What resturant do you miss that is not around anymore?

[java]

One that hasn't been mentioned yet, Cookie's Steak House. My grandma loved that place. And we did too because it meant we got to go out to eat every Sunday!

 

[Jedana]

Mine are more local to Colorado:

Shakey's pizza. Best pepperoni

The pizza place that was at Cinderella City mall---they did wood fire or coal fire, I think. Best dough.

Sugee's (?) (Aurora, CO). loved going there with my dad when I was 10-12 years old.

Dolly Madison ice cream parlors

there was a buffet in Aurora (near the drive in on Colfax) called the King's Table or Royal Fork. One long buffet line, no stations. I loved going there with dad. The food wasn't the best, but it was awesome for a kid who never got to go to buffets other than there.

Oh, and this Chinese place, I think it was on University in Denver? Little mom and pop place, my parents would take us there on their anniversary every year.

There was a Mexican restaurant attached to a bar by our apartment in Aurora (off of Peoria)--I think it was Sandtrap bar or something. Best Tex-Mex food.

 

[shoney]

Beefsteak Charlies! Loved the all you can eat shrimp. I can remember playing lots of Ms. Pac-man while my parents and their friends enjoyed the all you can drink beer


Cattleman's in NYC. We used to go there every December when we went to see the tree. After dinner, they gave you a ride in a horse and carriage.

 

[Jennasis]

Pizzaria Uno is still around - it's UNO's Pizzaria & Grill now. There's even one at Crossings right outside DTD.

I know, but they closed all the Uno's that were near us. BUMMER.

 

[PaulaSB12]

mine would have to be this place called the ground round they use to bring you popcorn as soon as they led you to your table

Its not so much that its gone but I cant bring myself to go to it. There is a restaurant called the Old Bakehouse I took my mother there many times it was her favourite and I liked it too. Since she died I just cant bring myself to go there, something blocks me from doing it.

 

[Teresa Pitman]

There used to be a restaurant here in Guelph that I loved - it was called Red Devil. There was a burner over the front door so you walked in under the flames. They served barbecue foods but their trademark was the "wall of fire" - an entire wall of hot and spicy sauces, and you could just walk over and take a bottle and add some to your food and then put the bottle back. Some of them were incredibly hot.

I don't know if it was a chain or not, but it closed down quite a few years ago now.

TP

 

[MIGrandma]

Chains: Olga's (in the Lansing mall - thankfully there is still one in the Frandor shopping center though), Chi Chi's (my favorite meal there was Pollo Magnifico) and our local Ponderosa.

Locally: Li'l Chef, The Embers, The Carriage House, and especially The Remedy (that one burned down and the owner didn't rebuild).

Also, somewhere near Arcadia, Florida was Tin Pan Alley, went there with my grandparents.

And Duff's smorgasboard places, the food was on a rotating table and you stood beside it and waited as each item came to you. It was fun for kids.

 

[tluvstink]

I have a pretty close copycat of their marinade if you would like it.

I would love that.....thanks!!

Terri

 

[lovesmurfs]

Howard Johnsons. It was pretty much the only place that my parents took the whole family out for dinner when I was a child. I think it must have been cheap My brothers and I used to love going there because we played the game with the golf tees where you jump over them and take the tee out after you jump it. After dinner we always got ice cream, and we loved having so many choices. Then if we had behaved, Mom would let us pick out a box of candy from the candy counter to take home.

Growing up, we'd go to HJ after every school concert (for ice cream), and then for dinner on Christmas eve. It was a major decision as to whether we'd choose the spaghetti kids meal or the hot dog. The top-split roll was a game changer, apparently, making the hot dog better.

 

[Tuffcookie]

The Brown Derby from years ago. I know they have recently started reopening but they are not the same. The prices used to be very reasonable. Not so, today.

TC

 

[FlightlessDuck]

mine would have to be this place called the ground round they use to bring you popcorn as soon as they led you to your table

The Ground Round that was in area neck of the woods had a room where they would show cartoons on a movie screen. Growing up, that was my favorite restaurant.

It was actually started in 1969 by Howard Johnson's. The company filed Chapter 11 in 2004. The restaurants that remain open are independent franchise owners who grouped together and bought what was left of the company.

 

[JanaDee]

Shakey's Pizza and Ponderosa.

 

[Minnesota!]

Ground Round is still around but it's changed and not nearly as good.

There used to be a fast food Mexican food place, started with a Z--Zapatta or something like that. They had these really good cheese roll up things, cheese chillitos or something??

Zantigo?

Not that I ever ate there, but there was this legendary restaurant in San Francisco's Chinatown called Sam Wo. It was in this really thin building (they all touch each other on a block) and you supposedly had to go through the kitchen to get to the dining floors. It was cheap and open late. However, what it was most famous for was "The world's rudest waiter" - Edsel Ford Fong. The first thing he'd say to a table was "Sit down and shut up!". He was known for criticizing customers' orders and just bringing something else. If anyone asked for a Coke, he's yell "No Coke, only tea." Even though he was born and raised in San Francisco, he'd sometimes act as if he barely understood English. He's take away people's food before they were done and would scream at anyone he thought left a poor tip. And the one thing he was especially famous for was groping female customers. Apparently a lot of people knew about it and intentionally failed to warn their female friends about it to see how they'd react to the inevitable grope.

Edsel (whose brother was Henry Ford Fong - also a waiter there) died in the early 80s, but the place lived on.

Basically the San Francisco Health Dept finally shut down the place due to numerous uncorrected code violations.

That sounds a lot like a place in DT St. Paul - The Gopher Bar.

Mine?

Chi'Chi's...this was our Friday night hangout. Loved it!!

Bridgeman's (not sure if this was just a MN place?). Best ice cream!

And, my fave, a local joint called Tap and Grill. They had amazing steak tips, wraps, everything. It was all freshly made. Also, the best ranch dressing I have ever had.

 

[SirDuff]

I am going with Swensen's Ice Cream Parlour, that used to be all over the U.S. The one in our neighborhood was in Carmel, CA and they served ice cream sundaes that were unimaginably decadent in the early 70s. It was a huge treat to go there, and I loved the old-fashioned, turn-of-the-century look of the place. It was the first place I ever had chocolate sprinkles. Chocolate ice cream with hot fudge and those sprinkles served in a stemware glass. Yum. We would window shop down the tree-lined main street afterwards, looking into the warmly lit shops where artists made creations out of redwood and abalone shells. It was the first place, outside of Disneyland, that decorated trees with little white twinkling lights.

There are still a few left, and strangely they are a growth franchise in Asia.

We used to go to one when we were in Florida. Always got a Mr. San Francisco!

Weirdly, the last time I saw one when I was in Bangkok (as you say, they are a growth franchise in Asia). I had to stop for an ice cream (and take some pictures for my family).

 

[JanaDee]

Zantigo?



That sounds a lot like a place in DT St. Paul - The Gopher Bar.

Mine?

Chi'Chi's...this was our Friday night hangout. Loved it!!

Bridgeman's (not sure if this was just a MN place?). Best ice cream!

And, my fave, a local joint called Tap and Grill. They had amazing steak tips, wraps, everything. It was all freshly made. Also, the best ranch dressing I have ever had.

Bridgeman's! That is a blast from the past. LOL There used to be a Bridgeman's in one of the Eau Claire malls. When I was little, we used to go in there with my Grandma and get the best sundaes!

http://www.bridgemans.com/retaillocations.html

 

[lynxstch]

Ponderosa Steakhouses. It was buffet style restaurant with a ice cream sundae station miss it so much..sigh.

We still have a Ponderosa Steakhouse here! Haven't been in ages. We live in a small town..not a lot of restaurant choices other than fast food..we have a Ruby Tuesday, Applebee's, and Texas Grillhouse..the others are more than a 45 minute drive..so I miss>> Red Lobster, Chili's, and Fridays the most!

 

[soniam]

I thought of another one, Crystal's Pizza Palace. They were in Oklahoma and Texas. They were around before Showbiz and Chuck E Cheese. It was like a more adult friendly version. They had video games, skeeball, TVs, and pool tables. They had a really cool small theater that played old cartoons and black and white comedies, like the 3 Stooges. They had a piano player that would take requests and a sundae bar. And they had no obnoxious animatronics. It was a popular place for kids birthday parties.

Edit: Thought of another. Anyone miss Bahama Breeze? The food was just okay, but the drinks and atmosphere were like a mini vacation.

 

[apirateslifeforme]

I, too, miss Chi-Chi's. Had many a friend's birthday there - someone recently sent me photos of all of us there for another friend's 16th birthday. Not only did they make her get on the chair, but on the TABLE.

We used to have a really good Chinese place called China Jade. They closed about 20 years ago. We've found another place, but they're a bit inconsistent.

All of the Ground Rounds here have become the 99. We still get popcorn while waiting.

For the peanuts...my in-laws live in the Clearwater area in the winter and we all love going to Cody's Roadhouse. The 2 we've visited have a big trough of peanuts at the door (if you have to wait for a table) and a bucket of peanuts on the table. I found out the hard way, don't wear flip-flops there. You'll get peanut shells between your toes.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Bennigan's. Although now that I live in southern IL on the border of Kentucky I'd love any sit down restaurant. Where I live the nearest one is about 45 minutes away.

We like Rafferty's in Paducah







Two local places: Sigfried's in Owensville, MO. Wonderful steaks & a buffet to go with it!



Lone Star in Harlingen, TX. Fajita steak, YUM!!!

 

[Kae]

I miss that too! I loved their salad bar and bourbon street steak

Terri

I have their recipe for honey Mustard salad dressing. That Bourbon steak was the bomb

Kae