included favorites such as chicken pot pie, chicken velvet soup, and special desserts for children The Tea Room has been re-created at the Indiana State Museum in Indianapolis. Over the years, in-store food options at the Indianapolis flagship store also included a soda fountain, a basement coffee and snack bar, and, in the 1970s, a cafeteria-style tea room on the balcony overlooking the main floor. Ayres branch stores also included cafeterias and tea rooms. The downtown Indianapolis Tea Room survived until 1990. The other restaurants closed after Ayres was acquired by the May Company in 1986. Ayres's seasonal departments, events, and displays earned the company media coverage and drew thousands of visitors to Ayres with the hope they would stay and shop. On the night before Thanksgiving in 1947, a bronze cherub appeared on the Indianapolis flagship store's large, outdoor clock at the corner of Meridian and Washington Streets. The three-foot cherub remained on the clock until Christmas, beginning an annual holiday tradition. Ayres was also known for beautiful Christmas decorations, especially its elaborate window displays. Planned months in advance, these holiday windows had a different theme each year. The store expanded its holiday area to include toy displays and a Santa's workshop. After World War II, Ayres provided telephone visits with Santa and live television broadcasts. From 1958 through 1961, the Santa Claus Express, a miniature electric train, gave children rides through the store's Christmas display. Beginning in the 1940s, the downtown Indianapolis store also provided visits with a costumed Easter Bunny. In 1957, a group of live barnyard animals joined the annual Easter celebration. The Ayres Economy Basement concept dates back to the opening of its Indianapolis flagship store in 1905. The Economy Basement, later known as the Downstairs Store and Budget Store, operated differently from those of other retail department stores. The Ayres basement store did not offer cheaply made, inferior goods. Instead, it sold lower-priced items of good quality that served as an entry point for less-affluent customers until they could afford full-priced goods on the upper floors. It also served as a training ground for Ayres managers. By the 1960s, the Budget Store had declined and was eclipsed by Ayr-Way, the Ayres discount subsidiary, and changes in shopping trends and pricing. The Budget Store concept was eliminated in the mid-1980s. The L.S. Ayres Annex Warehouse, an Italianate-style brick building on Maryland Street, south of the