# Chili's in Cleveland, and other tales of missing chains **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 1, 2004, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082 "2004-02-01T20:20:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2004, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082/21 "2004-04-04T03:34:14Z")
Boston is also bereft of Long John Silver’s, and nearly of Olive Garden, too. Some cable channels have ads for Sonic Burger, and the closest of them turns out to be in Virginia Beach. There was a news article last summer about some local teens who saw the ads, decided they just had to have one, and made an impromptu road trip down there. I’d be happy to have an In and Out Burger in this _time zone._ ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2004, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082/22 "2004-04-04T22:17:24Z")
> [@](#): > > Montana has 8. So quickly? Just last year when one opened in Bozeman, it received much fanfare as being the first in the state. Incidentally, it is one of the ones built into a Barnes and Nobles, so count it or not as you like. And back to the Cleveland theme, as of when I left, there were very few Starbucks in Cleveland. I suspect this is because Arabica had already saturated the market by the time that Starbucks had metastatized that far. Presumably also, this would be the reason why other chains are missing from various cities: The local places already have the market covered. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082/23 "2004-04-05T02:33:19Z")
> [@Sami41](#): > > True enough. There’s Milagros, Spirit Winds and International Delights. Maybe the locally owned coffee shops are better for the area than a franchise anyway. > > But. . . Does that mean it’s not a full-blown Barnes and Noble, since it’s not free standing and independant of other businesses? 😉 . Spirit Winds and Milagro … yummy coffee. Personally, I think the coffeehouse scene in Cruces hasn’t been the same since Ginny’s closed. A B&N in a mall is a full-blown store, just like a Starbucks in a plaza with other stores. I’m thinking about Starbucks counters in other businesses. Using Cruces as an example, a Starbucks in … oh, Pan-Am Plaza or on the square in Mesilla (never, I hope) would be a _real_ starbucks. A Starbucks counter in a bookstore or student union isn’t a real Starbucks. I’d be hesitant to say that a Starbucks in a shopping mall food court is a real Starbucks, since its seating is shared with that of other food vendors. Here’s one to ponder … are there arny Starbucks stores in pedominantly African-American neighborhoods? ---
**Author:** ![Star\_Was](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Star\_Was](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Star_Was)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082/24 "2004-04-05T02:39:27Z")
There are no Walmarts in Chicago because of unions. ---
**Author:** ![Belowjob2.0](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Belowjob2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belowjob2.0)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082/25 "2004-04-05T03:39:08Z")
There’s a Starbucks in Ladera Heights, in South LA, right next to Magic Johnson’s Fridays restaurant. Outdoor chess tables where lots of people play. ---
**Author:** ![StephenG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@StephenG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StephenG)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082/26 "2004-04-05T04:45:15Z")
I always think of New England as missing a lot of restaurant chains that seem prevalent elsewhere in the US. Last time I checked, the nearest \White Castle\ is in New Jersey, and the nearest \Cracker Barrel\ is in Albany, NY. \Harvey’s\ and \A&W\ are two chains that my parents (Boston natives) remember going to, and I wish we had here, but I only see in Ontario. ---
**Author:** ![StephenG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@StephenG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StephenG)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082/27 "2004-04-05T04:46:30Z")
:smack: I’ll preview, next time. Would a mod kindly fix my code, please? Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![stochastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19b73/32.png) [@stochastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stochastic)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082/28 "2004-04-05T06:24:07Z")
Re: Starbuck’s in WV. I was seriously jonesing for a latte-type beverage of some sort when visiting my folks in WV last Xmas. (mind, I’m an ex-Seattlite and a true addict) The only place I found one was at McDonalds, and it was a disgusting, chalky-tasting, chemical brew. I realize that the average West Virginian can’t and won’t pay $2+ for a coffee beverage every day, but surely the market can bear at least one small, quality espresso stand of some sort. Also, I recall when my West Virginian cousin announced excitedly, “We just got ourselves a great new Mexican resturant in town, it’s called Taco Bell!” On hearing this, this native Californian felt truly sorry for my mountaineer kin, and I was nearly compelled to start a charity fund drive called “Churros for Charleston”… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chilis-in-cleveland-and-other-tales-of-missing-chains/227082.md?page=1)