There was Catherine Thomas, who was turned on to the cafe two decades ago by a woman in ZCMI's intimate apparel; a marble rye sandwich had sold her. There was Bonnie Doyle and Riet Commans, who'd been swinging by the cafe ever since the Nordstrom store opened in 1980. And then there was Phyl Hilton, 86, the only one with a beard.
"I'm not one of the girls," he said, "but I've been coming to this table for 14 years," with his wife, Evelyn, who was home sick Saturday.
Berdie was the "magnet" who brought this group together, inviting people to join her table over the years, cafe manager Monica Akbar said.
She began coming to the cafe with her husband Gene, who died 13 years ago and whose picture adorns the locket around her neck. The two always liked to walk, and Berdie still walked to the cafe every day - when she was in town and able - from her First Avenue home. She said she liked the exercise, but more she liked the company, which included the people who worked there.
The Berdie group talked about where they'll congregate next. Maybe Skool Lunch? There's at least one pitch for Oasis Cafe. And then there's the Food Court at ZCMI Mall.
"We kind of cased it the other day," Berdie said, although the group was still debating where they'd want to sit.
After 27 years in downtown Salt Lake City, Nordstrom closed its doors at 6 p.m. Saturday. In 2011, the upscale chain will open a new, 124,000-square-foot store as part of the LDS Church's City Creek Center, which will replace the Crossroads Plaza and ZCMI Center malls.
Later Saturday, after the cafe had closed and Berdie had said her goodbyes, co-workers in the store posed by their counters for pictures to remember their times together. Customers who streamed through made final purchases - a pair of pants, Spanxs body shapers, the 3-Step Skin Care System by Clinique.
Over at the Lancome counter, Becky Cannon gave Barbara "Babs" Gebo a big hug. For 12 years Cannon has come to Babs. She even had the Lancome representative do the makeup for her daughter's wedding. Joseph Crespo, a fragrance specialist and employee of 14 years, said one longtime customer came in wearing a scarf he'd purchased at the Nordstrom store 26 years ago.
Closing time came, and gaggles of employees and friends gathered around, many cameras still clicking. Store manager Debbie Kotter Barkley asked them to raise their cups of sparkling cider and thanked them for their years of service, their loyalty, the good times they had shared.
There were misty eyes, smiles, embraces. And as Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" blared from speakers set up to mark the occasion, Barkley stepped down the steps to the Main Street entrance, knelt down with a key and locked the doors.
jravitz@sltrib.com
