Defunct restaurant chains and retailers

[dlsterner]

I didn't see Horne's yet, but I'm still going through the article.

FWIW, there is still a Horne's restaurant in Port Royal VA, at the intersection of US 301 and US 17.  I've been told that it is the last Horne's in the US.

[WillWeaverRVA]

I didn't see Horne's yet, but I'm still going through the article.

FWIW, there is still a Horne's restaurant in Port Royal VA, at the intersection of US 301 and US 17.  I've been told that it is the last Horne's in the US.

It is. There was a different restaurant in Florence, SC that kept the Horne's name but changed the overall format, and it closed in 2013.

[D-Dey65]

I didn't see Horne's yet, but I'm still going through the article.

FWIW, there is still a Horne's restaurant in Port Royal VA, at the intersection of US 301 and US 17.  I've been told that it is the last Horne's in the US.

Yes, and I've been there on almost every NYC road trip since 2017. Plus, I eventually found the Horne's in this article.

[roadman65]

Along US 1, 23, and 301 near Callahan, FL there is the sign left up on the side of the road from a long abandoned Hornes that stands even though the building is been torn down.

[nexus73]

Sizzler closed up in North Bend OR.  I wonder if they can be colored gone?

Rick

[WillWeaverRVA]

Sizzler closed up in North Bend OR.  I wonder if they can be colored gone?

Rick

Nope, they still have over 90 locations elsewhere.

[NJRoadfan]

Charlie Brown's, a once popular steakhouse chain in New Jersey is now no longer a chain. Its down to one location in Scotch Plains NJ. It was having trouble before the pandemic, so no surprises there. Its one defining feature, the well stocked all you can eat salad bar, has been sidelined as well. They now have a staff member building and serving the salads to you to get around the self service restriction.

[Rothman]

Charlie Brown's, a once popular steakhouse chain in New Jersey is now no longer a chain. Its down to one location in Scotch Plains NJ. It was having trouble before the pandemic, so no surprises there. Its one defining feature, the well stocked all you can eat salad bar, has been sidelined as well. They now have a staff member building and serving the salads to you to get around the self service restriction.

Didn't they spread beyond NJ?  Thought I heard about Charlie Brown's in other states (maybe even CA?).

[NJRoadfan]

Charlie Brown's Steakhouse had locations in New York (Fishkill and Staten Island) and Pennsylvania (Allentown area) at it's peak. Before the parent company went bankrupt in 2010 from a CEO embezzlement case it also owned a chain called "The Office Beer Bar and Grill" (NJ only) and Bugaboo Creek Steakhouse (New England chain, now defunct).

[thenetwork]

There has been about a half-dozen Burger Kings that suddenly went out of business in the past year in Western Colorado, including a few right off of I-70 where they were pretty much the only major fast-food chain (Wendy's, McDonalds, etc...)

Not sure if it is COVID-related or the fact that the Minimum Wage in Colorado just went up to $12.32/hr.

[GaryV]

There has been about a half-dozen Burger Kings that suddenly went out of business in the past year in Western Colorado, ...

Could they have all been the same franchisee, and the franchise was cancelled for some reason?

[GCrites]

Good chance, a common number of franchises to own is 3 or 6.

[thenetwork]

Good chance, a common number of franchises to own is 3 or 6.

There has been about a half-dozen Burger Kings that suddenly went out of business in the past year in Western Colorado, ...

Could they have all been the same franchisee, and the franchise was cancelled for some reason?

Maybe, but they all didn't close at the same time.  The most recent BK I saw closed (Eagle, CO) was still open just before Christmas.

[Revive 755]

Looks like Family Video may be eligible for the list, see https://www.familyvideo.com/store-status.

Does look like they will have an online-only presence.

[thenetwork]

Looks like Family Video may be eligible for the list, see https://www.familyvideo.com/store-status.

Does look like they will have an online-only presence.

There is still a regional chain of video stores in the CO/NM Area  called Front Row Seat.  I think they are mostly in the rural areas where there ain't much else for entertainment.

[GCrites]

Crappy internet can keep places like that alive. We moved our store from the middle of a mid-major city to a town of 40k in 2014. Only a mile or two out of town the internet started to suck. We could barely sell a DVD in the city, but wow were DVDs back in the smaller town. As the internet slowly improved out of town DVD sales dropped, but now that things get yanked from streaming services or moved to other ones monthly, DVDs are back -- again.

[OCGuy81]

Casa Bonita, made famous by South Park, used to have 3 locations, now it's down to just 1. And unsurprisingly, it's the one in Colorado

I had no idea that place was real! 

[ErmineNotyours]

Out of curiosity, I looked up what happened to the large bronze teddy bear that used to be outside the Downtown Seattle FAO Schwarz.  It went to a day care center on Bainbridge Island.  I found a 2013 Street View of it, but it disappeared by the next view in 2018.

[roadman65]

Valley Fair in NJ. It had many locations after Great Eastern went under and took their old stores. They eventually closed but kept the store in Irvington, NJ that lasted for decades. Now it's closed there.

[US71]

AQ Chicken House in Springdale, AR expanded their reach in the 1970's with several drive-in locations called Drumstick Drive-Ins , but they didn't last. They had a sit down location in Fayeteville, but it closed 3-4 years ago.

[OCGuy81]

Probably mentioned on here before, but going through some boxes in my garage, and I found a bag from CompUSA....I always kinda liked that store.

[kphoger]

Dominick's: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominick%27s

Dominick's grocery.

Yep.

[CapeCodder]

Delchamps.

[roadman65]

Valle's Steakhouse in VA, CT, and MA.

[LM117]

Fry's Electronics just went belly up.

https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2021/2/24/22298616/frys-electronics-going-out-of-business