Earlier this year, TGI Fridays restaurant chain announced in a press release that it had sold eight of its Northeast locations to former CEO Ray Blanchette. It also announced the closure of 36 other “underperforming locations.”
It was more bad news for an industry still struggling after the COVID-19 pandemic, but it was also a sign of cultural changes. Baby Boomers may have loved visiting certain national restaurant chains in the past, but Generation Z doesn’t seem to share the enthusiasm and is happy to see them fall by the wayside. Generation Y and Generation X might be cool with it too.
Here’s our list of ten Boomer restaurant chains that used to be favorites but are now slowly fading away, if not gone from American shores entirely.
Image Credit: Nicholas Eckhart / Flickr.
1. Bennigan’s
Bennigan’s is a casual dining chain whose theme is the Irish pub, and at its height, it operated approximately 300 locations across the country. In a tragic turn of events worthy of “Angela’s Ashes,” it filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2008 and shuttered hundreds of locations, and today only nine remain in the United States. The chain is still clinging tenaciously to life, so perhaps now is the time to consider opening a Bennigan’s of your own.
Image Credit: Public Domain / Wikipedia.
2. Big Boy
Commonly known as Bob’s Big Boy, the Big Boy restaurant chain was founded in 1937 and currently has only 66 locations left in the entire United States. Movie fans will undoubtedly remember the Big Boy mascot from “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery,” as the vessel in which Dr. Evil cryogenically hibernates for 30 years. The chain also claims on its official website that in 1965, the Beatles ate there.
Image Credit: Public Domain / Wikipedia.
3. Sizzler
Sizzler was founded in 1958 and is primarily known for serving steak. At its height, it operated 270 locations in the U.S., but 2020 was a bad year for the restaurant industry due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Sizzler filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in response to the downturn. Today there are still a few dozen locations left in the United States, mostly in California.
Image Credit: Public Domain / Wikipedia.
4. Friendly’s
Friendly’s is a restaurant chain whose humble beginnings go back to a single location in Springfield, Massachusetts. You can also find locations in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. That’s the good news. Between 2014 and 2019, the chain completely ceased operations in Ohio and Virginia, and it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2011 and 2020. Despite all that hubbub and rigamarole, it’s been here since 1935, and it’s still going, so while it’s not as popular as it used to be, it’s still hanging in there.
Image Credit: Billy Hathorn / Wikipedia.
5. Shakey’s Pizza
Founded in 1954, Shakey’s Pizza combined old-timey player piano music with the sole item on the menu, which was pizza. There was also beer. This resulted in a chain that once boasted hundreds of locations because, really, how can you mess that up? They’ve expanded the menu a bit since then but for the most part, it’s a pizza place. It has 47 remaining locations today, which is either a testament to the enduring brilliance of its concept or evidence that its days as a fierce casual dining competitor are over.
Image Credit: Mike Gonzalez / Wikipedia.
6. Kenny Rogers Roasters
The decline of Kenny Rogers Roasters was as tragic a sight as its ascent was majestic. Founded in 1991 by the namesake country music singer, the chain was at one time so popular that it was the subject of an episode of “Seinfeld.” U.S. operations ceased years ago but the franchise has a presence throughout Asia, so you could say the Asian market knew when to hold ‘em, whereas the U.S. market knew when to fold ‘em.
Image Credit: Larsdominic / Wikipedia.
7. Chi-Chi’s
Chi-Chi’s was a Mexican restaurant chain founded in Minnesota, and there’s no ambiguity whatsoever about why it went out of business in the United States – onions traced back to a Chi-Chi’s in Pittsburgh caused a 2003 hepatitis A outbreak, the largest in American history, and the company couldn’t survive the fallout. Their grocery brand is still in business, so while the restaurant chain itself faded away, the brand name survived the catastrophe.
Image Credit: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons.
8. Arthur Treacher’s Fish & Chips
Founded in 1969, Arthur Treacher’s Fish & Chips used to have over 800 locations in its 1970s heyday. That number then dwindled down to one location in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Just when all hope seemed lost, a standalone location in Garfield Heights, Ohio that had closed down in 2021 reopened for Lent in 2023. That’s a 100% increase in Arthur Treacher’s Fish & Chips locations!
Image Credit: Phillip Pessar / Flickr.
9. Fuddruckers
Fuddruckers was founded in 1979 in San Antonio, Texas with the intention of offering consumers very large hamburgers, distinguished by the use of fresh ingredients. They are currently down to 56 locations in the United States, but if the 2005 movie “Idiocracy” can be believed, they’ll still be around in 500 years, albeit with a slightly changed name.
Image Credit: Fuddruckers.
10. Beefsteak Charlie’s
Beefsteak Charlie’s served steak, popcorn shrimp, and sangria, all of low quality and dubious origin. It only operated in the New York metropolitan area, and at its most popular, it had 60 locations. This chain did not slowly fade away so much as suffer a humiliating demise that culminated in the 2009 opening – then closing – of a location at the Westfield Sunrise Mall in Nassau County. Despite the fact that this chain now appears defunct, we’re filing it under “fading away” anyway, as it seems to come and go like the McRib.
This article was produced and syndicated by MediaFeed.
Image Credit: BASEBALLRELICS / eBay.
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