The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, January 27, 1987, Image 9

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    Tuesday, January 27, 1987/The Battalion/Page 9
^Rebuilt Smetana Grocery
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By Cindy Bomba
Reporter
Photos by Doug La Rue
I A Duddley’s Draw in Smetana,
Texas? Smetana Grocery may be a
grocery store, but its atmosphere of
ten resembles the informality of
Northgate.
I Smetana is located five miles west
of downtown Bryan on Texas High
way 21.
I The store has been rebuilt three
times, but it remains the most popu
lar gathering place for young and
old of the community.
■ What other grocery store allows
customers to enjoy a cold beer while
they shop, play a game of dominos
or shoot a friendly game of pool?
I The community of Smetana was
founded in 1887, when Jacob Sra-
mek opened the Smetana Grocery
and officially named the community
Smetana. Sramek’s store served as
' post office and grocery store and he
postmaster and storekeeper.
I Sramek named the community af
ter the 19th century Czech com
poser, Bedrich Smetana, who com-
Jfosed songs of protest against the
oppressive Czech rulers and patri-
i songs to unite the Czech people
into a nation.
I His store was the only building in
town for many years and developed
^nto a natural meeting place for the
community.
I Sramek opened his store in the
fete 1800s (nobody remembers the
pmact year).
■ In 1928, his son, John Sramek,
took over the family store and built a
^■ew Smetana Grocery to replace the
^ftiginal. He didn’t take over as post-
^Biaster — the post office wasn’t in
1 aie new store — but he served as jus-
ti( e of the peace.
K In 1972, Lee Don Bienski, John’s
grandson, took over as storekeeper
■while working on his doctorate in
chemistry at Texas A&M. After
completing his degree, Bienski
taught at A&M for one year. .
I Realizing his roots were in Sme-
fena Grocery, he left teaching and
assumed the life his grandfather and
great-grandfather had lived.
If After operating the store for 10
years, Bienski and his wife, Carolyn
Davis, Brazos County Court secre
tary, decided they needed a larger,
more efficient store.
B In 1982, he started putting his
ideas for a new store on paper and
Davis started to prepare the towns
people for the new building.
When the new store opened Dec.
31, Bienski had a hard time convinc
ing some of his friends to leave the
old store and come to the new one.
The new two-story building
houses the grocery store downstairs
that eventually will offer a delicates
sen as well as the fresh meat and veg
etables Bienski and Davis grow.
The back of the first floor has ta
bles for talking and drinking; be
yond these are two pool tables.
%
Bernhard Reiser is the young
German architect who designed and
built the new store. Reiser lived in
West Germany when Bienski first
telephoned him in 1984 to design
the store. The next year Reiser came
to the United States to build it.
Daniel Matlek, left, and Bernhard Reiser discuss the installation of
the counters in the main room of the new Smetana grocery store.
er
I
ntenantf
V
JAN 31
Engineering, Computer Science,
BANA And Business Majors.**
Find Out Where You
Fit In A Big 8 Firm
The Management
Information Consulting
Division of
Arthur Andersen & Co*
Invite you to a presentation/reception on Thursday, January 29.
1987, at 6:30 p.m. at the College Station Hilton. Casual attire.
We will be on campus interviewing graduate students in business and
computer science as well as undergraduates in business, engineering,
BANA and computer science on February 9 and 10, 1987.
a Arthur
Andersen
Bernhard Reiser, the German architect who de- minute to relax outside by his VW van. Reiser *
signed and built the new grocery store, takes a had the van shipped in from Germany.
This former Smetana grocery store is destined to Bienski represents the third generation of his
become a barn for the Bienski family. Lee ,P«n family to take over running the Smetana store.
©
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COUNSELOR
Applications
Open: Jan. 26
Close: Feb. 6
213 Pavilion