Hey, Jamison, the answer might just be staring you in the face. The owner of the U Save Gas Station next door to the cafe is shown as Ernest Schmitz, Jr. His full name appears to have been Ernest Johann Schmitz, and "Smith" is a pretty close translation of the last name - especially since in the World War II days, having a German surname was decidedly un-hip. Ancestry.com site lists a civil action in which he was involved, although I cannot access the record without being a member.

Maybe the chips were for a free lunch with every car brought in for major servicing, or a free fill-up with gas for every bowl of bean soup ordered at the cafe. Believe me, that one works.

http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?gl=CLP_COURT&rank=1&new=1&MSAV=1&msT=1&gss=angs-g&gsfn=ErnestJ&gsln=Schmitz&msbdy=&msbpn__ftp=&msddy=&msdpn__ftp=&cpxt=0&catBucket=rstp&uidh=000&cp=0&so=2&geo_a=r&o_iid=62817&o_lid=62817&o_sch=Web+Property