List of defunct fast-food restaurant chains

A former Red Barn location in Mississauga, Ontario, now a Mr. Sub restaurant

This is a list of defunct fast-food chains. A restaurant chain is a set of related restaurants with the same name in many different locations that are either under shared corporate ownership (e.g., McDonald's in the U.S.) or franchising agreements. Typically, the restaurants within a chain are built to a standard format through architectural prototype development and offer a standard menu and/or services.

Defunct fast-food restaurant chains[]

A former 1970s-era Burger Chef in Essexville, Michigan, occupied by health offices, as seen in October 2008

A former Pup 'N' Taco restaurant on old Route 66, Albuquerque, New Mexico

•  – a regional American fast-food restaurant chain founded in 1968 in Los Angeles by Aaron Binder and made famous in the movie Fast Times At Ridgemont High;^[1][2][3][4] The last location, in Hollywood, was replaced by a Chipotle in 2010.^[5][6]
• Ameche's Drive-in - Five suburban locations in metropolitan Baltimore.
•  – Mexican food chain; acquired by in 2011^{[7][8][9][10]}
•  – West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio, 1961–1970; sold to Borden Inc. in 1970^[11]
• Burger Chef
• Burger Queen
• Carrols - chain in western New York State and Pennsylvania with 150 stores at its peak in the 1960s; featured the Club Burger and sold popular Looney Tunes drinking glasses^[12]
• Chi-Chi's
• Chicken George
• - chain specializing in fried chicken. Popular in the Chicago area in the 1960s-1970s. ^[13]
• Chooks Fresh & Tasty
• Clock
• D'Lites
• Dee's Drive-In
• Doggie Diner
• Druther's – chain based in Louisville, Kentucky, that became a regional Dairy Queen franchise in 1991; a lone franchised location in Campbellsville, Kentucky, is the only survivor
• Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour
• Forum Cafeterias
•  – chain with a 1950s diner theme that specialized in hamburgers, sandwiches, salads, and homemade ice cream; founded in 1980 by former Wendy's executive Graydon Webb in Columbus, Ohio; at one time had 120 locations, but only 3 or 4 franchises remained open in Indiana, Kentucky and West Virginia after the company liquidated by 1991^{[14][15][16][17][18][19]}
• Geri's Hamburgers
• Gino's Hamburgers
• G.W. Jrs – Owned by Church's, by 1982, the company would operate 62 of these restaurants in Texas. J. David Bamberger served as Church's president on an interim basis until he was able to lure Richard F. Sherman away from the Hardees restaurant chain. Efforts were also made to grow the G.W. Jrs. chain, but management soon gave up on the concept, exiting the burger market in 1985.^[20]
•  – chain serving roast beef sandwiches that was launched in the mid-1960s. Franchises International solicited franchisees through ads in national publications such as Life^[21] and through classified ads in local newspapers.^[22] The restaurants used an American Indian theme and a distinctive A-frame building.^[23] Several restaurants were built in various locations across the United States, but the chain was apparently out of business by the early 1970s.
• Henry's Hamburgers
•  – hamburger restaurant founded in 1925 in Trenton, Missouri. National chain especially strong in the Midwest.Ray Kroc expressed interest in partnering with founder Paul C. Hill.^[24]
• Horn & Hardart
• La Petite Boulangerie
• Little Tavern
• Lum's
• Mighty Casey's
•  – opened in Starke, Florida in 1942 and sold 450,000 hamburgers during its first year of operation. In 1950 it expanded to Jacksonville, Florida with two locations and by 1967 had 10 locations in that city. All locations had closed by the end of 1974.^[25]
• Naugles – acquired by Del Taco in 1988;^[26] all locations were closed or converted by 1995; fans and new investors attempted to revive the brand in 2015^[27]
• Noon Mediterranean
• Pioneer Chicken
• Pizza Haven  – Australian pizza chain^[28][29][30]
• Pumper Nic  – chain in Argentina; founded in 1974 and closed in 1999
• Pup 'N' Taco
• Red Barn
• Royal Castle – one franchise location survived after chain was liquidated in 1975^[31]
• Sandy's
• Shrimp Boat – chain of seafood restaurants that grew to 95 stores in the southeast, based in Macon, Georgia, 1955–1974; seven independent stores still exist in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina^[32]
• ShowBiz Pizza Place – Merged into Chuck E. Cheese
•  – chain serving Mexican style fare in the late 1960s and through the 1980s. At its peak there were 85 restaurants located in 11 states ranging from South Florida (Miami and Fort Lauderdale areas) to as far north as Dayton, Ohio (one restaurant). While the menu was similar to Taco Bell it was different enough to draw a substantial fan base.^[33]
•  – chain of drive-in restaurants located in the Washington, D.C., area. The first opened in Arlington, Virginia, in 1953, and the chain grew to 18 locations. Tops also held the franchise rights to Kentucky Fried Chicken in the Washington region. Tops merged with Gino's Hamburgers in 1967 and its restaurants were subsequently sold or rebranded.^[34]
• The Training Table - was a regional chain of fast food restaurants in the U.S. State of Utah. Founded in 1977, the chain focused on gourmet burgers. The chain had five locations in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area.
• Two Pesos
• Wag's
• Wetson's
• White Tower Hamburgers  – one location remains in Toledo, Ohio^{[citation needed]}
• Wimpy Grills – founded in Bloomington, Indiana in 1934, it eventually grew to 25 locations within the United States and 1,500 outside of the US. The international locations were eventually sold to J. Lyons and Co. in the United Kingdom, which remains open, while all of the American locations eventually closed by 1978.^{[35][36][37][38]}
• Winky's  – a Pittsburgh institution in the 1960s and 1970s that filed for bankruptcy in 1982^[39]
•  – Fort Lauderdale, Florida burger chain; filed for bankruptcy in 1981^[40][41]
• Yankee Doodle Dandy

See also[]

• List of defunct restaurants of the United States
• List of defunct retailers of the United States
• List of fast food restaurant chains
• List of restaurant chains
• Lists of restaurants

References[]