A Lake Grove bar and grill that opened when roast beef sandwiches cost $2.45 is celebrating 50 years on Boones Ferry Road.

Gubanc's, at 16008 Boones Ferry Rd., has been a family-run fixture of the Lake Grove neighborhood since Tony and Anne Gubanc opened it in 1976.

Three generations later, the restaurant is now operated by their grandson, Lake Oswego Mayor Joe Buck, who also owns Babica Hen Cafe and Lola's Cafe.

Buck started washing dishes there at age 11 or 12, according to his mother, Janet Buck.

He told the Lake Oswego Review that everyone in the family started the same way, however young they could manage it.

He took over the business from his father, Mike Buck, who recalled a Lake Grove that looked nothing like today's corridor of shops and restaurants.

When Gubanc's opened, the area was mostly nurseries. On Friday nights after football games, the pub filled up. A pitcher of beer cost $1.25.

The family traces its restaurant roots to Butte, Montana, where Tony and Anne ran a bar called The Deluxe before moving to Oregon, according to the restaurant's website. Tony brought his sandwich-making skills west, and Anne brought her recipes. Her cream of mushroom soup is still served every Friday.

That continuity defines the place. The kitchen still prepares discontinued menu items for regulars who ask. Corner booth B6 became a neighborhood landmark of its own, known among longtime customers as the spot for romantic evenings.

Mike Buck said the family philosophy has always centered on hospitality.

"It's recognizing (that), when people come, they could have gone somewhere else, and so you treat it as a gift, and that's the reciprocity," he told the Review. "They're always special because they made that choice and decision."

Joe Buck, who runs the restaurant while serving as mayor, said the warmth of the place matters more than any single dish.

He described guests telling him they had their first date at Gubanc's or celebrated a first communion there.

The restaurant held a 50th anniversary celebration Aug. 17. It is open Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., with happy hour daily from 4 to 6 p.m.