| ▲ | Theodores 5 days ago |
| These hark back to a time before franchises took over. Nowadays, anyone wanting a restaurant (and customers) is obligated to make it a McDonalds (or other well known chain). If they don't, then McBigChain comes to town and they have no customers. What is odd about this state of affairs is that everyone wants Mom and Pop, family owned, unique diners, however, where do people go when the kids in the back want their Happy Meals? You always know what you are going to get in a chain, and that is the magic of franchising. |
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| ▲ | Hilift 5 days ago | parent | next [-] |
| There was a really good "chain" in the 1960s southeast US called Davis House (or Davis Brothers). It was a more upscale version of a restaurant that served mainly Kentucky Fried Chicken, although there was many other dishes. "The restaurant was originally named Johnny Reb's Chick-Chuck-'N'-Shake, and was sold in 1966 to A. T. Davis, Tubby's brother, who became a franchisee of Col. Harlan Sanders' Kentucky Fried Chicken." http://www.highwayhost.org/DavisBros/davisbros1.htm https://mistercola.com/products/vintage-placemat-davis-broth... |
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| ▲ | bbarnett 4 days ago | parent | prev | next [-] |
| You always know what you are going to get in a chain I agree this is one main way McDonalds won, and others like it. Yet I feel as of late, the last 5 to 10 years or so, this is gone. I see terrible service in McDonalds. A lack of cleanliness where I'd never see it before. I feel that those policing franchises have just stopped, or don't fine as much. I used to eat there when traveling a lot, but not so much now. And I used to eat there from time to time locally, but never bother now. The food is just too inconsistent. And that's very bizarre, and sad, and while McDonalds has seen a drop in sales due to price hikes, I think this is part of it too. |
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| ▲ | MisterTea 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-] |
| > however, where do people go when the kids in the back want their Happy Meals? Where ever the parent decides to go. |
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| ▲ | supportengineer 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-] |
| There's plenty of nice mom-and-pop diners in my town, you can get a nice breakfast for about $25 per person. |
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| ▲ | kevin_thibedeau 5 days ago | parent | prev [-] |
| These restaurants still exist in the US, in some regions more than others. Usually the placemats are loaded with ads for local businesses now and less interesting. |
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| ▲ | mikestew 5 days ago | parent | next [-] | | Placemats have been covered in ads for local businesses since I was a kid. I’m retirement age now, it’s hardly new. | |
| ▲ | Theodores 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-] | | They certainly do, however, there is just a menacing progression of these chains taking over. My parents home town in the UK used to be devoid of chains but now there is KFC, Subway, McDonalds, Dominos, Starbucks and some UK specific chains such as Greggs (sticky buns, sandwiches) and Costa (coffee). Due to the decline of the High Street, there are always independent cafes, sandwich shops and coffee shops that come and go. These take advantage of the spots that used to be where decent shops that used to be. However, few of them have enough customers to last more than a year or two. On the surface there is more choice than ever. However, the best bakery in town closed down as they couldn't balance the books any more. There also used to be several fish and chips shops and they went too, although it has to be said that there are no longer any fish in British waters, so that is no surprise. Retail is always in flux, however, the place is turning into a veritable 'food desert' with a choice between junk food slop and pretentious gentrified expense, with no middle ground. America is different because you do get places in the sparsely populated West where passing trade will support a diner, gas station and general store but not a gaggle of franchised chains. If the interstate comes to town though, you know that will change. | | |
| ▲ | Ichthypresbyter 5 days ago | parent | next [-] | | My favorite diner is just off an Interstate exit in Connecticut. I'm pretty sure it opened after the Interstate highway was built. Whenever I'm in there, it seems busy. Part of the USP is that it's open 24/7 (something increasingly rare)... | | |
| ▲ | InitialLastName 5 days ago | parent [-] | | Tell me it's Blue Colony, because that's also one of my favorites. Packed at all times, but the food is perfect for a road trip break. | | |
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| ▲ | technothrasher 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-] | | My small New England town has McDonalds, Burger King, Subway, KFC, Chick-fil-a, Applebee's... and yet the independent diners are still always packed. The big box retailers have certainly driven off a lot of the local retail, but I don't think New Englanders are anywhere near ready yet to give up the local diner. | |
| ▲ | timeinput 5 days ago | parent | prev [-] | | I don't know how the town I live in can some how support two Greggs, a Starbucks, two Caffe Neros (Caffes Nero?), a Pret A Manger, and a Costa Coffee all with in a few hundred meters of each other, but the local bakery that opened a second location in the train station (basically on the high street) couldn't keep it open. At least the bakery still exists, just not in the center of town, and not where I'm getting on a train. | | |
| ▲ | kevin_thibedeau 5 days ago | parent [-] | | > not in the center of town The rent is likely set assuming deep pocketed chains will be the only tenants. No surprise when they end up as the only tenants. | | |
| ▲ | timeinput 5 days ago | parent [-] | | I'm sure you're right. It's just meant there isn't a coffee shop at the train station for six months. Greggs doesn't want to open a third branch there sadly. |
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| ▲ | GJim 5 days ago | parent | prev [-] | | > Usually the placemats are loaded with ads Somehow, it doesn't surprise me that is a thing in America. | | |
| ▲ | dendrite9 4 days ago | parent | next [-] | | I've seen this in Europe since I was pretty young as well. Usually they were little entries on the edge of the placemats that looked like classifieds. Advertising hotels, museums, and maybe shops? I can't fully picture them but I'm pretty sure I've seen something like this in french, italian, english, dutch, and maybe danish or german? It might have something to do with where we stayed or ate but in general my travel has been business focused and we have been in smaller towns. | |
| ▲ | GJim 4 days ago | parent | prev [-] | | Some very sensitive Americans must have downvoted that (rather factual) post! Call it a comment on capitalism or what you will. |
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