When Six Flags opened, in the summer of 1971 (a month late, thanks to a farmer who forgot to harvest his wheat and round up his cattle before the project broke ground), theme parks fell into two categories: Disneyland, or seedy Coney Island, with its rickety wooden coasters, sideshows, and boardwalk conmen. Six Flags aspired to the Disney model, “a spotlessly clean ‘family-type’ environment” where even Dad drank soda pop and the rides referenced historical figures and literature. Now you can order a beer there, and the quainter rides—the Mule-Go-Round, Mo-Mo the Monster, The Elmer Fudd Constwuction Company, and The Action Factory, an outer space–themed motion simulator–slash–disco—are gone. But the Moon Antique Cars, one of the original eight rides, is still there, 40-plus years later. People love them because they’re St. Louis-y; they won’t make you sick but still offer a little thrill when you drive straight through the skeleton of the rollercoaster. And there’s always the little kid who thinks she’s getting away with driving an actual car—and not even the downrush of a rollercoaster hill can compete with that.
Picky Cafe opens in Lafayette Square on August 31
The new concept is a collaboration with sister restaurant SqWires across the street.
