The author is Orange County Register columnist Tom Blake, who worked for Victoria Station from 1970 — 1978. Tom was in the Operations Department as a manager and regional manager for four years, and then was the company’s Director of Marketing for four years.

 

Most employees who worked for Victoria Station feel that it was the greatest experience in their lives. The book recaptures the glory days of the one time fastest-growing company in the United States in the 1970s. Dennis Utley, a commercial airline pilot living in Dallas, says, “My days at Victoria Station Memphis are fondly remembered — I met my wife of 24 years while working there.”

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This is a personal and revealing story about Tom Blake’s pursuit of the American dream in the 1970s. From a small Midwestern town, Tom found in Victoria Station his dream job working for the most-admired restaurant chain in the country. It describes Tom’s experiences of trying to climb the corporate ladder, often succeeding, sometimes failing.

 

This Book is about the employees who made the experience special. It’s about working hard, playing harder, after-hours parties, getting laid, not getting laid, Johnny Cash, Lynn Swann, Ed Marinaro, 49ers Coach Bill Walsh and many others.  To read the foreword by S.F. restaurateur Perry Butler Read it Here.

 

By reading the book, you will understand why the Victoria Station train ride came to an all too early end. Too bad, it didn’t have to be that way.