FYI on A&W: they’re owned by Yum! Brands, which also owns Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Long John Silver’s.
Yum! Brands
Orange Julius: As far as I know, most current OJ’s only serve their signature beverages and maybe pretzels. But Orange Julius used to be a regular burger joint chain.
Jack in the Box: Still huge down in Texas. They were amazed when I told them Jack in the Box was non-existent in New York.
Boston Market: Almost killed by poor expansion planning. The chain was originally known as Boston Chicken and was doing moderately well. Then the owners decided to expand the business beyond roast chicken and change the name to company name to reflect this. Bad decision; the cost of changing the name on everything from billboards to napkins drove the company into bankruptcy. They were bought out by McDonald’s which originally planned on closing down the chain. However they decided to keep it going and they’re now doing relatively well.
We all know what brought down the HoJo empire.
It was Wilson Brian Key’s 1980 expose, entitled The Clam-Plate Orgy, that proved to the masses that their slickly produced menu’s with photos like this were really entwined, breaded, naked people in a huge, fun-filled daisy chain.
Arthur Treacher’s for fish and chips and a yummy lemon turnover.
I think Quincy’s is going out of business. They’ve closed the one in my hometown and the one where my dad lives.
Red Barn! I remember them… well, I remember the buildings. They must have folded when I was very young, because I have no memory of what kind of food they served. There were quite a few in Southern Ontariol… and, yes, the buildings are still around (mostly converted inexpertly to other uses–dry cleaners, porno shops, etc).
Are ‘The Keg’ steakhouses only in the Toronto area? They’re still around (in Oshawa, Etobicoke, for example) and are easily indentifiable by their buildings, which had a ‘traditional farmhousy’ look, with a tower over the entrance). I get the impression there were more of them though.
Then there’s Fran’s. There were four or five of these ‘greasy-spoon’ eateries in the Toronto area. They served traditional ‘diner’ food; I go there for the shepherd’s pie. Until about two years ago all of them were in operation, but then the chain folded. One restaurant survives (possibly a franchise), and it’s on College just west of Yonge.
Then there are the new and spreading franchises.
AMC Cinemas, a US chain, moved into the Toronto area in the past five years, and each of their cimena developments seems to come with a kit of restaurants, usually the same ones.
And Bubble Tease seems to be in malls everywhwe now.
My wife still visits the Maryland Fried Chicken in Plant City, FL, when we visit her folks. Despite its name, the chain started in Florida, and has no stores in MD (scroll down to the last 7 paragraphs).
I remember Burger Chef from when I was growing up. In Alexandria, they were around before all the burger chains except MickeyD’s.
Roy Rogers’ is still around - when Hardee’s bought them, they found that Roy’s had a strong customer base that wanted Roy Rogers, rather than Hardee’s, so they kept some Roy Rogers restaurants open. Here’s an unofficial list of locations.
There was a Spudnuts in Charlottesville, VA when I was there in 1983-85; this real estate ad from last year uses its proximity as a selling point, so it was still there just a year ago.
When I was a kid, Eddie Leonard Sandwich Shops were a DC-area chain (but apparently not on my side of the area; I never saw one, just heard the radio jingle ad infinitum). They’re no longer with us, apparently.
Burlco resident, 1970-2000. Went to Geno’s on alternate Fridays when my dad got his paycheck (we all went food shopping at that Shop Rite, buying Faygo and Shasta and all the other crap not-quite-store-brand stuff. :))
Can’t forget the Hot Shoppes restaurants, which were the original Marriott family business.
Does anyone remember Kip’s Big Boy restuarants?
We have tons of Jack in the Box and Boston Market locations in Dallas.
We had Elby’s Big Boy in Erie; I’ve heard of Bob’s Big Boy elsewhere.
In MA,
Victoria Station, Jack in the box , HoJo’s (the second job I ever held), A&W Root Beer (in Falmouth on the Cape in the 60’s and 70’s, which was the kind of drive-in where they came to your car window and took your order!), Hot Shoppes and does anyone on the East Coast remember Beefsteak Charlie’s? Free beer, wine and sangria and Salad Bar included with every meal. I worked there all through college. Burned the candle at both ends and in the middle and always had money in my pockets. Lots of good times, some of them I even remember.
The one I miss is Jim Dandy’s Fried Chicken. They had the best chicken flavored rice side dish. I always wondered what happened to them.
Tucson had a Sandy’s and I know the chain was bought by Hardee’s but the one I remember became a McDonald’s.
Straw Hat Pizza Parlor was a favorite family hangout when we were kids. They had the novelty of showing Laurel & Hardy, Our Gang and other similar movies on a projector back before cable was commonplace.
Shakee’s is gone from Tucson but I think there is still one in Nogales, Arizona. A&W Drive In* from my childhood is gone but the chain still exists.
Pie Palace~~~~found in SE Wisconsin, & elsewhere, in the 70’s.
Mostly, well, pie! Coffee, & other stuff.
They also sold whole pies.
Sort of a Baskin-Robbins, but with flaky-crusted pastry.
Lasted 1 or 2 years, & the chain went under.
Too bad…really good pie.
MMmmm…pie! 
Boston Market is also in Gainesville.
Arthur Treacher’s Fish & Chips is alive and well, and open in at least three locations:
Moorestown (NJ) Mall, along with Nathan’s Famous
Cherry Hill (NJ) Mall (at least these both were the last time I was in Jersey)
Hermitage, PA East State Street
Any Dogs & Suds left? My store just unloaded a pallet of Dogs & Suds rootbeer that one of our pop vendors gave us a deal on. They said they couldn’t get any more, so he sold it to us real cheap. The bottle says there are a few restaurants left, but honestly, if that’s their rootbeer, the rest of the restaurants will be closing. The stuff we had tasted like rootbeer koolaid.
How could anyone forget Beefsteak Charlie’s (or should I say the free pitchers of Miller)? I think the spokeman, Charlie, traded in his sleeve garter and ended up becoming the “Time to make the donuts” man on the Dunkin Donuts ads. Rumor has it his later-added nephew took on the role of Orville Reddenbaker’s nephew.
There weren’t any Beefsteak Charlie’s in Buffalo, but we saw the commercials on cable.
You’re gonna’ get spoiled
We’ll treat you right
You’re gonna’ get spoiled
At Beefsteak Charlie’s tonight!
and a variant …
You’re gonna’ get spoiled
We’ll treat you right
You’re gonna’ get spoiled … WITH SHRIMP!
At Beefsteak Charlie’s tonight!
Thanks elmwood for a great op. Reading all the posts brought back great memories, especially the link to the Gino’s site where you can actually listen to the old jingle “Everybody goes to Ginos’, Everybody in the know…”.
In PA, pre-fast food, we had Howard Johnson’s, Hot Shoppes, Horn & Hardart, and (heaven forbid) Linton’s. I began a lifelong obsession with New England clam chowder at HoJo’s, not to mention the grilled sides of the New England hot dog rolls, the fried clams, the chicken croquettes, the peppermint stick ice cream, and the certain nights when it was “all you can eat.” In high school most dates wound up at HoJo’s. I have a distant memory that when I was little, the family went to HoJo’s one Christmas Eve (don’t ask me why), and we either couldn’t get served or the food was terrible because the cook was drunk! HoJo’s was famous for bad service - I had to leave a check and money on the counter by the cash register one time after standing at the register for forty-five minutes being totally ignored (just one of many such stories). I’m just getting warmed up here. I loved Hot Shoppes and their drive-in car service, and the Orange Freeze. Horn & Hardart was always a standby with many locations, their recipes still turn up even now under their brand name in certain supermarkets - the aforementioned macaroni and cheese was a classic, and for many many years, Horn & Hardart made the only pumpkin pie that I would ever want to eat. The H&H automats in center city Philadelphia were always an attraction for kids of all ages. The only thing I recall about Lintons was that they had some kind of conveyor belt that ran through the restaurant (forget the food - yuck).
The fast food era began in the Philadelphia area with a place in Glenside called Steer-In where burgers were fifteen cents. We also had a local joint called Cook’s where on Mondays, hamburgers were ten cents each and fries were sold by the pound. In those days, ten bucks would buy a banquet for a large group. I think McDonald’s was somewhat slow to come to our area, but we did have lots of Gino’s and my personal favorite, Hot Shoppes Jr. which was basically like a McDonald’s plus they sold Mariott’s version of Kentucky Fried Chicken (the name escapes me). Hot Shoppes Jr.'s signature burger was the Royalburger which was much like a Big Mac except the sauce was thousand island dressing. Ultimately, all the Hot Shoppes Jr. locations became Roy Rogers and much later became Boston Chicken/Market. I shed no tears regarding the passing of Lum’s into the history books.
Philadelphia in the sixties and early seventies also had a small chain of cool sit-down restaurants called the Open Hearth where one of the main attactions was the “Buckburger” which started out at $1.00 for a huge hamburger with french fries. By 1972 I think the buckburger was up to about $1.99 or maybe $2.99. We also had another great local deli sandwich chain called the Chuckwagon which was famous for huge sandwiches of roast beef or corned beef on rye, with free access to huge vats of pickles and cole slaw (the best cole slaw ever). One last place I must mention, even though it wasn’t a chain, was the Classic Sub Shop on Wadsworth Avenue in Mt. Airy which is where I first learned the joys of the Philadelphia Cheese Steak, and their home delivery brightened many a late summer night.
Sorry, I can’t stop. In college we used to enjoy the all-night pleasures of a chain of sit-down restaurants called Jerry’s (“Jerry’s is the Berries”), which was sort of like a Bob’s Big Boy. There was nothing like a cup of Jerry’s steamin’ java at 3am and the menu had all kinds of descriptions of the sandwiches which were more than hilarious to read out loud at that hour of the morning. I was sad to see that the Jerry’s in Richmond, IN only just shut down in the last few years. I also remember going to Jack-in-the-Box in California. Thanks to all for triggering these great memories.
D.C. used to have a White Castle style restaurant called “Little Tavern.” They survived into the 80s. My mom used to tell us how, when my Dad was courting her, he had a long drive home. He would stop by the Little Tavern and get a dozen burgers for the ride home. Kinda cute story, I suppose.
Roy Rogers was considered the best fast food among my friends and family. The Double R Bar Burger was great. I saw a Roy Rogers at BWI airport, and it was a pale imitation.
Also in the D.C. area was a sub shop called Jerry’s (not the same as Watcher’s).