In 1981, when Vice President George H.W. Bush was on a South Florida campaign swing for his boss, President Ronald Reagan, where did he stop to talk to small business owners about limiting the federal government?
Lester’s Diner, of course. The venerable eatery off State Road 84 in Fort Lauderdale, known for its 14-ounce cup of coffee and 24-hour availability, also hosted George W. Bush in 1987, when the future president was rounding up South Florida votes for his dad’s presidential campaign.
An aficionado of the diner life, Lester Bammesberger opened his namesake restaurant in 1966, an ever-popular spot where the power elite shared counter space with just plain folks.
The Fort Lauderdale Lester’s was just one of several Bammesberger owned. Other ones were in Cortland, N.Y., Sarasota, Bryan, Ohio, Daytona Beach and Phoenix. Bammesberger bought a new car every year and loved to eat out.
He sold his restaurants in 1981, and died in Scottsdale, Ariz., at age 81.
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