Another chain restaurant topic - which ones are gone or just missing in action in your area?

[Planogirl]

I noticed recently that I no longer see Luby's Cafeterias. I never thought they were great but we did eat at one occasionally.

Many years ago there was a great steakhouse chain called Gallagher's. I still miss them.

 

[Kellykins1218]

I miss ShowBiz

 

[bigbabyblues]

The only chain restaurants we HAVE are (in the county, not just my town):

McDonalds (2, about 15 miles apart)
1 Burger King
1 KFC
1 Wendys
Bob Evans
1 Buffalo Wild Wings
1 Dairy Queen
1 Taco Bell

I can't think of any that have gone missing or moved. I would like to have a Chik-fil-a and a Sonic, we like those when we are traveling.

 

[bcla]

Thought of one more - Chevy’s. Kind of California style Tex-Mex. There are still a few left around here, but nowhere near their peak.

 

[Shellsbutt]

Thought of one more - Chevy’s. Kind of California style Tex-Mex. There are still a few left around here, but nowhere near their peak.

I love Chevy's! My brother in law used to be some kind of district manager for them. We still go to the one in Roseville and Gold River, CA. There used to be one in Folsom too. I love their chips and salsa! We eat and then get a pound and a pint to go. What about Tahoe Joe's, an upscale steakhouse. That was another restaurant that shut down in Folsom. The only one I know of is in Roseville. I've been to the Sambo's in Santa Barbara, it's the original and I think only one left?

 

[Colleen27]

Friendly's. We had just a couple of them around when I was a kid but over the years they closed all of their Michigan locations, then the ones in Ohio. But they're still in NY and Mass. so when we're out that way we never fail to stop at least once. The food is nothing special, but those sundaes never get old!

I used to like ChiChis too, but I'm not sure I would now. The last one in my area closed when I was in high school and my standards for Mexican food are a little different/higher now.

Ruby Tuesdays in the nearby mall just closed abruptly last week. There are several very good unique restaurants nearby, but people still flock to the Olive Garden and Chili's by the mall. I don't get it.

Ours did too. I can't say I'm all that surprised - they were quite a bit more expensive than their immediate competitors and a good salad bar equates to a lot of waste.

 

[bcla]

I love Chevy's! My brother in law used to be some kind of district manager for them. We still go to the one in Roseville and Gold River, CA. There used to be one in Folsom too. I love their chips and salsa! We eat and then get a pound and a pint to go. What about Tahoe Joe's, an upscale steakhouse. That was another restaurant that shut down in Folsom. The only one I know of is in Roseville. I've been to the Sambo's in Santa Barbara, it's the original and I think only one left?

OK - I spent a bit of time in Folsom a few years back. I also spent a bit of time going to Roseville because they had a lot of good food options there, but getting there from Folsom was a pain. I heard they did finish the Folsom-Auburn Road widening, where they used to be that bottleneck just before Douglas Blvd in Granite Bay.

I never went to Tahoe Joe's but there was one in Vacaville that I'd see when we would go outlet shopping. I think they were owned by Buffets Inc, which operated a bunch of buffet brands including Hometown and Old Country. Most of those I remember are now closed.

I guess my intent with this topic was to discuss places that just either just slowly died out in a region or that completely fell off the map. When I mentioned Dairy Queen, they didn't completely go away around my region, but the ones that remained never seemed to get any major remodels and other than new signage. They looked like a 60s/70s era business that was essentially just whitewashing the building to keep building inspectors and the health dept from closing them down.

 

[RangerPooh]

I miss Chevy's. We ate at one in Orlando a few months back. It use to be a staple for me growing up in CA.

I guess my intent with this topic was to discuss places that just either just slowly died out in a region or that completely fell off the map. When I mentioned Dairy Queen, they didn't completely go away around my region, but the ones that remained never seemed to get any major remodels and other than new signage. They looked like a 60s/70s era business that was essentially just whitewashing the building to keep building inspectors and the health dept from closing them down.

I think the concept of the thread is an interesting one.For those of us who have moved from one part of the country to the other it becomes more of what we miss, what we don't have or see in our new geographic location. For others, they've been around longer and seen businesses come and go.

 

[ncc1701]

Forgot to add The Ground Round. We use to go to the one near us weekly. In fact we stopped in for a drink after our wedding reception before the after party at my parents. The bartender had a bottle of Korbel chilling . Yes we where in full wedding attire.

 

[disneychrista]

Chains we used to had but no longer do (in my town):
Wendy's
Dominos
Sizzler
Quizno's (the franchise owner went independent)
Foster Freeze

 

[AustinTink]

I noticed recently that I no longer see Luby's Cafeterias. I never thought they were great but we did eat at one occasionally.

They weren't that great, but I miss them. Luby's always reminded me of my childhood. We would got there after mass on Sundays. There are a couple left in Austin, but far from us.

 

[RangerPooh]

Chains we used to had but no longer do (in my town):
Wendy's
Dominos
Sizzler
Quizno's (the franchise owner went independent)
Foster Freeze

Growing up Sizzler was fine dining for our family. Their cheese toast was delicious!
Foster Freeze, I miss them. They had the best burgers in town.

 

[DLgal]

There has never been an Applebees in my city (thank goodness) or anything like Golden Corral or Hometown Buffet.

I miss Elephant Bar. We used to have one and it was so good.

 

[bcla]

Growing up Sizzler was fine dining for our family. Their cheese toast was delicious!
Foster Freeze, I miss them. They had the best burgers in town.

Sizzler is barely a shadow of its former glory. I lived at home for college, but one cousin attended at the same time and would go there for the salad bar.

Fosters Freeze is still going strong, but I haven’t heard of a new one. Around here they’re all still the old locations with ordering windows and outdoor only seating. There’s one on University Ave in Berkeley that looks like the building has seen better days. There’s also an old mission-style Taco Bell location repurposed as an independent Mexican restaurant. This is an old photo, but the faded neon sign is still there.

 

[amberpi]

Having moved to Tennessee from the west coast it's more about restaurants that we don't have here. I miss not having the following:
-Del Taco
-Togo's
-Quiznos
-Jack in the Box
-In and Out Burger
-Carl's Jr (Hardees is NOT even close to Carl's!)

My daughters miss Taco del Mar.

What DH and I really miss is Fresh Choice, but I believe they closed up shop years ago. We use to frequently go there for lunch when we still lived in Ca.

Jack in the Box is all over TN, or so I thought. Quiznos goes back and forth.

 

[Erin1700]

Wish we had a Hoss's in my town. Closest one is over an hour away.

 

[MillauFr]

Many of the McDonalds are closing in Seattle. Land is too valuable to waste it on a fast food restaurant that doesn't generate big profits. Minute the land owners realize they can sell for $50m an acre to a developer they sell.

 

[superme80]

Friendly's never came to California. We loved it when we were visiting Massachusetts. I miss how amazing Sizzler used to be. The one in Auburn is alright, but not as amazing as when I was a kid. I LOVED Fresh Choice and Hometown Buffet. I had my 3rd birthday at Show Biz Pizza Place when we first moved to Vallejo. I loved it. My kids thankfully hate Chuck E Cheese.

 

[Floridaman999]

Restaurants we don't have:
Arby's
White Castle
TGIFriday's
Bennigan's
Carrabba's
Chevy's
Sonic
Jack in the Box
Shoney's
Steak n Shake
Kentucky Fried Chicken (there's one left)
Panera
Hardee's/Big Boy/Carl Jr.'s
CiCi's
Chik-fil-A (we have one that just opened- I believe it's the only one in Maine)
Quizno's

Dang, the list of what you DO have might be shorter.

 

[ibob52]

* Straw Hat Pizza (Silent Movie/Comedies were shown) * Shakey's (pizza)*

* Farrell's (sit down ice cream place . the original "Kitchen Sink"

wait-staff would sing Happy Birthday and there would be a big to-do) *

* Bob's Big Boy * A & W Rootbeer (Drive-in with Car-Hop) *

* Chicken Delight (Delivery had a Big Rooster on the roof of the car) *

* San Diego CA *