black and white image of a diner and a convenient store next to a hospital

Photo: Cleveland Clinic Archives

During the Great Depression, when nearly one-third of the workforce in Cleveland Clinic’s hometown was unemployed, a diner and a convenience store did business next door to the Clinic Building. A lunch of cubed steak, sliced tomatoes and rolls at the diner would set you back 20 cents. The convenience store stocked everything from long-stemmed roses to Sunrise Beer, a local German-style lager whose ads promised a “mellow and smooth” brew that “aids digestion.”