20 Beloved American Restaurant Chains That No Longer Exist
Which Of These Classic American Restaurants Are You Most Nostalgic For?
They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. If that's the case, what does it do to your taste buds? For most of the 20th century, America's dining landscape was dominated by iconic restaurant chains, from buffet concepts to restaurants with old-fashioned themes. By today's standards, most of them would look horrendously dated, but if they were any part of your childhood, the sight of one of their logos or the distinct aroma of their signature dish is bound to jog up some memories and fill you with nostalgia. Here are 20 beloved American restaurant chains that have gone out of business, but will forever be remembered.
1. Chi-Chi's
Chi-Chi's introduced a whole generation of Americans to Mexican food. It was founded by ex-football player Max McGee in collaboration with restauranteur Marno McDermott in 1975, but competition from chains like Taco Bell put it under pressure in the 90s, and a serious food poisoning scandal in 2003 locations sealed its death sentence.
2. Farrell's
Farrell's, a turn-of-the-century-themed ice cream parlor, was a favorite for kids' birthday parties on the West Coast and Hawaii for decades. Surprise surprise, eventually kids no longer thought it was cool to hear player pianos churn out ragtime and have sundaes served to them by waiters in boater hats.
3. Steak and Ale
Steak and Ale was a casual restaurant that was fancy enough for a date. It brought premium foods like steak and seafood to the masses for an affordable price and boasted a decent wine and beer list too. It peaked in the 1980s with almost 300 locations across the country, but by 2008, it was crowded out of the casual fine dining market and the company filed for bankruptcy.
4. Kenny Rogers Roasters
In the early 90s, country music star Kenny Rogers took a gamble by branching into rotisserie chicken. Although his chain started strong, he faced fierce competition right off the bat from chicken giants like KFC. In 1998, Kenny Rogers Roasters was bought out by Nathan's Famous Inc. for over $1 million.
5. Official All Star Café
After the success of Hard Rock Cafe, there was a belief that any themed restaurant would be a tremendous success. All-Star Café was an off-shoot of Planet Hollywood but with pro athletes like Wayne Gretzky, Joe Montana, and Shaquille O'Neal backing it instead of movie stars. As people generally don't have a super positive association with food at sporting events, it didn't do quite so well, and all locations closed by 2007.
6. Lum's
We have to give Lum's credit for having one of the most unique menus for a casual restaurant chain in the USA. Even though they closed all of their locations in 1983, we still can't stop thinking about their beer-steamed hot dog or the Ollie Burger, a recipe they reportedly spent over $1 million to acquire.
7. Wag's
Wag's was a 24-hour diner chain operated by Walgreens in the 1970s and 80s. It had a decently long run for a restaurant associated with a pharmacy and was popular for its inexpensive hamburgers and breakfasts. However, as the diner concept slowly went out of style, Wag's began to struggle and by 1991, there were no locations left.
8. Burger Chef
Although barely remembered today, Burger Chef was once one of McDonald's biggest competitors. The two brothers who founded it revolutionized the fast-food burger industry by inventing the flame broiler and the "fun meal" for kids. Facing more and more competition from new burger chains like Wendy's, Burger Chef was eventually bought out by Hardee's in 1981.
9. D'Lites
D'Lites was founded in 1978 as a more nutritious version of fast food. At first, the restaurant benefitted from the low-fat diet trend of the 1980s, opening over 100 locations, but its success was short-lived. D'Lites filed for bankruptcy in 1986.
10. Old Country Buffet
There's something so quintessentially American about all-you-can-eat buffets where you can pile your plate high with a combination of spring rolls, pizza, and mini quiche. However, buffet concepts like Old Country were hit especially hard by Covid restrictions and all locations were closed in 2021.
11. Morrison's
Once America's largest cafeteria chain, Morrison's was known for its Southern-style cooking. The first location opened in Alabama all the way back in 1920, but even good things don't always last. Morrison's was sold to its largest competitor Piccadilly in 1998.
12. White Tower
White Tower was an inexpensive 24-hour restaurant chain shaped like a castle, painted white, and specializing in burgers. Sound familiar? The company was sued by White Castle and forced to rebrand, pay royalties, and never open a restaurant in the same market as White Castle, thus putting them out of business.
13. Pup n' Taco
Pup n' Taco was a fast food staple in Southern California. It sold hot dogs, chili dogs, kraut dogs, burritos, and tacos. While it was a regional favorite with over 100 locations at its height, it was eventually swallowed up by Tex-Mex giant Taco Bell.
14. Howard Johnson's
What started as a small soda fountain in 1925 grew into America's largest restaurant chain. After such incredible success in the food industry, the company decided to venture into hotels. However, that expansion would be its downfall as the energy crisis of the 1970s curbed travel and the company struggled to compete with new franchises like McDonald's.
15. Red Barn
Red Barn was a chain of country-themed restaurants shaped like barns and painted red. Despite the super kitschy and old-fashioned exterior, the food served here was quite cutting-edge for its time, with menu items that inspired much later inventions like the Whopper and Big Mac. However, Red Barn was never able to adapt to changing tastes and all locations closed in 1988.
16. Beefsteak Charlie's
Beefsteak Charlie's was the perfect representation of the age of American excess with its unlimited sangria, beer, and wine, all-you-can-eat salad bar, and generous portions of steaks and ribs. You could get massive amounts of food here for very little money but that proved to be an unsustainable business model and all locations closed by the early 2000s.
17. Brown Derby
Brown Derby, the brown hat-shaped restaurant that opened in 1926, was an LA icon in its day. It was the birthplace of the Cob Salad and the Shirley Temple, Hollywood movie stars like Clark Gable and Rita Hayworth were regulars, and it was featured in many movies and TV shows. However, eventually, the glamor of the Derby faded and all three locations closed in 1980.
18. Crumbs Bake Shop
Crumbs Bake Shop started as a small patisserie in Manhattan in 2003. Its success was a case of being in the right place at the right time as over-the-top cupcakes became on-trend thanks to Sex and the City. However, people's taste for massive cupcakes didn't keep up with Crumbs Bake Shop's rapid expansion and the chain went out of business in 2013.
19. Sweet Tomatoes
Sweet Tomatoes, also known as Souplantation in California, enjoyed immediate success as a diet-friendly restaurant just as the health food craze of the 1970s was beginning to take off. However, as another casualty of Covid restrictions, the company was forced to close all locations in 2020.
20. ArthurTreacher's
ArthurTreacher's was a British-style restaurant chain that opened in 1969 specializing in fish and chips. The company expanded just a little too aggressively and by 1979, there were more ArthurTreacher's than the customer base warranted and the company filed for bankruptcy five years later.
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