Roadside chains with at least one foot in the grave

[Big John]

Old Country Buffet/Home Town Buffet has been going through a major contraction as of late.

Could be questionable management.  In Green Bay, they had their logo on a blue food freeway sign - on the wrong exit.

[SSOWorld]

Old Country Buffet/Home Town Buffet has been going through a major contraction as of late.

Could be questionable management.  In Green Bay, they had their logo on a blue food freeway sign - on the wrong exit.

lotta that going on (wrong exit) In Platteville, the sign for many of them is usually the first of the three exits.   Figuring one would take the business route through.  For a McDonalds - they are practically at the other end of the business route. (after this year they will be at the opposite end.)

Country Kitchen is another that fell off the side of the road in many places.

[US71]

Bob Evans is dying. Godfather's is hanging on but barely: the quality is no longer there.

Also Long John Silvers and A&W

[Rothman]

Yeah, I haven't seen a standalone Long John Silver's in decades.

[GCrites]

Domino's officially changed their name from Domino's Pizza to just Domino's recently.  The reasoning for such was due to their expanded product line (i.e. not just pizzas).  Such a name change was not unlike when Boston Chicken (remember that name?) changed to Boston Market during the 90s... expansion/promotion of its non-chicken products.

Similarly, if you look at a McDonald's sign from about 1970 and earlier, the word HAMBURGERS (in all-caps) is present.  This actually gave the "n-billion sold"(*) more meaning.  I suspect they removed hamburgers from the sign for one or both of 2 reasons: (1) pretty much everyone in the country knew what their signature product was by then, (2) plans for an extended product line, such as McNuggets.  (Note that a handful of earlier signs had a "Filet-o-Fish Sandwich" sign added into the arches structure.)

Also, Wendy's used to have "Old-Fashioned Hamburgers" as part of their signage. I think it was in the '80s when they reduced it to just the name.

(*) Around the same time McD's removed "Hamburgers" from the sign, they quietly switched the count notation from n-billion "Sold" to "Served".  Again, two likely reasons were (1) "Served" sounds so much friendlier than "Sold", and/or (2) the burgers given away for promos/contests/tour bus drivers/etc. aren't exactly "sold" anyway.  Eventually, the counting gave way to the Carl Sagan-like "Billions and Billions" Served (especially on tall-mast signs near freeways, since you'd take your life into your hands to climb up there and update the numbers), then they got rid of the count altogether and went with "Restaurant", a permanent marquee sign, descriptive words like "Drive-thru", or just blank space.

I also think that cheeseburgers and other burgers with cheese such as Big Macs vastly outsell hamburgers these days so they moved away from the word "hamburger" to reflect the popularity of their core product.

[GCrites]

Yeah, I haven't seen a standalone Long John Silver's in decades.

Columbus still has a few. What's insidious about the LJS/KFC combos around here is that they won't serve you fries with the LJS food; they make you take the KFC potato wedges which I don't like. I either avoid the combination stores or get something like green beans or corn instead. It ends up being less filling so I get hungry faster afterward -- making it a worse value.

[GCrites]

There was also Duff's Smorgasboard - that has been too long ago - was it Newark, Ohio or Columbus?

Shit man, I don't remember that one... was it the one I've heard about that was in the shopping center at Hamilton and Main that had the conveyor that snaked all the way though the dining room?

[iowahighways]

I miss Carlos O'Kelly's more than either of them. The food was great and it was the only Mexican-esque place my daughter would go when she was little. But hardly any remain outside of Kansas now.

There are still several along the Avenue of the Saints corridor and one in Dubuque, but they've scaled back quite a bit -- all of its Des Moines-area locations closed last year.

[route17fan]

There was also Duff's Smorgasboard - that has been too long ago - was it Newark, Ohio or Columbus?

Shit man, I don't remember that one... was it the one I've heard about that was in the shopping center at Hamilton and Main that had the conveyor that snaked all the way though the dining room?

Ooh maybe! - I was thinking maybe Graceland(ish) but I can't remember. Hamilton and Main seems vaguely familiar too.

[roadman65]

Farrell's Ice Cream! YES! Columbus, Ohio had a location  loooong time ago - I want to say in the Clintonville area.

There was also Duff's Smorgasboard - that has been too long ago - was it Newark, Ohio or Columbus?

Both now I remember as we had one of them here in Florida on US 192 up the street from Dismal World. Duffs as they were good.  Farrels I remember being in Brunswick Square Mall on NJ 18 in East Brunswick, NJ back in the 80's.  I have not been that way in some time, so I cannot say for sure if it is still there or not.

Yeah, I haven't seen a standalone Long John Silver's in decades.

We still have one on US 192 at Central Avenue in Kissimmee, Florida.

[spooky]

Didn't realize it until I looked it up, but Chi-Chi's is completely gone from North America. I don't miss them. Last time I visited one was when I was in college and my friends would go, order cheap drinks, and snack on chips and queso for hours.

OK, I'm confused.  If you can drink cheap and eat for free, what could you possibly miss?  They've been closed for quite a while now.

And there aren't a lot of Ground Round restaurants around either. My mom did not approve of tossing peanut shells on the floor but we did it anyway.

Speaking of the Ground Round: http://www.nj.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2015/06/inside_new_jerseys_last_ground_round.html

I'm amazed at how stupid reporters can actually be.

All Ground Rounds closed in the mid-90's.  It was only recently - let's say the past 5 years or so - that some of the former franchisees went in together and purchased the rights to the Ground Round name and other trademarks of the restaurant, and opened up some stores.  There were absolutely none for many years, so to say that the one in Bradley Beach is the last remaining one is skipping over 20 years of history where there were none.

It's kinda like saying how the Delsea Drive-In is the last remaining drive in theatre in NJ.  All of them had closed.  The Delsea reopened, and is now the only one in NJ.

I think you're off on the timeline and the history. My recollection is that Ground Round shut down their corporate-owned locations, but the franchised locations generally remained open. I'm sure that many of those have since shuttered, including the few I remember locally in southern New England, but it seems likely that any Ground Round that is open today has been one all along.

The article states that they closed 59 corporate-owned locations in 2004. I definitely remember two near my current office, and I started working here in 2003.

[jeffandnicole]

I think you're off on the timeline and the history. My recollection is that Ground Round shut down their corporate-owned locations, but the franchised locations generally remained open. I'm sure that many of those have since shuttered, including the few I remember locally in southern New England, but it seems likely that any Ground Round that is open today has been one all along.

The article states that they closed 59 corporate-owned locations in 2004. I definitely remember two near my current office, and I started working here in 2003.

I know that Bennigans shut down all their corporate owned stores, but allowed the franchised stores to remain open.  There's still one in the Vineland, NJ area.  Unfortunately, their food, while same in name, may not be the same product from before.  The infamous broccoli bites for example that they now sell are vastly different from the ones formerly sold. 

But Ground Round had completely shut down, at least in NJ.  And that's why I'm saying the article is wrong - I see what it said, and it doesn't agree with reality. Hell, Ground Round itself even issued a press release saying they are *returning* to locations where they used to be.  http://www.groundround.com/data/files/press-room/pressrelease_082713.html

[BamaZeus]

A couple of years ago we ate at the last Kenny Rogers Roasters in the US.  It was at the Ontario mall in California.  We were staying out there for a football game and happened to see it in the mall, so we ate dinner there.  They're apparently very popular in Asia, but for whatever reason they shut down all the US locations.

I remember going to Duff's in the 80s in Connecticut, and I remember the conveyor belt, but it's a very hazy memory.

[rickmastfan67]

Yeah, I haven't seen a standalone Long John Silver's in decades.

Still have one here in the West View, PA area.  Recently lost an A&W/Long John location that was up in Cranberry, PA.

[Buffaboy]

Whatever happened to Bob Evans?

[TheHighwayMan3561]

I wonder if Yum! is trying to abandon the dual-restaurant concept. We've lost 4 Long John Silvers in MSP, all of which were paired with something else (either A&W or Taco Bell; the A&Ws went down with the ship but the Taco Bells are now standalone). Also noticed that the dual KFC/TB in North Branch, MN is now solely a Taco Bell.

[rickmastfan67]

I wonder if Yum! is trying to abandon the dual-restaurant concept. We've lost 4 Long John Silvers in MSP, all of which were paired with something else. Also noticed that the dual KFC/TB in North Branch, MN is now solely a Taco Bell.

Yum! doesn't own Long John Silver's and A&W anymore since 2011.

[Takumi]

My local Long John Silver's was standalone for years, but became paired with an A&W within the last decade. I know a few other standalone ones in Virginia, but I've never seen a standalone A&W.

[dfilpus]

Whatever happened to Bob Evans?

Bob Evans died in 2007. His namesake restaurant chain has nearly 600 restaurants in the Eastern United States.

[Pete from Boston]

Whatever happened to Kenny Rogers' Roasters?  Last one I saw was in a food court, part of a 3-in-1 with Arthur Treacher's and Nathan's.

He knew when to fold 'em.

[Mr_Northside]

Yeah, I haven't seen a standalone Long John Silver's in decades.

Still have one here in the West View, PA area.  Recently lost an A&W/Long John location that was up in Cranberry, PA.

The one off Rt. 8 in the Etna/Shaler area closed at some point in the last month or two.

[spooky]

Whatever happened to Kenny Rogers' Roasters?  Last one I saw was in a food court, part of a 3-in-1 with Arthur Treacher's and Nathan's.

He knew when to fold 'em.

or...

[The Nature Boy]

My local Long John Silver's was standalone for years, but became paired with an A&W within the last decade. I know a few other standalone ones in Virginia, but I've never seen a standalone A&W.

I've seen a few in Michigan.

[rawmustard]

Old Country Buffet/Home Town Buffet has been going through a major contraction as of late.

Ovation Brands (or perhaps its franchisee here) seems to be rather ostensible about bringing in extra revenue. I dined at an OCB last night and found out they now offer a to-go cup for an extra 99 cents. This was in addition to selling the beverage separately, and at least in Battle Creek, the private dining room was made into a game room.

[PHLBOS]

Similarly, if you look at a McDonald's sign from about 1970 and earlier, the word HAMBURGERS (in all-caps) is present.  This actually gave the "n-billion sold"(*) more meaning.  I suspect they removed hamburgers from the sign for one or both of 2 reasons: (1) pretty much everyone in the country knew what their signature product was by then, (2) plans for an extended product line, such as McNuggets.  (Note that a handful of earlier signs had a "Filet-o-Fish Sandwich" sign added into the arches structure.)

The lowest number I remember seeing on those signs in the very early 70s was either 8 or 9 billion served.  I'm not 100% sure but I believe that the change from sold to served predates my earliest memories of McDonalds.

(*) Around the same time McD's removed "Hamburgers" from the sign, they quietly switched the count notation from n-billion "Sold" to "Served".  Again, two likely reasons were (1) "Served" sounds so much friendlier than "Sold", and/or (2) the burgers given away for promos/contests/tour bus drivers/etc. aren't exactly "sold" anyway.

See above, at least such was the case for the ones located in eastern Massachusetts.  The first free-standing McDonalds without any Hamburger nor burger count references on its exterior signs, near where I lived at the time; was the one located along Canal St. in Salem, MA.  That one opened circa 1976 and is still there (with its original red box sign containing just the logo) to this day.

Eventually, the counting gave way to the Carl Sagan-like "Billions and Billions" Served (especially on tall-mast signs near freeways, since you'd take your life into your hands to climb up there and update the numbers), then they got rid of the count altogether and went with "Restaurant", a permanent marquee sign, descriptive words like "Drive-thru", or just blank space.

IIRC, the switch to the Billions and Billions Served came about when the Served count exceeded 100 billion.  Coincidentally, such occurred circa 1999/2000; there was even a (now-somewhat lame) Y2K-related joke e-mail that circulated at that time stating that McDonalds would financially collapse when their signs would change to 00 Billion Served (due to no room for the 1 digit on the signs).