They’re best known for that famous salad bar, which is actually a salad tub. An old, claw foot bathtub filled with fresh vegetables, fruits, prepared salads and homemade soups. Strawberry Street Cafe‘s menu includes Maryland crabcakes, pasta, jambalaya, homemade chicken pot pie, spinach lasagna, quiches and more.

But the reason people have been going for 37 years is that tub of produce showcased front and center. On the weekends they even brunchify it ($11.50) with a warm food station of eggs, biscuits, sausage, bacon, gravy, cheddar grits, rosemary potatoes, muffins, cinnamon rolls and turnovers.

I arrived for lunch at 11:20am last Thursday (they don’t open until 11:30), but there was already a group of 6 waiting.  By the time I served myself at the bathtub the place was almost full.  As I looked around the Art Nouveau-meets-saloon-styled room with its intricate stained glass, rich woodwork, fresh flowers and remarkable chalk art (check out Amanda Blackmon’s rendering of Lincoln), I was totally satisfied. It wasn’t just the salad, but the knowledge that this neighborhood institution still has a line waiting at the door.