Chain Restaurants That Vanished Across America 

Did any of your favorite chains disappear?

In the 70's many restaurants used to be really dark with dark furniture, like steak and ale. I loved that, now everything is very bright with TV's everywhere.

Man… going out to eat in the 1970s- 1980s was an absolute treat! I’m so thankful to have been able to live back then.

We loved Howard Johnson's & stayed there on our honeymoon in 1966 in Niagara Falls, New York. We loved their food, especially their fried clams & steak. On a trip in in 1974 we drove 50 extra miles to eat there. An old Howard Johnson's restaurant is about 15 miles from us & it's sad to see it starting to fall down after having been sold.

The Chi-Chi's that had the hepatitis outbreak is near my home. It was at the Beaver Valley Mall in Monaca, PA. One of the people who died was an old friend of mine from my old church. All the Mexican based restaurants in the western PA had a hard time for months after that. Truth is, that box of contaminated onions could have ended up at any other restaurant.

Miss Steak & Ale the most. Best prime ribs anywhere. Can’t believe they are gone since 2008.

I’m from California, and I was devastated to hear of souplantation closing. It was my favorite buffet because of its healthy California cuisine

Jonny Rockets, Marie Callender's, Long John Silvers & Home Town Buffet are 4 that I remember that completely vanished.

Kenny Rogers Roasters absolutely rocked. Awesome chicken with the most incredible sides. 30 years later I still express my desire for their return.

Miss Farrel's, as kids we went there and would have loved to take my children there. It was a place you never forget. My brother still has a ribbon from finishing the " pig's trough"!

I miss Bonanza/Ponderosa. We’d occasionally go there back in the days when we mostly ate at home. We didn’t even order steaks there because their food bar was so huge.

A little trivia for you about Farrell's: Bob Farrell coined the term, "Give 'em the pickle." It was his way of saying, "we don't charge for little things like catsup, mints, extra sauce, pickles, etc when requested." He knew that those charges were just annoyances to the customer, so he just sort of averaged out the yearly cost of such things and added into the price of the meals. It's hard to believe, but before that, restaurants DID charge for every little thing.

ChiChi’s was one of the first restaurants I remembered going to as a kid. My family didn’t have a lot of money when I was growing up(we weren’t in thee worst possible shape either) but I remember ChiChi’s being kinda cheap and delicious. It was a way for my parents to get out and spend time together with each other and us kids because my parents mainly had opposite schedules. And I remember if it was good pay check when we went or if my parents wanted us kids to enjoy the evening more than we were for going out to eat we’d go to the Toys R Us on the other end of the parking lot. I remember those times fondly as well as the rare occasions of having ChiChi’s, going to Toy’s R Us, walking around there, going to the book store down the street and walking around there before going home

This is all back when Restaurants served good old fashioned meals and also excellent quality of the food it's so nostalgic I so wish I could go back to those days as my full grown self and visit these Restaurants once again!

Most of these had the exact same problem. Over expansion from a few locations to multiple hundreds in a decade or less. Just because a restaurant sells well at a few locations does not make you the next McDonald's and does not mean you should try and increase the locations from a few to 250+ in a decade. Some sell well in one locale because it is a type of food that does well in that area. Also over saturating any market is bad especially if what you serve is niche. McDonald's can have a ton of restaurants and be fairly close together because of the popularity of burgers in general. You can not do that with a fish and chips restaurant or a place that specializes in something really niche like cupcakes or an all salad place. I do miss the all soup and salad and baked potato buffet concept though. You do not feel so bad about overeating a bit when what you are eating is all at least okay for you health wise. Never had a Sweet Tomatoes where I live but we did have one with the same concept called Souper Salad.

i adored souplantation. since i lived in arizona, it was called sweet tomatoes, but i’ve visited the actual souplantation, and it made me very sad to hear my favorite places were closing :(

Oh, man, Howard Johnson’s. When I was a kid, we went to HoJo’s ALL. THE. TIME. When we drove to Florida from New Jersey, we stopped at HoJo’s for breakfast, lunch and dinner along the way. Their fried clam roll is still the best fried clams I ever had. Also have fond memories of Arthur Treacher’s. Never had any fish and chips quite like it.

When I heard Souplantation was closing for good I was devastated I visited every month with my family. We loved it because it was a unique concept, a healthy buffet instead of one filled with pure greasy fried foods. Such a shame it couldn't survive, I hope something similar comes back

You know you're old when you can recall eating at one of every restaurant mentioned in this video. I'm old.

Our Ponderosa Steakhouse closed, our Friendly's closed, our Wendy's closed, Bob Evans was torn down a few weeks ago. Long John Silver's closed due to not passing the code regulations. The fiber glass insulation in the ceiling was falling down & people still went there. Howard Johnson's closed years ago & about 50 miles from us the place that sold turkey & all the delicious things that went with it closed. I think it was called Turkey Hill. The turkey sandwiches were so good. We lose all the old favorites & get all the new fast food places. Maybe we don’t want fast food. Sometimes we'd just like to take our time & have real food.

We had a Lum's in the small Florida town where I went to high school. What I remember most fondly was the courtesty pickle bowl on each table that held pickled vegetables.

The worst loss I know is steak and ale, bonanza, western steer, and western sizzling

I loved going to Horn and Hardart with my grandmother when we went shopping. I miss it and her.

The ice cream at sweet tomatoes (souplantation) was probably my favorite thing about going there! They were so good! And the salad bar wasn't half bad, I liked dining there.

3:10 Hardee's absorbed Burger Chef in 1981. And in 1998, Carl Karcher Enterprises (Carl's Jr.) bought out Hardee's (which was in financial trouble). Since the name was so well-known, they elected to leave the Hardee's name intact, and only slowly change the menu. This has worked well, and if you didn't know you'd just assume that Hardee's found their way after a rocky patch in the 90s.

I miss the Pondoroso. They served steaks, and an awesome salad bar.

Shakey’s Pizzerias were all across the US. Loved to go to eat their pizzas and sandwiches. But now are limited to California . Stuckeys were a good stopping points across the southern interstates which will be missed.

Grew up eating at Farrell's in Redondo Beach CA in the early to mid 70s... What a magic time and place to be a kid.

Howard Johnson was a nice place to eat with good food and good prices. I remember Red Barn. I remember burger chef too. I also remember Chi Chis. I also remember Arthur Treachers. There was farrells near my house.

Arthur Treacher's had the best tartar sauce. They added a touch of Dill to it.

I loved Burger Chef! My grandmother used to take me there when I was little. Good memories!

Chi-Chi's was the destination for upper middle class people on Saturday night There was usually a 90-minute to 2-hour wait to be seated and you would head into the bar and have a margarita or beer or cocktail and they had the free chips and the salsa and it was just enough to tide you over and you get quite a buzz on an empty stomach and then having the Mexican pizza it was the perfect size for one person nice and thin good amount of cheese Those were the days I remember back then Pizza Hut was so much different than it is today they used a different type of sauce than they have today and most important they used 100% real mozzarella for their pan pizzas and they used real fresh hamburger for their pizza and pepperoni that is different than it is today and they had mushrooms that were out of the can and were much better than what they use today and it was just so good and the same thing for Domino's they've changed dramatically and they don't use mozzarella cheese anymore but back in the early 80s they had 100% mozzarella cheese and the toppings were great

Oh man, Chi-Chi’s… I had such a soft spot, because as a kid when we were really poor, it was the only place at the time that gave free chips & salsa (2 kinds, no less, and also gave free refills of all) and was the only place that had free refills on more than just water - albeit on ice tea only - still wasn’t common for drinks at the time… we could eat cheap, get full, and the food was pretty good (and sometimes my mom would splurge on margaritas on the rocks (for herself, not me as a child!)) which was supposedly the best at the time

Souplantation was the best buffet ever. I loved working up a huge appetite outdoors and going there to wolf down a ton of somewhat healthy food.

I always just took the idea of combo meals and salad bars to be a given, but it’s crazy to know that the creators of these things were specific chains that went out of business before I was even born.

God...I LOVED Kenny Rogers, best corn EVER of all time....wish someone would bring that glory back.

Great Video!! This bought back a lot of good memories the 50's, 60's, 70's, and 80's when family mattered.

I recall Lums fondly. My Dad was a regional manager for them in South Florida in the 1970s. You forgot to mention the great "Lumberjack" sandwiches! Great stuff.

Never realized Kenny Rogers Roasters was gone...I remember one in Boulder Station in Vegas. Now I live in the Philippines and visit the restaurant regularly here.

I've been to several of these places. I loved Chi-Chi's. I miss the fried ice cream. You can still get their salsa in grocery stores. Burger Chef was next to my local McDonald's. And we used to go to Sweet Tomatoes all the time when we lived in Arizona. Here in NJ we have a similar place called Salad Works. And Arthur Treachers can still be found at rest areas along the NJ Turnpike. There are other chains that are either gone or are: Rustler's Steak House, Sizzler, Roy Rogers(also found at highway rest areas), Ground Round, Gino's, Mr. Donut, are all gone.

Kinda surprised Ryan's didn't make the list. When I was a kid my parents loved going there for dinner, and there was maybe 2 or 3 locations around us. Last time I went though the prices were getting outrageous and the quality of service had dwindled, and that was about 6 years ago. Our favorite location got leveled and turned into a car wash, the second closest closed down sometime last year, only thing closest now is a golden corral, but that places reputation has nose dived heavily in the past decade.

I miss Damon’s Grill the most. The atmosphere they had when trivia first started was amazing. They had a dedicated MC who gave out prizes for winners and they had an audio box at each table so you could pick which sporting event you wanted volume on. Truly genius. Hope someday another chain brings both aspects back.

Loved Arthur Treachers! We would go eat there after we left the library on Saturdays. Our mom, myself age 7 and my sister 11 sprinkling malt vinegar over those fish and chips and snarfling down tartar sauce and then we go home and I got to read for a large chunk of Saturday.

You weren't kidding. Having your birthday party at Farrell's was a big treat. I had several there and it broke my heart to see that wonderful chain close. Same for Chi-Chi's, Sweet Tomatoes, Arthur Treacher's and Howard Johnson's.

Excellent presentation and obviously well researched! I remember how Stuckey's vanished from the interstate highways and lately they're popping up like mushrooms... Interesting

Burger Chef was awesome when I was a kid.... It was the 1st burger chain to come to our town. and it was CHEAP. We loved going in and watching the gas fired chain driven burger grill. I had friends that worked there ,in high school ,that were SO glad when they got rid of it as it was a nightmare to clean every night.

You can get Chi-Chi's salsa in the grocery store. It's pretty close to the flavor I remember. Loved their fajitas, queso and fried ice cream

You know you’re old when you not only recognize nearly all of these restaurants, but have visited them, too!!

I remember going to steak and ale during the 90's with my parents for special occasions. My Dad loved that place. Sad , both are gone.

I miss Lum’s. Right out of college I got a job in 1989 as a manager at Lum’s in South Burlington, VT. Even then it was one of the few left. I went in the Army the next year, but returned to work there again in 1994 while I looked for something better. Didn’t realize at the time I was part of an ending era! The Ollie Burgers were in fact, pretty good!

Who remembers Bennigans?! Loved the monte cristo

Actually what destroyed Howard Johnson's was mismanagement and the Name change in the 90's. They chained the name to HoJo's which Peeved off the actual customers. That led to a boycott of not going there. They changed the name to be more hip and try to bring in younger patrons what it really did was alienate the actual travelr customer base. There were several articles about it and it was acutally a case study in economics class in the 90's.

There were some Red Barns in Canada too. One of the original buildings is still in Scarborough, a suburb in the east end of Toronto.

Chi Chi’s was incredible, that deep fried chimichanga with the gravy poured all over it, to die for…and those Margaritas !!

Kenny rogers roaster's was a good restaurant, that expanded too fast and didn't do their research about patrons, costs etc. I was sorry to see them go.

my two childhood Sunday restaurants were Chi-Chi's and Picadilly - I miss them both (I live in Orlando) but thank fully Picadilly still exists in Louisiana and I have family there so I visit pretty often :)

Hired in on my 18th birthday. LOVED Steak and Ale...workers there for 5 years.. food was spectacular. Miss it!!

Our favorite fish & chip shop when I was growing up was H Salt, Esq. No idea how many are still around; my current hometown of Sacramento has one on the edge of the downtown district.

I miss Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips. It was a good product that would do well even today so I don't understand it's demise. In general I miss the prevalence of Salad Bars. I remember when Wendy's had an all-you-can-eat salad bar. That was one of my favorite things. Hard to imagine that we will ever see an all-you-can-eat salad bar inside a fast food restaurant ever again with the way prices are going. Also for some of the chain's that still exist today their product has been much diminished. The KFC of the 60's and 70's that I remember growing up was so much better than the KFC of today. Everything about it was much better from the chicken (more flavorful, more plump and less greasy) to the fries and gravy. Maybe that is because I live in Canada and Colonel Sanders retained ownership of the Canadian chain after he sold the U.S. operations and he maintained strict quality control on all of the Canadian restaurants. KFC used to sell "Lunch Boxes" that contained 2 (or 3) pieces of chicken a side of delicious fries (cooked in animal fat not hydrogenated vegetable oil) a delicious side of thick gravy and trademark coleslaw and finished with a slice of tasty "Grecian" bread. You would dunk the bread in the gravy. Sadly not everything gets better with time.

I'll just say... as sad as this makes me about all the things that have passed, I thank God I grew up in this time. I wouldn't trade today's world for any of it. In fact, if I could go back I would.

I LOVED Soup Plantation. When my kids were little we all loved the place in San Diego. We had a Farrell's in my home town too. As a kid that place was magical.

I worked at Bennigan’s. I ate at Bennigan’s. They used to serve a chef salad so good that people would tear their lettuce that was used as decoration to continue eating the salad because the dressings were so delicious. I miss that place

I grew up in Maryland and almost two thirds of these restaurants were there. Sorry to see them go because we had lots of fun there.

Haha Ollie's Trolley! Used to get food from there (Cincinnati) when our recording studio was downtown. Absolutely excellent!!

When I was a kid I loved the corndogs at Arthur Treachers.

I'm actually kind of surprised that the pandemic hasn't brought the automat concept back. It was the ultimate no-contact delivery system.

Steak & Ale is the only one I've ever heard of. Bennigans are hard to find too. We used to love the Monte Cristo sandwich from there.

A few restaurants from my much younger days (Houston area) that I recall with great fondness and appetite! Steak and Ale, Howard Johnson's, Kip's Big Boy, Souper Salads, Shakey's Pizza, Luby's, Weldon's, Picadilly, Wyatt's. And many more ...

Loved the shout out to Ollie's. It's my favorite burger. Their seasoned fries and dill pickle in the side complete my combo.

OG God, I remember Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlor. I had my birthday there. If you ordered what they called “The Zoo” ( as seen in the video) the employees would run around the room with a kind of stretcher with a large bowl of ice cream sitting in the center of it with banners draped on each side, to the sound of sirens going off. I believe “The Zoo “ had about 50 scoops of whatever ice cream you wanted topped with all the toppings you wanted with little plastic animals set on top, hence the name. It had to be at least a couple of gallons of ice cream in it. It was so much fun there. It looks like and old fashion soda shop and they also had an old fashioned candy shop you could visit while you were there. They had every kind of candy you could imagine. They had lots of penny candies in jars like candy stores use to be in the old days. That’s place was so cool. If I had the money I would open one just like it again. I think we could all use some of those old fashioned fun experiences these days. Anyone else agree? 🙋🏼‍♀️ Does anyone else remember Farrell’s? If so, I’d love to hear what you remember about your experience there.

Most of these I never heard of because they're northern or western eateries. Steak n Ale, Arthur Treachers and Howard Johnsons had good food for a short period of time. But like most restaurants they start cutting corners to increase profit margin and after awhile their food turns to trash.

I remember loving Bob's Big Boy as a kid. Their burgers had grilled onions. Also loved the milk shakes. They had strawberry pie that was very popular, but not my thing.

My Mom loved the salad bar at Beefsteak Charlie’s, so many good memories of eating there with my family at the Queens Center Mall location. Arthur Treacher’s came to Jamaica Avenue in the mid 70’s and it was a big hit. I spent many carefree afternoons eating and laughing with my girls

Apparently, Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs now owns the rights to Arthur Treacher's and is planning on bringing them back.

I had never heard of most of these chains before watching this video. The exceptions were Red Barn, Brown Derby, Kenny Rogers Roasters, and Chi-Chi's. I knew of Red Barn from people reminiscing about it, Brown Derby from its cameo appearance at the end of the Disney movie "Fun and Fancy Free", and Kenny Rogers Roasters from a humorous commercial that was commonly on TV in the mid 1990s, that featured Rogers arguing with a drive through attendant over an intercom. Chi-Chi's was the only chain I ever actually ate at, though. My dad worked at one in the early 1990s.

I worked at Lum's in Miami in 1974, when I was 16! The food was fantastic! I forgot that I worked there until I saw this video!

When the hungries hit, hit the red barn! I loved the barn buster.

I would kill to have Arthur Teachers back. I ate there at least 4 times a week in Virginia. So good! I looked up the recipe but it was nowhere near the taste.

We lived in Norwich CT in the 70's and my brother & I would choose Burger Chef over McD's everytime. As a teen we lived in New Mexico. We had a Taco Bell & a chain named Taco Villa. I liked Taco Villa best but I think they dwindled down to only one or two locations. Grady's American Grill was a really nice restaurant but eventually all locations shut down except for the 1st original location in another state.

I'm from Bellevue. Hearing the last Lums left was that one kinda makes me smile!

We had a Burger Chef that didn't get changed to Hardee's (thought we have several of those too). It is now a locally owned placed called The Chef and still has the iconic shape.

I miss steak and ale, Burger chef, and Howard Johnson's. My first job was at a Hardee's that used to be a burger chef when I was a kid.

Farrell's Ice Cream was a treat! In the late 70's 80's foe me when we would visit relatives in Portland,OR. My favorite was the Hot fudge Nutty Nutty, vanilla ice cream, Spanish peanuts, loafs of hot fudge, whipped cream and a cherry on top.

Loved Arthur Treachers, wow takes me back🏖

Crumbs was awesome. There was a location by my college. I remember walking there on Friday nights for a special treat. I miss this grasshopper and red velvet cupcakes.

This video listed a few I have memories of, or can recall with some clarity. Beefsteak Charlies - Me and my family ate at one in Bethesda, Maryland back in late 1984 or early 1985. I remember me and my sister (God rest her soul) sharing a HUGE ice cream sundae - Mom snapped a picture of the two of us wolfing it down like ice cream was going to disappear tomorrow. Kenny Roger's Roasters - There were a couple of them in my hometown, and the rotisserie chicken was SO good! For a couple of years, it was my go-to place for birthday meals and other special occasions, then it suddenly folded. Farrell's - I vaguely remember one near a Sears in San Diego back when I was about 5 or 6 years old. We went there every once in a while. Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips - Shortly after the Avenues Mall opened (about 1992 or thereabouts), Arthur Treacher's was one of the available eateries at the food court. I kinda wish I gave it a try when it was there - this video made it sound like I really missed out. Steak & Ale - Never ate there, but I remember there used to be one on the Arlington Expressway long ago. It sounds like I missed out on something good. Howard Johnson's - There used to be one on an overpass up in the north side of Chicago - you'd pass under it if you were going to O'Hare, and I think it was in shot in the original Blues Brothers (scene was Aykroyd and Belushi using a nearby payphone, and Carrie Fisher tried roasting the both of 'em with a flamethrower). That one became a Wendy's before my family relocated to Jacksonville, FL in late 1985.

We had a Brown Derby next to the Tallahassee Mall when I was a teenager. The food was excellent. When I was in college in Atlanta, I went with a group of dorm mates to a Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour to celebrate one member's birthday. As luck would have it, the staff was practicing a new menu selection the company had just initiated. We ended up being their guinea pigs and were stuffed full of free ice cream as a result. I do miss a lot of these places. They were fun. Who recalls ever eating at Black Angus, Stuart Anderson's Cattle Company, Steak & Ale, Victoria Station, Grandy's, Captain D's, Long John Silver's , TGI Friday's, or Roy Rogers Restaurant?

Loved the Lum's in Geneseo, NY. And the Red Barn in Corning, NY. As well as the Arthur Treachers in Endwell, NY .Great childhood memories.

My father explained to me when I was a kid how McDonald's and Burger King head really walked all over Burger Chef. At the time I really didn't understand the process but all I remember is really missing them

Chi-Chi's had a few locations in Belgium in the mid-90s. I remember it well, it was fantastic. No easy task to find that quality anywhere anymore around these parts.

I just now realized that that episode of the Simpsons where Moe tried to turn his hole in thev bar into a family friendly restaurant was modeled after Farrell's. As a kid who grew up on the East coast, I never heard of this restaurant.

home town buffet has also closed down, I used to go there as a kid and liked it. I'm sad to see it disappear

Thank you I remember Howard Johnson

It’s been so long but I still miss chi-chi’s

I so miss Chi-Chi's margaritas. They were the gold standard by which I judge all margaritas to this day, and none have even come close. I know they sell the mix in grocery stores, but it's just not the same. I think Chi-Chi's could come back today if it weren't for the flood of independent Mexican restaurants across the country.

Good memories of Old Country Buffett and Ponderosa as a kid. I'll never forget you.. 😢

I'm sorry about the loss of Souplantation. Decent food, not stupidly priced. I used to go to the one on Fletcher Parkway in La Mesa after dialysis. Cheap, easy way to recharge.

Thanks for a travel back in time 😊

We used to have a Red Barn where I live in Indiana. The building is still there. It was a daycare for a while, but now it usually sits empty, for sale.

Liked Chi-Chi's, but the 2 I miss the most are Steak n Ale and Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips. I don't understand how mainstream chain steak and seafood restaurants that still survive to this day are around when their food is not half as good as those restaurants were.