From 1917 until 1955, W. E. Hill (William Ely Hill) created weekly panels of cartoons for newspapers under the overarching title “Among Us Mortals.” They featured ordinary people going about their business in public settings – always in ways that revealed their foibles. Clearly he was a sharp observer of people who possessed a wry sense of humor. His project – a “romance of the commonplace” – has been compared to that of Charles Dickens. I began “collecting” his images when I noticed that his observations often took place in restaurants.
Summer People, 1937
The Age of Hurry, 1939
Quick Lunches, 1941
Summer Tea Room, 1946
A Waiter’s Headaches, 1955
Where They Lunch, 1955
Where They Lunch, 1955
It's great to hear from readers and I take time to answer queries. I can't always find what you are looking for, but I do appreciate getting thank yous no matter what the outcome.
Restaurant-ing through history 
I’ve never eaten at a tea room or even a drugstore lunch counter even though presumably they were still around during my (1950s/1960s) childhood. The closest would have been the department store cafes…maybe even called tea rooms then?
Yes, many department store restaurants were still called tea rooms in the 1950s.
Another great post! I knew nothing about this.
I feel as though I were sitting at the next table!
Very arresting faces!
These are marvelous! I particularly like the girls from the auditing department….
Me too. They are so convincingly real.