A Mom on a Mission: Gus’s Drive-In & Restaurant
by Chantel Baul
More than fifty years ago, a mother in Florida received an opportunity to own and operate an out-of-town restaurant. Ambitious as she was, she packed up her three children and moved them to Columbus where she opened Gus’s Drive-In & Restaurant on Victory Drive. That woman was Mama Gus, the hardworking, compassionate and dedicated restauranteur who patrons have known and loved for decades.
Throughout the late sixties and seventies, Mama Gus’s drive-in was one among several others lining the strip. Muscle cars and hotrods flooded the drive-in lots after football games at Baker High School. Children waited with excitement in the backseats of the family car for carhops to dash out on skates with trays of the hot, flavorful food Gus’s is known for.
Fast forward to present-day and it’s clear: the classic cars cruise down the strip no more. Wheeled waitresses no longer skate at neighboring drive-ins. And Baker High School has been gone for years. But Gus’s Drive-In and Restaurant still stands proudly on the very same corner it always has. “Gus’s is an old icon of days gone by. . . It’s a time capsule,” described Anthony Kontaxis, Mama Gus’s son, who stepped in to run the restaurant nine years ago at his mother’s request. With more than a half-century in business, Gus’s is a time-preserved cornerstone of Columbus society, a veritable piece of living history.
Family-owned and operated since 1965, Gus’s Drive-In is Mama Gus’s legacy. Such longevity in the restaurant business is no small feat. Kontaxis credits Gus’s continued success to his mother’s dedication to her customers: “Everyone knows mom loves her customers. . . It was her support for the community, support for the needy . . . support for the troops that kept her going.”
Another integral contribution to Gus’s reputation is the fact that it has remained authentic through the years. Gus’s still operates from the original structure; its physical foundation is just as resilient as the woman who started it all. The dining room walls are decked with posters, photos and other ephemera recalling earlier times. If these walls could talk, they’d likely have much to say. Patrons certainly do. For customers who grew up in the area, Gus’s is a wistful reminder of happy childhood memories, a place where locals can go for a satisfying meal with comforting dose of nostalgia on the side.
For customers who are from out of town or are otherwise unfamiliar with the site’s longstanding history, Gus’s is the place to find fresh, yet affordable homestyle food with unmatched flavor. Juicy, never frozen burgers, Grecian gyros with housemade tzatziki sauce, fresh seafood and the famous jumbo wings are just some of the menu offerings Gus’s is celebrated for. “Our signature [is] Gus’s Steak Sandwich. It has been a bestseller for [more than] forty years at the restaurant,” Kontaxis explained.
Ultimately, anyone who hasn’t been to the drive-in recently should make their way to Gus’s Drive-In soon. Gus’s boasts unparalleled service, palate-pleasing plates and a cool Rockabilly vibe that’s real, not replicated. Perpetuated by a mother’s love, this restaurant is emblematic of the city’s resilience, history and pride, and that’s reason enough to drop by.