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Restaurant chains that no longer exist

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by hondo, Sep 22, 2017.

  1. Vombatus

    Vombatus Well-Known Member

    I think I ate at one of these in Camp Hill, PA in August 1991.
     
  2. DeskMonkey1

    DeskMonkey1 Active Member

    There are actually about 20 Bonanzas left. I pass one every day
     
  3. There are a bunch of Roy Rogers left in Maryland. Plamondon Family based in Frederick owns the licensing rights. In fact, I live less than a mile away from one, which allows me to indulge in the occasional sourdough ham and egg sandwich or Gold Rush Chicken Sandwich.

    There is still a Gino's in Towson. Can't wait until we get a Bojangle's up here.
     
  4. Donny in his element

    Donny in his element Well-Known Member

    Re: Godfather's, I see 'em as part of gas stations from time to time but there is a standalone location near Shawnee Mission North High School in suburban Kansas City -- the Kansas side.

    A very popular place in St. Joseph, Missouri.

    So many thoughts:
    • Are Friendly's still around? Sit-down steak burgers and ice cream. All the cool kids stopped there after football games at Melbourne-Palm Bay's Pirate Stadium.
    • Bennigan's is kaput, yes?
    • While I love Firehouse -- and I let everyone working at one know that I enjoyed Coco-Cola Freestyle machines when Firehouse got'em first in Jacksonville in 2010/2011 -- the J-Vegas chain I still hold a soft spot for is Larry's Giant Subs.
     
  5. Bronco77

    Bronco77 Well-Known Member

    Excellent thread -- so many great names from the past that either aren't around or are nowhere as big as they used to be.

    Thought of another one that was relatively large in my youth: Tastee-Freez. We went there frequently as kids in the late '60s-early '70s because the one in town was just beyond the parking lot at our Little League field. The menu was more or less the same as Dairy Queen with soft-serve, shakes and burgers, but I do remember it offered tacos -- a novelty at a fast-food place in Chicago suburbia before Taco Bell became a national giant. And at three tacos for 49 cents, they fit nicely into my pre-teen budget. I think that's another chain that still is around, but barely.

    Also thought of Bennigan's. Still a website for it. Otherwise, the most recent info I could find for it was from a 2015 Wikipedia entry, when it was listing 23 U.S. and 39 international locations. As I recall, that's another one that went bankrupt and emerged much smaller.
     
    Last edited: Sep 25, 2017
  6. Monday Morning Sportswriter

    Monday Morning Sportswriter Well-Known Member

    Both are still around, though under fairly new ownership and much smaller than they used to be.
     
  7. sgreenwell

    sgreenwell Well-Known Member

    Yeah - Friendly's used to be everywhere in Rhode Island, now I'm not sure if there are any in the state. Still a few just over the border in Massachusetts though.
     
  8. Moderator1

    Moderator1 Moderator Staff Member

    I have 2-3 of their Dixie Cup-style frozen treats in my freezer now but I haven't seen an actual Friendly's in ages.
    Also, are Dixie Cups still a thing?

    Outback still around, thank goodness. Had a great dinner there last night (and got some great news while dining). A friend recently gave me shit for eating there, giving me the standard anti-chain rap My response was simple: "Fuck you, I enjoy it. Good meal, reasonably priced, consistent."
     
    FileNotFound likes this.
  9. Vombatus

    Vombatus Well-Known Member

    Moddy,

    I've been told that part of the Outback startup business model was to buy enough property to build an Outback, keep a competitor from being in an adjacent lot, and then eventually put a Carrabas next to the Outback. Any truth to that?

    I know it's not true everywhere, but there sure are a lot of the next door to each other.

    Not sure of their Bonefish and Fleming strategy.
     
  10. Michael_ Gee

    Michael_ Gee Well-Known Member

    They are in New England under the name Hoodsie Cups, after the dairy that makes them, Hood, if you mean that style of ice cream cup you eat with a wooden spoon.
     
    sgreenwell and Moderator1 like this.
  11. HC

    HC Well-Known Member

    Are there any Wagon Ho restaurants left?? We had one in North Vancouver when I was a kid.

    [​IMG]
     
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