40 Closed Restaurant Chains We Wish Were Still Open

For every McDonald’s, there are dozens of failed restaurant chains. Here are the ones we miss the most.

40 Closed Restaurant Chains We Wish Were Still Open

One of the most amazing things about America is its diversity of cuisine. In addition to ethnic foods of all types, the U.S. has a history of self-founded restaurants. Some become successes and spawn entire empires that are still going strong today.

And then there are others that maybe had some early success, caught fire but then eventually flamed out — whether it took many decades or even less than two years (as you’ll see).

Unlike old TV shows, which seemingly live forever online, once restaurant chains disappear, they’re gone for good. Here are 40 of the closed chains we miss the most.

40. Lum's

Headquartered: Miami Beach, Florida

Started in: 1956

Closed in: 1982

Bottom Line: Lum's

Lum's began life as a hot dog stand but quickly expanded over the 1960s to the point that it owned Caesar's Palace (yes, the iconic Las Vegas casino) by 1969.

Its signature item was beer-steamed hot dogs, and by the 1970s, Lum's was doing so well that Kentucky Fried Chicken wanted a piece of pie and further expanded operations across the country. However, while KFC flourished, Lum's popularity began to decrease.

A Swiss company purchased Lum's in the late 1970s, but it had bitten off more than it could chew, and Lum's filed for bankruptcy in 1982. The last location closed in 2017.

39. Carrols

Headquartered: Syracuse, New York

Started in: 1960

Closed in: Mid-1970s

Bottom Line: Carrols

Carrols was an upstate New York favorite that people still reminisce about to this day.

The small chain was known for its Club Burger (a precursor to the Big Mac) and its Looney Tunes drinking glasses that were part of a standard order with a large drink.

As popular as Carrols was, it could not compete in the burger wars. Burger King bought all the Carrols restaurants by the mid-1970s. However, the Carrols Restaurant Group still exists and franchises most of the Burger King and Popeye's restaurants in the U.S.

38. Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour

Headquartered: Portland, Oregon

Started in: 1963

Closed in: 2019

Bottom Line: Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour

To get your old-time ice cream fix, there was no better place than Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour. Many a Gen-X kid had their birthday party there.

After it was acquired by the Marriott Hotel chain in 1971, it grew to 130 locations, but by the late 1980s, most of them had closed. The last original location shut down in 2006. Seven locations were revived a few years later, but they were all closed by 2016.

Marcus Lemonis of CNBC’S "The Profit" still owns the Farrell's name and says it will be back. "I’ll hold onto it until I find another opportunity, even a smaller concept like a quick-serve, and trademark it. I’ll put it on the shelf and wait for the right window."

37. Henry's Hamburgers

Headquartered: Chicago, Illinois

Started in: 1954

Closed in: Mid-1970s

Bottom Line: Henry's Hamburgers

In the mid-1950s, Henry's Hamburgers, started by the Bresler's Ice Cream Company, was so popular that it had 35 locations in the Chicago area, which was more than McDonald's at the time.

By the 1960s, it had expanded across the country and featured cheap eats such as "ten burgers for a buck." By the mid-1970s, however, the writing was on the wall. Henry's began a quick decline due to management shake-ups, no drive-thru pickup windows and a lack of diversity in its menu.

But if you need to get your Henry's fix, you still can. There is one restaurant remaining in Benton Harbor, Michigan.

36. Dee’s Drive-In

Headquartered: Salt Lake City, Utah

Started in: 1932

Closed in: Late 1970s

Bottom Line: Dee’s Drive-In

Before McDonald's became commonplace in Utah, Dee's was a burger giant. The drive-ins were recognizable by their swaying neon clown signs advertising the deliciousness inside.

Dee's was so popular it had a franchise in South Africa due to the Mormon missionaries who had fallen in love with it when visiting the state.

In 1982, Hardee's bought the chain. Some of the buildings became Carl's Jr. or Apollo Burger restaurants.

35. Doggie Diner

Headquartered: San Francisco, California

Started in: 1948

Closed in: 1986

Bottom Line: Doggie Diner

Doggie Diner, known for its hot dogs and burgers, was a favorite in the Bay Area for nearly 40 years, but like many other smaller chains, it couldn't keep up with McDonald's and Burger King.

Its giant dachshund with wide eyes is a local icon although the diner is long gone. In fact, one has been refurbished, relocated to the Outer Sunset neighborhood of San Francisco, and become an official city landmark.

The brand might be making a comeback too. While there are no brick-and-mortar stores, it is the official hot dog seller at Oracle Park, the San Francisco Giants home stadium.

34. Yankee Doodle Dandy

Headquartered: Bensenville, Illinois

Started in: 1966

Closed in: 1980s

Bottom Line: Yankee Doodle Dandy

Yankee Doodle Dandy began life as a fast-food chain and expanded pretty quickly. The red, white and blue-themed restaurant was home to the hearty All-American Dandy Burger.

Of course, like many smaller chains, it could not compete in the burger wars. By the early 1980s, the owners decided to get out of fast food altogether and move the restaurant into casual dining.

Yankee Doodle lasted for a few years, but all the restaurants were shuttered or converted to Bailey’s Restaurant & Bar by the end of the decade.

33. Royal Castle

Headquartered: Miami, Florida

Started in: 1938

Closed in: Mid-1970s

Bottom Line: Royal Castle

Royal Castle had mini-burgers much like White Castle and Birch Beer, which is similar to root beer. Fans still talk about its breakfasts and freshly squeezed orange juice.

In 1969, it was acquired by a Nashville Company, Performance Systems, but it didn't know quite how to run a restaurant business. It sold off its assets in the mid-70s, and Royal Castle, which was already floundering, couldn't regain ground.

But all is not lost. There is one location left in Miami, should you wish to have a Birch Beer.

32. Heap Big Beef

Headquartered: Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Started in: Circa.1967

Closed in: Mid-1970s

Bottom Line: Heap Big Beef

Heap Big Beef was one of the first "Wild West" themed restaurants, but it also had a Native American theme that people today would see as culturally insensitive.

Recognizable by its A-frame buildings, it served a small menu of roast beef sandwiches, French fries, fried pies, and shakes.

Heap Big Beef expanded, but it was still fairly short-lived. Its main competitors, Arby's and Roy Rogers, sunk the chain. However, its buildings are still out there and have been repurposed for other businesses.

31. The All American Burger

Headquartered: Los Angeles, California

Started in: Circa1963

Closed in: Early 1980s

Bottom Line: The All American Burger

The Southern California chain became known worldwide not for its food, but its cameo in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," but by the time it did, it was already on the ropes.

In 1981, All American Burger was bankrupt, and its owner was found guilty of fraud in a tax shelter investment scheme. He served 42 months in prison, and the restaurants were sold to new owners during that time.

The last one, on Sunset Blvd., closed it doors in 2010, and a Chipotle took its place.

30. Souplantation

Headquartered: San Diego, California

Started in: 1978

Closed in: 2020

Bottom Line: Souplantation

This all-you-can-eat “healthy” buffet-style restaurant that at one point operated 97 satellites was a COVID casualty. The chain was in business and doing well for 42 years, but when the pandemic hit, it basically put the notion of buffets on the chopping block. (Unlike other restaurants, there was no way to order takeout from a buffet.)

The banquet of good times ended at Souplantation in May 2020, as the restaurant was unable to shift its business model to one that was safe for social distancing.

29. Jerry’s Famous Deli

Headquartered: Studio City, California

Started in: 1978

Closed in: 2020

Bottom Line: Jerry’s Famous Deli

For a great many Angelenos, going to Jerry’s for the best approximation of a New York-style Jewish deli on the Left Coast was a rite of passage — especially in the late hours after the bars closed. While seated, you could take a break from glossing over the delicious menu to stare at celebrity-signed paraphernalia adorning the walls on each of the many Famous Deli locations.

Sadly, the chain padlocked the doors of all its restaurants last October, as the business was unable to make things work in the “new” world ruled by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

28. Kenny Rogers Roasters

Headquartered: Atlanta, Georgia

Started in: 1991

Closed in: 2011 (at least in the U.S.)

Bottom Line: Kenny Rogers Roasters

The late country star Kenny Rogers got into the fast-food biz in 1991 with this Southern-fried restaurant, but by 1998, the chain declared bankruptcy and was subsequently reorganized by buyer Nathan’s Famous, makers of those hot dogs.

Alas, since 2011 there are no more Kenny Rogers Roasters in the United States, but if you really, really want to, you can fly to Asia, where several franchises still exist. When it came to Kenny Rogers Roasters, you had to know when to hold em’ and know when to fold em’.

27. Yankee Doodle Dandy

Headquartered: Bensenville, Illinois

Started in: 1966

Closed in: Circa 1988

Bottom Line: Yankee Doodle Dandy

Chicago is famous for its hamburgers, be it at the original Billy Goat Tavern or Edzo’s Burger Shop. But there was a time in the not-too-distant past when Yankee Doodle Dandy was slinging some seriously addictive burgers throughout Chicagoland. The restaurants had red, white and blue motifs honoring the all-American menu.

The family that owned the chain started closing locations in the early 1980s while converting the few remaining franchises to the more “upscale” Bailey’s Restaurant & Bar. Call us old-fashioned, but sometimes, you just want that fast-food experience.

26. Yogi Bear's Honey Fried Chicken

Headquartered: Hartsville, South Carolina

Started in: 1968

Closed in: There’s technically one still open (but it’s no longer a chain)

Bottom Line: Yogi Bear's Honey Fried Chicken

Entrepreneur Eugene Broome was out to compete against KFC in the Southern-fried chicken sweepstakes. Thus, he made a deal with cartoonist Hanna-Barbara for the use of a certain “smarter than average” bear and set about franchising the chicken operation throughout South Carolina.

Did you see the recent documentary “The Last Blockbuster” about the sole outpost of the vaunted video rental chair still open in Oregon? In the same vein, there is one — and only one — Yogi’s still in business in a little town in South Carolina called Hartsville.

25. White Tower Hamburgers

Headquartered: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Started in: 1926

Closed in: 2004

Bottom Line: White Tower Hamburgers

Their restaurants looked like tiny castles painted in white, and from within, they dispensed tiny little burgers. If this sounds eerily familiar, it’s because White Tower came along only five years after the very similar and also Midwest-based, White Castle. (Word to the wise: If you’re going to copy almost exactly, at least make your place look like a ship or something different!)

Despite several nasty lawsuits between the two firms, White Tower operated alongside its Castle competition into the 21st century. However, after years of decline, White Tower’s fortress collapsed in 2004.

24. Burger Chef

Headquartered: Indianapolis, Indiana

Started in: 1954

Closed in: 1996

Bottom Line: Burger Chef

Of all the fast-food chains out there, only one could be the first to ever use the flame broiler: Burger Chef. Yet another chain that sprang up in the Midwest, Burger Chef’s founders used that invention to really make their burgers go gangbusters in the late 1960s and ’70s.

Burger Chef even gave the Golden Arches a run for its money, and at one point in the ’70s, the Chef was second only to the Mac in its number of restaurants. Eventually, the chain was bought by Hardee’s, which converted most Burger Chefs into its own restaurants — or simply shuttered them.

23. Howard Johnson’s

Headquartered: Parsippany, New Jersey

Started in: 1925

Closed in: There’s technically one still open

Bottom Line: Howard Johnson’s

If you were a Mets fan in the 1980s, chances are you were incredibly confused by the ubiquitous Howard Johnson’s chain. Did the mustachioed third baseman have some kind of crazy side hustle, even while playing for the 1986 World Series champs? Far from it.

Howard Johnson’s was a line of hotels and restaurants that had been around long before “HoJo” was making stellar plays at Shea Stadium. While the hotels still exist (the brand is owned by Wyndham), there is one and only one Howard Johnson’s restaurant in Lake George, New York. (Ditto Shea Stadium, which got the wrecking ball in 2009.)

22. Bresler’s Ice Cream

Headquartered: Chicago, Illinois

Started in: 1927

Closed in: 2007

Bottom Line: Bresler’s

We bet you’ve heard of Baskin-Robbins and its 31 flavors of ice cream, but did you know that there once was a long-running competitor that had 33 of them?! William Bresler started out in the late 1920s with a single creamery in Illinois, and the decades ahead were kind, as Bresler’s locations spread across the map.

However, in the ice cream flavor wars, there can be only one, and Bresler’s hung up its paper hat in 2007 after 80 years in business.

21. Casa Bonita

Headquartered: Lakewood, Colorado

Started in: 1968

Closed in: 2020

Bottom Line: Casa Bonita

Casa Bonita wasn’t just a place to eat, it was also a spot to entertain the entire family. In addition to its rather hefty portions of sopapillas, Casa Bonita was famous for its live shows featuring circus performers and cliff divers, which science has “proven” is good for digestion.

The chain was doing poorly even before COVID came along, which closed all Casas Bonita. However, the franchise was bought by “South Park” creators and Colorado natives, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, who have intentions of at least reviving the last casa in Lakewood.

20. Country Cookin

Headquartered: Roanoke, Virginia

Started in: 1981

Closed in: 2020

Bottom Line: Country Cookin

Virginia is a special place, essentially marking where the North ends and the South begins. Entrepreneur Roger Smith wanted to show off the Southern cuisine of the Old Dominion and founded Country Cookin in 1981 for that very purpose.

Country Cookin soon had over a dozen outposts throughout Virginia, serving up finger-licking Southern treats. The chain put on a brave face and tried to slug it out during COVID, but in October 2020, Country Cookin fell victim to the pandemic, too.

19. Eatza Pizza

Headquartered: Scottsdale, Arizona; Westport, Connecticut

Started in: 1997

Closed in: 2008

Bottom Line: Eatza Pizza

How many slices of delicious pie do you reckon you could put away at an all-you-can-eat pizza buffet? Many contenders attempted to answer this very question at one of the over 100 outposts of the Arizona-based chain Eatza Pizza.

Charging by the person rather than by the item eventually caught up with Eatza Pizza, and after the company headquarters relocated to Connecticut in 2007, the number of restaurants was cut drastically. Little over a year later, there was no more eatza going on, of pizza or otherwise, when the business went under.

18. ESPN Zone

Headquartered: Los Angeles, California

Started in: 1998

Closed in: 2018

Bottom Line: ESPN Zone

Sports. Arcade games. Beer. Food. Many, many big TVs. And the Disney empire’s money backing the entire operation. What could possibly go wrong? Seemingly a great deal, as the ESPN Zone only lasted 20 years, despite having Mouse House corporate cash behind the whole thing.

By 2010, there were only two remaining Zones, and after a great many corporate moves (i.e., Disney selling the restaurants to other corporations), the final Southern California location was officially zoned out in 2018.

17. ShowBiz Pizza Place

Headquartered: Irving, Texas

Started in: 1980

Closed in: 1992

Bottom Line: ShowBiz Pizza

If ESPN Zone was for the grownup sports fans out there, then ShowBiz Pizza Place was where those sporties took their kids for birthday parties. Proprietor Robert L. Brock started the chain after he departed (we’re guessing with animosity) from Chuck E. Cheese.

Brock imported many of his former employer’s ideas into ShowBiz Pizza, including arcade games, animatronic puppet shows and rather healthy portions of pizza. Alas, Brock’s former bosses made him offers he couldn’t refuse, and by 1992, all ShowBiz shops became Chuck E. Cheeses.

16. Geri’s Hamburgers

Headquartered: Rockford, Illinois

Started in: 1962

Closed in: 1999

Geri’s Hamburgers

**Bottom Line: Geri’s Hamburgers

Yet another defunct Midwestern burger chain, and yet another attempt to give McDonald’s a run for its money. Some reports state that one of Geri’s founders was actually a former McD’s corporate employee, which is why there were several similarities to Geri’s menu, look and design.

By the early 1980s, the company that ran Geri’s was in trouble, but somehow, a few locations managed to stay open until the turn of the millennium.

15. Royal Canadian Pancake House

Headquartered: New York, New York

Started in: 1989

Closed in: 1998

Bottom Line: Royal Canadian Pancake House

If you put “Canadian” in the name of your restaurant, then the most sensible place to locate your franchises is in New York City and South Florida, right? That was one of the many mistakes made by this breakfast food chain, which lasted less than a decade, and never even got one single pancake house built in the Great White North. (At least KFC actually, ya know, started in Kentucky.)

High-profile fans were said to include even Sylvester Stallone.

14. Good Earth

Headquartered: Santa Barbara, California

Started in: 1975

Closed in: 1997

Bottom Line: Good Earth

It’s true, not all restaurant chains out there traffic in unhealthy food. Case in point: Married couple William and Nancy Galt got into the health-food craze well before it was cool — even in California.

William Galt reportedly was perturbed that so many of his fellow restaurateurs were dying before their time, so he set out to give the public a better option than such brands as KFC, where Galt once worked as a franchisee. Good Earth was bought up by General Mills only a few years into the brand’s existence, and by the close of the millennium, Good Earth was no more.

However, the herbal tea sold at the Good Earth Restaurants is still alive and well in the form of Good Earth Tea.

13. Hot Sam

Headquartered: Detroit, Michigan

Started in: 1966

Closed in: 2005

Bottom Line: Hot Sam

If you grew up in Michigan in the last century, chances are you patronized many a Hot Sam pretzel stand in your time. The pretzel chain was ubiquitous in Michigan malls for decades, right alongside movie theaters, candy shops and the Gap.

A much larger player in the franchise biz, Mrs. Field’s, acquired Hot Sam in 1995; unsurprisingly, the bigger fish soon enough ate its smaller sibling and began shutting down the Hot Sams. The last few outlets finally became Mrs. Field’s in 2005, ending Sam’s hot run.

12. Koo Koo Roo

Headquartered: Los Angeles, California; Houston, Texas

Started in: 1988

Closed in: 2014

Bottom Line: Koo Koo Roo

For every In-N-Out success, there’s an also-ran like Koo Koo Roo. A pair of brothers started this Southern California chicken chain in the late-1980s, and for a while, things seemed like they were headed in the right direction.

Cash flow problems forced the owners to sell the name to a bigger restaurant conglomerate in the late ’90s, which seemed to help the bottom line for a while anyway. But the brand changed hands yet again, and Koo Koo Roo’s final feathers were plucked in 2014.

11. Morrison’s Cafeteria

Headquartered: Mobile, Alabama

Started in: 1920

Closed in: There’s technically one still open

Bottom Line: Morrison’s Cafeteria

Nope, this place had absolutely nothing to do with Jim Morrison and The Doors. Morrison’s Cafeteria started off in Mobile, and the concept was so popular that proprietor J.A. Morrison was soon spreading his restaurant into Florida, Georgia and other surrounding states.

The chain’s later owners soon bought Ruby Tuesday, which quickly outperformed Morrison’s — and thus led to its demise. Today, there’s only one Morrison’s left in Mobile, thus disqualifying it as being called a “chain” any longer — far removed from the empire it once was.

10. Mr. Fables

Headquartered: Grand Rapids, Michigan

Started in: 1929

Closed in: 2000

Bottom Line: Mr. Fables

Another Midwestern burger chain was the Michigan-based Mr. Fables, which was regionally famous for its olive burger, onion rings and “secret sauces.” Heck, you could even order a deluxe “Mr. Fabulous” burger if you had abstained from say three previous meals.

After rising in popularity for several decades, Michigan — like nearly every place in America — saw the homogenization of chain restaurants by the turn of the millennium. A former employee of Mr. Fables still owns the brand’s copyright, but so far, it remains in stasis.

9. Red Barn

Headquartered: Dayton, Ohio

Started in: 1961

Closed in: 1988

Bottom Line: Red Barn

This chain at one point had several-hundred locations in the United States as well as in such faraway lands as Australia. But, eventually, Red Barn was purchased by another conglomerate that also ran the Motel 6 chain, and the company’s resources were swiftly refocused away from the restaurants and into hotels.

The stateside Red Barns were transformed into other restaurants, and those in Australia were eventually bought up by McDonald’s. You could say that Red Barn, well, bought the farm.

8. Mr. Steak

Headquartered: Colorado Springs, Colorado

Started in: 1962

Closed in: 2009

Bottom Line: Mr. Steak

Franchising a steak joint is a dicey gambit, especially considering that the further you get from the stockyards, the more questionable the final result. Alas, entrepreneur James A. Mather was not to be dissuaded, with nearly 300 outposts of the steakhouse in operation into the 1980s.

However, Mr. Steak attempted to expand its menu beyond steaks around that time, driving away a significant section of its customer base. Various outposts continued operating, but the last Mr. Steak had sizzled out by 2009.

7. Pup 'N' Taco

Headquartered: Long Beach, California

Started in: 1956

Closed in: 1984

Bottom Line: Pup 'N' Taco

Southern California means tacos, and Pup ‘N’ Taco sold them by the truckload to a hungry public. Perhaps sensing a competitor, the Taco Bell juggernaut came sniffing around, buying up Pup ‘N’ Taco locations throughout the Golden State in 1984 — essentially ringing the closing bell.

The chain of taquerias had by then expanded into New Mexico, where a few of the last operating Pups soldiered on bravely (and independently) after the chain shut down in 1984.

6. Doggie Diner

Headquartered: San Francisco, California

Started in: 1948

Closed in: 1986

Bottom Line: Doggie Diner

It sounds like a place where you might take Fido for a filet and maybe a martini. Rather, Doggie Diner was actually where many hungry Bay Area residents dined for the better part of 40 years, mostly in San Francisco and neighboring Oakland.

Naturally, they served hot dogs but also used to sling burgers beneath a rather funny rotating cartoon canine head. As in other parts of the country, competition from McDonald’s, Burger King and the like was severe, forcing the chain to close in 1988.

5. Steak and Ale

Headquartered: Dallas, Texas

Started in: 1966

Closed in: 2008

Bottom Line: Steak and Ale

Steak, steak and more steak were served up hot and juicy at Steak and Ale, a chain of chuck houses that operated out of Texas. In addition to steak (and presumably beers, based on its name), Steak and Ale also offered an unlimited salad bar, which sounds healthier than it probably was. Also, they had wine samples for a quarter!

Despite such gimmicks, by 2008, it was game over for Steak and Ale. While there were rumors of reviving the chain a few years ago, the brand remains dormant.

4. Beefsteak Charlie’s

Headquartered: New York, New York

Started in: 1976

Closed in: 2009

Bottom Line: Beefsteak Charlie’s

The original Beefsteak Charlie’s was a standalone restaurant that opened in New York way back in 1914. It was an institution in Gotham, but it remained the only one of its kind until a new owner decided to franchise the place in the 1970s.

As a chain, Beefsteak Charlie’s was all about quantity over quality, with all-you-can-eat salad bars and all-you-can-drink booze. By 1987, the chain concept was abandoned, and the last Beefsteak Charlie’s shut down in 2009.

3. Tasty Made

Headquartered: Lancaster, Ohio

Started in: 2016

Closed in: 2018

Bottom Line: Tasty Made

The Chipotle conglomerate opened up the first Tasty Made in 2016 and envisioned it as a burger chain that would compete against the likes of Five Guys and Shake Shack. Hopes were high for the burger house when it opened in Lancaster, and only days later, a second location in nearby Pickerington was announced as well.

But before said second location came to be, the company scrapped the expansion plans entirely — and closed down its original location to boot. Yikes, that’s fast!

2. VIP’s

Headquartered: Salem, Oregon

Started in: 1968

Closed in: 1989

Bottom Line: VIP’s

If you’ve ever road-tripped across America, odds are high that you’ve pulled over at a roadside Denny’s. And if you happened to be cruising through Oregon during a certain 30-year stretch, you probably encountered a VIP’s or two.

Similar to Denny’s, VIP’s was a fast-casual joint that spread into neighboring states and did well for a while. When times got rough in the 1980s, the operators sold off many VIP’s to — get ready for it — none other than Denny’s. By decade’s end, there was no more VIP list to be found.

1. Chi-Chi’s

Headquartered: Louisville, Kentucky

Started in: 1975

Closed in: 2004 (at least in the U.S.)

Bottom Line: Chi-Chi’s

Chi-Chi’s came about in the upper Midwest, and with business booming, a new overseer soon moved operations to Louisville. When you’re trying to keep a restaurant chain going, it’s rather counterproductive to experience an outbreak of hepatitis, which hit several Chi-Chi’s in western Pennsylvania in 2003.

The ensuing expensive lawsuit forced the company to sell off many of its properties, which were rebranded as other restaurants. Stateside, Chi-Chi’s only exists in the branded chips and salsa sold at grocery stores, but the brand’s new owners have somehow opened a few restaurants in Europe.