A plaque remaining from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem.

Above, a 1934 plaque from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem. Discarded as trash in 2006. Now a Popeyes fast food restaurant on Google Maps.

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Entry from April 02, 2011
“Open the tunnel, here comes the train!” (opening a child’s mouth for food)

“Open the tunnel—here comes the train!” is what a parent says to a young child to open the child’s mouth (the “tunnel”) for food (the “train”). “Open the tunnel—here comes the choo-choo (train)!” has also been used, often followed with “Chew! Chew!”  The line has been cited in print since at least the 1980s.
 
Similar sayings include “Open the hangar—here comes the airplane!” and “Open the garage—here comes the car!”
   
 
Google Books
Sleepwalking
By Meg Wolitzer
New York, NY: Random House
1982    
Pg. 189:
Here comes the train, choo-choo, speeding around the tracks, clickety-clack, and into Lucy’s mouth. Open the tunnel wide and let the train through. That’s a good girl.
 
Google Books
A Month of Sundays
By Bob Larbey
Oxford: Amber Lane
1986
Pg. 31:
COOPER. I’m on to you, you know. You’ll be saying, ‘Open the tunnel, here comes the train,’ next. They’re very good. Just one, then. So long as you know I’m on to you. I do. I do. [COOPER takes a bite of a sandwich and they settle back in silence for a moment.]
   
Google Books
Telling Yourself the Truth
By William Backus and Marie Chapian
Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers
2000, ©1980
Pg. 83:
“Here, Sweetie. Here’s your milk. Come on, Sweetie, open the mouth. Attaboy, here comes the choo-choo headed for the tunnel.”
 
SpongeBob SquarePants Wiki
This article is a transcript of the SpongeBob SquarePants episode, “Just One Bite” from season 3, which aired on October 5, 2001.
(...)
Squidward: (pushes the patty away) No.
SpongeBob: Open up the tunnel, here comes the train. Choo-choo… (Squidward slaps it away)
Squidward: No!
     
Prophecy Fellowship Forums
Now You See HIM
May 17th, 2004, 05:23 PM
Top 10 ways to get KIDS to EAT Lutefisk
10. “Open the tunnel…Here comes the train!”
     
Gallatin North Missourian
Family Daze: Nutrition problem – 4 basic food groups: sugar, sodium, caffeine and cholesterol
Published Online May 02, 2007 - 03:44 PM
by Debbie Farmer
(...)
The first eating phase I ever experienced was “the transportation phase.” Every night at dinnertime, our table became busier than a commuter route at rush hour. I recreated the sounds of planes, trains, cars or anything I could fly around the table on a spoon, and land in my son’s mouth. The healthier food I served, the more details he wanted.
 
“Open the tunnel, here comes the train” worked for most pasta dishes.
 
Connor Family Blog
Thursday, May 1, 2008
“Open the tunnel, here comes the choo-choo”
It is a little hard to see, but Quinlan is helping Reilly finish up her last few bites of strawberries. Reilly likes it when Quinlan plays the old “open the tunnel, open the hangar” game AND sometimes Quinlan creates a few of her own (which don’t always make sense but Reilly likes them).

Posted by Barry Popik
New York CityFood/Drink • Saturday, April 02, 2011 • Permalink


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