The Irondale Cafe began in 1928 as a hot dog stand. Bess Fortenberry purchased the business around 1932 from Maggie Prentice, who had added hamburgers, barbecue, and a variety of sandwiches to the menu. Shortly after that, the stand became known as the Irondale Cafe. In the early 1940s, Bess leased the cafe and went to Florida to work for the war effort. While there, she ran into an old acquaintance named Sue Lovelace, whom she convinced, along with a cook named Lizzie Cunningham, to come to Irondale and help in the cafe. The trio made the Irondale Cafe one of the most popular places around town to dine. They cooked good vegetables and meats and had a thriving sandwich business. When owners bought the cafe in 1972, the restaurant's seating capacity was 31 in the front room and even less in the back. By 1990, due to its increased popularity, the restaurant had expanded and relocated several times before landing in the old Daily Hardware Store near the original site.