant in Fort Pierce.
Today, they own the restaurant, which was first opened by Darlene’s father, Dino Christ.
Dino’s Restaurant at U.S. 1 and
Juanita 25 years ago. With the intention of retiring, he sold
the restaurant 20 years ago to his daughter and son-in-law,
Darlene and Chris Humphreys. Darlene and Chris met at the
restaurant: Chris was a frequent patron and Darlene, his
favorite waitress.
But Christ couldn’t stay away from the kitchen and gave
up the idea of retirement. He still comes in to cook in the
morning and returns in the afternoon to greet the dinner
crowd. “I still have some of the same customers I’ve had for
over 40 years,” he says. “ Some customers are 98, 100 years
old. I am just an infant compared to them. Remember, I am
39, right?”
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