WHEN THEY WERE
growing up at Quantico, weekends always included a special visit or two for the seven kids in the Michalick family.

Their father, George, put in a full stint as a Marine sergeant at the base each week.

But most early mornings, evenings and weekends found him toiling at a second job, managing the cafeteria at the base exchange.

It was there, in a special booth in the corner, where you could almost always find one or two of the Michalick brood, nibbling on fries, sipping chocolate milk or simply stopping by with their mother, Anna,
to say hi to Dad.

Mom was no stranger to the food business either.

For five years, she was the head cook at the high school at Quantico, where students seldom brought lunches on days when Anna Michalick's lasagna was on the menu.

When the family moved to North Stafford, she shifted and went to work in a similar slot at North Stafford High School.

"With all that in our background, it's no surprise that several of us ended up in this business," said Butch Michalick of Spotsylvania County, now co-owner and manager of The Riverview restaurant on the river in downtown Fredericksburg. "I think it's just in our blood."

Indeed. Of the seven children, three at one point made it their livelihood, while the other four--Michele, Lisa, Mark and Maria-- worked in restaurant jobs on the way to other careers.

For much of her adult life, Linda Michalick of Fredericksburg has complemented a day job with the FBI or as an airline attendant with part-time work at restaurants or in bars.

For several years in the mid to late '90s, she and husband Charles Weimer operated The Riverview before selling it to her brother, Butch, and co-owner Diane Dickinson of Spotsylvania County.

Anthony Michalick of Fredericksburg says his father preached the value of a college education to his children.