ToquiNotes: Long-Closed Business Offering Meals at "Budget-Friendly" Prices and a Bit of History Behind It
By Jeff Toquinto on July 11, 2026 from ToquiNotes
The building housing the location is there. The business that was inside the location is a thing of the past.
And what a glorious business it was – particularly for us lower income bracket families in the 1970s and 1980s.
Honestly, I do not know when it opened. I am not sure exactly when it closed. I am not even sure, outside of what I am about to talk about, what else was offered for sale. And, I also do not have any idea about whether the wondrous deal at the time was even better before I became aware of it.
Of course, I am talking about the one and only Chestnut Hills Market in Clarksburg, right along Chestnut Street and close to the entrance to Hite Field. The actual location was at the intersection of Chestnut and Frederick Streets, which was just a few blocks away from the Clarksburg Water Board complex, and the building housing it was directly beside Spag’s Exxon that eventually became Spag’s Bonding before the owner passed away.
I was going to write something on this a few years back and ran into a research brick wall. And by brick wall, I mean using Google and coming up with nothing. Then, AI happened, and when I revisited recently, it gave me enough information – at least what appears to be solid – that I felt comfortable writing about it and allowing anyone reading to fill in the holes on our social media platforms.
Chestnut Mills Market back in the 1970s when I was first introduced to it by my father, I imagine was like every other community store that dotted the landscape prior to the taking over of chain convenience stores. I say “imagine” because I only remember one thing about Chestnut Hills Market.
Hot dogs.
They were good hot dogs. I cannot unequivocally say great because at the time I was eating them, they were the only ones I was eating or buying on a regular basis outside of an occasional run in with a Dairy Mart hot dog during lunch break from North View Junior High School. Those hot dogs were about as big around as a fire hydrant and I would often order two dogs and ask the person making them to cut the single hot dog in half.
I digress.
Chestnut Hills Market, for as long as I can ever remember the store being open, offered three hot dogs for $1. Now, I know based on other food blogs, including past ones on hot dogs, that years ago you could get even more for a dollar – like Andy’s in Bridgeport or Sisler’s in Hepzibah.
At that time, that was a lot of food for $1. It also was quickly made, quickly bagged, and quickly taken home. You know it was a good deal when the Toquinto household hit it about once a month and then as I got older and had my own limited income, hit it whenever the opportunity presented itself.
They were standard sized hot dogs to the best of my recollection. The chili was good. And the toppings were standard. I do not remember Coleslaw as an option, which I was fine with then and certainly am fine with today.
There was one other thing I remember about the store – and please for anyone with a better memory correct me if I am wrong. When you 
went in, and looked up to the right, there were hot dog bags lined up as far as you could see – much like pizza restaurants having boxes done ahead of time so they can be easily packaged.
went in, and looked up to the right, there were hot dog bags lined up as far as you could see – much like pizza restaurants having boxes done ahead of time so they can be easily packaged.
My initial plan was to talk about the restaurant (or store with hot dogs for those folks who want to nitpick on everything) and then inquire about dates when it opened and closed, and more importantly, who the owners were.
This is where AI seems to have filled the gap and made me move forward very quickly with this week’s blog. The search quickly turned up not only that it was known for the “3 for $1” hot dog deal but described to perfection. AI listed Chestnut Hills Market as follows: “It served as a vital takeout spot for families, offering an incredible budget-friendly hot dog deal.”
As noted, budget-friendly is why our family got more than our share of take out orders. That said, it was in reading on that the names of the owners were listed. And for anyone in Clarksburg, Bridgeport, and Harrison County, it is a familiar last name.
The search read that Chestnut Hills Market was “famously owned and operated by local businessman John Baptista "Johnny B." Angotti Sr. for decades.” The Angotti name is familiar to many on the food front, probably most today would know it from the late Frank “Chunki” Angotti whose establishment, Chunki’s, is still up and running today.
Here is something else the AI search told me about the location, which happened before I was born. The search pointed out that for “a time in the mid-1900s, the building also accommodated a barbershop and the local post office before that service was relocated.”
One thing that does not come up in the AI search that I would love to see is photos of the Market while in business. A bonus would be of someone ordering, eating, or carrying out a pile of hot dogs. I imagine they exist but finding them – even a person who may have access to them – is a different story.
Even without the photos, the memory remains. It was one of the last, great long-standing food bargains out there. Or as AI put it, “budget friendly.”
Indeed, they were. And good too.
Editor's Note: Top photo shows the building the Chestnut Hills Market was situated in, and it was the entrance to the far right. The bottom photo is the intersection of the business location.
.jpg)
