In 1957, Jack and Anne Holder sold their Dairy Queen business in Roseburg, Oregon and moved their family to the “Valley of Hearts Delight” and opened Uncle John’s Pancake House in Santa Clara. Jack and Anne’s pancakes and waffle recipes made Uncle John’s one of the most popular coffee shops in the Bay Area.

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In 1967, Jack and Anne’s success continued when they opened the original “Holder’s Country Inn” in the old Town & Country Village (now Santana Row) in San Jose, where it flourished for 32 years. The original Country Inn relocated to De Anza Boulevard. in 1999. The Holder’s at El Paseo opened in 1981 and relocated to Saratoga Avenue in 1995.