Old Hamburger Resturants!

I would have replied sooner, but this is the first time I've seen this thread.

I recall Kelly's hamburgers; they were in Massachusetts as well as RI. I remember the drink cup-hamburger-fry "K" sign as well. I remember going to one in Fall River, and there is a seafood restaurant on Route 53 in Weymouth that I'm pretty sure used to be a Kelly's. I know there were at least a few in the Boston area.

toms river 37- I went to the very same places on 37 in nj- I think somehow genos got hooked up with kfc at one point ..I rememeber an early mcdondalds there had two restrooms out around back--one for mcmen and one for mcwomen

quote:

Originally posted by Greyghost

I don't know if they are completely dead, but the Ground Round restaurants around here have disappeared. They started out rather good, huge burgers cooked to order, a good selection of sides and for the adults they had a bar.

They did go downhill fast though, the burgers became less digestible to the point of despicable to a burger fan. In their heyday, the Ground Round was a pretty good place for a burger fan.

Something did go wrong though. I think they tried to cater to too diverse a crowd. They did not know who they were. Were they a family place, a sports bar, a chain caught up in corporate greed, or a combination of all?

What do you think, or better yet what do you know.

Ground Round was great when it started but toward the end it had gone down hill. In the late 70's and 80's my mom worked at one in Toms River NJ and I loved going there. I believe they were either sold or went bankrupt. They had them in Manchester and Nashua NH until a few years ago. They were ok, but not as good as when they first arrived.

Greyghost and NicoleM:

They had them all over Massachusetts too...I LOVED Ground Round as a kid...they had the best birthday parties...and I loved the kids menu too! I remember when I was really small they used to have days where a kid could get on a scale and how ever much the kid weighed, that's how much the parent got to pay...it was the cheapest thing! Anyway..I think most of them have gone out of business...which is too bad..I miss them!

quote:

Originally posted by hosseini

toms river 37- I went to the very same places on 37 in nj- I think somehow genos got hooked up with kfc at one point ..I rememeber an early mcdondalds there had two restrooms out around back--one for mcmen and one for mcwomen

Back in the pre-John Brown days, when the Colonel was selling the recipe/fryers to individual restaurtants, Geno's was one of the first to buy territorial rights to KFC...and when Marriott bought them out, and put up Roy Rogers or wahtever, KFC was left with a very big hole in their system.

quote:

Originally posted by Greyghost

I don't know if they are completely dead, but the Ground Round restaurants around here have disappeared. They started out rather good, huge burgers cooked to order, a good selection of sides and for the adults they had a bar.

They did go downhill fast though, the burgers became less digestible to the point of despicable to a burger fan. In their heyday, the Ground Round was a pretty good place for a burger fan.

Something did go wrong though. I think they tried to cater to too diverse a crowd. They did not know who they were. Were they a family place, a sports bar, a chain caught up in corporate greed, or a combination of all?

What do you think, or better yet what do you know.

I agree that Ground Round suffered from a personality conflict. It may be the result of changing corporate ownership and changing times.

Ground Round was started by Howard Johnson's in the very early 70s or even late 60s. I believe the concept was a response to HoJo's losing market share of the travelling public to McD's and the other burger chains. The first Ground Round was on North Main Street in Providence. It opened at a time when downtowns in New England were pretty much dead, bars were not appropriate for "ladies" (and many didn't admit unescorted women) and the restaurant scene pretty much consisted of your parents' favorite steak house or family spaghetti joint. Originally, Ground Round seemed pretty popular with the twenty-seomethings I knew.

What happened, I'm not sure. Maybe all those 20-somethings bought strollers at the ToysRUs Grand Opening Sale. Certainly the model was a cliche by the late 70s with TGIFridays and independent clone fern bars popping up in every strip mall.

But I do agree about the burgers. Last time I had one, probably around '92, it was horrible.

quote:

Originally posted by Foxyfishy14

Greyghost and NicoleM:

They had them all over Massachusetts too...I LOVED Ground Round as a kid...they had the best birthday parties...and I loved the kids menu too! I remember when I was really small they used to have days where a kid could get on a scale and how ever much the kid weighed, that's how much the parent got to pay...it was the cheapest thing! Anyway..I think most of them have gone out of business...which is too bad..I miss them!

You are right- they did have great birthday parties! I forgot about that.

I used to live in Beatice,Nebraska & we had several restraunts I remember I was just wondering if anyone else remembers them & if they still exist somewhere eles - Bike's Burger, Rancho chicken, Croy's & up until last year the only reason left for me to go back to Beatrice - Artic Circle last year they sold out to a pharmacy to make a parking lot I don't know about anyone else but I LOOOVVVed their Bounty Burgers with its special bounty sauce!!! And what happened to Shakey's Pizza & Christiano's Pizza that was as big as a table!!!

There was a Burger Chef a couple of blocks from my dorm room in college in Beaumont Texas and we used to walk over and frequent it often for a late night meal. They flamed broiled their burgers. They cost fifteen cents in the late 60's as did their shakes and fries. For forty five cents you could get a meal. McDonalds came into town about 1970 and Burger Chef went out of business not long after. Burger Chef burgers had a unique taste that I've not had since.

quote:

Originally posted by rongmtek

Growing up in Nassau County (Long Island, NY) in the 60's, the very first fast food burger joint to appear was called "Burger 'N' Shake". It opened across the street from the New Hyde Park town pool, around '64 or '65, I think. The location could not have been better for business, and parents back then did not quake at the idea of their kids (in bathing suits and flip-flops) running across 4 lanes of speeding traffic.
Burgers were 19 cents, and a shake was 10 cents.
It may have become a Wetson's eventually, I don't quite recall.

There was a "Burger n Shake" in Hicksville on Broadway, pretty much right across the street from Mid Island Bowling Alley (also long gone). Incidentally the bowling alley snack bar had good food and made an excellent egg cream!

quote:

Originally posted by annpeeples Sollys in Milwaukee is still the best burger in town...

Better than Kopp's? I highly doubt it.

my friend and i use to take our 80 min lunch break on fridays while a sr. in h.s. and drive from rumson to hazlet to the burger chef....loved them and yes the choc shakes were the best!

quote:

Originally posted by ConeyIslandLou

quote:

Originally posted by hosseini

toms river 37- I went to the very same places on 37 in nj- I think somehow genos got hooked up with kfc at one point ..I rememeber an early mcdondalds there had two restrooms out around back--one for mcmen and one for mcwomen

Back in the pre-John Brown days, when the Colonel was selling the recipe/fryers to individual restaurtants, Geno's was one of the first to buy territorial rights to KFC...and when Marriott bought them out, and put up Roy Rogers or wahtever, KFC was left with a very big hole in their system.

quote:

Originally posted by ConeyIslandLou

quote:

Originally posted by hosseini

toms river 37- I went to the very same places on 37 in nj- I think somehow genos got hooked up with kfc at one point ..I rememeber an early mcdondalds there had two restrooms out around back--one for mcmen and one for mcwomen

Back in the pre-John Brown days, when the Colonel was selling the recipe/fryers to individual restaurtants, Geno's was one of the first to buy territorial rights to KFC...and when Marriott bought them out, and put up Roy Rogers or wahtever, KFC was left with a very big hole in their system.

ConeyIslandLou

Well that is a story but not the right one. Some facts are right. It was before John Y Brown and Frank Massey took over KFC.
Col Sanders did sell his recipe to restaurants across the country.
He charged a royalty of 5 cents per order of Kentucky Fried Chicken.

James J Matthews has a chain of drive in restaurants called top’s drive in, located in northern VA.
He acquired the rights to KFC for 8 states and added the chicken to his menu and started opening KFC restaurants from then on. He was also added to the KFC Board.

When Top’s had 18 restaurants Gino Marchetti asked Matthews to merged with Geno’s to expand. Geno’s added the sirloiner hamburger to their menu along with KFC.

Marriott bought out the Geno’s chain only for their assets and locations after the Geno’s corp. sold the KFC equipment and right back to KFC.
Marriott also sold Rustle steak house chain to their President and Curly garage Bar b q restaurant.


ConeyIslandLou

Well that is a story but not the right one. Some facts are right. It was before John Y Brown and Frank Massey took over KFC.
Col Sanders did sell his recipe to restaurants across the country.
He charged a royalty of 5 cents per order of Kentucky Fried Chicken.

James J Matthews has a chain of drive in restaurants called top’s drive in, located in northern VA.
He acquired the rights to KFC for 8 states and added the chicken to his menu and started opening KFC restaurants from then on. He was also added to the KFC Board.

When Top’s had 18 restaurants Gino Marchetti asked Matthews to merged with Geno’s to expand. Geno’s added the sirloiner hamburger to their menu along with KFC.

Marriott bought out the Geno’s chain only for their assets and locations after the Geno’s corp. sold the KFC equipment and right back to KFC.
Marriott also sold Rustle steak house chain to their President and Curly garage Bar b q restaurant.

My favorite old fashioned Hamburger joint is Val's in Hayward Ca. I went there this last weekend and it was packed, had to sit at the old fashioned counter which I like anyway. I ordered a Mama burger with cheese and an order of French Frys wife ordered a baby burger with swiss, they came out broiled and juicy smokey fresh, mine was huge and it is not even the papa burger, all the condiments are right there, pickels,fresh onion rings, relish mayo etc. Then the fry's we could not finish them all and they were done to a succulent golden yellow.

A first timer sat next to us from New York and asked what he should order, I suggested a Milk shake with mama burger. He ordered just that but he had never seen a real milk shake done the old fashioned way in a steel container it filled a full glass and I swear there was about another full glass in the container he was pleased.

What a nice roadfood experience they only take cash no credit or checks and are closed Sun. and Mon.

I'm not sure if they are still in business but, when I lived in Los Angeles many years ago, I used to go to "Hambuger Hamlet".
They had a few places in the LA area if I'm not mistaken. Great, very large burgers made with top quality ground sirloin.

For about thirty years, Geo.-John's in Farmington, New Mexico served the BEST hamburgers. George Hazen opened in a former used car lot - Hon. John's - and kept costs down by painting "Geo" over "Hon" on the sign. He even kept the period after Hon. It was years before the entire sign was repainted. Having ten to fifteen people in line ahead of you was not unusual in what was then a town of 20,000 people. Quite a tribute to the burgers. Each burger was cooked to order, with whatever else the customer wanted on the burger. Always fresh and always exactly what the customer chose to have on the burger. The half pound burger and fries was meal enough for most oilfield workers and construction workers - even for the high school football players.

I have often wondered if I would feel the same about a Geo. John's burger today. My awareness of health issues has increased dramatically and I generally avoid burgers and, especially, fries now. But the taste from the 1960s to the 1980s was exceptional.

Growing up in Kingston, NY the best hamburger was from Uncle Chic's Hamburger Heaven- take out only! You called ahead and ordered, then dropped in to pick it up- great, juicy burger- cheese and all the fixin's, cole slaw and fries- then they moved to a small, strip shopping mall in the late 60's early 70's- dressed up the restaurant and just called it Uncle Chic's- but their burger was still the best-they expanded their menu to include some Italian specialties- don't know if they are still around or not- I would think that Uncle Chic (he was a real person) is long gone to that big take out in the sky.

quote:

Originally posted by ShenB

Does anybody here remember an old hamburger chain in NYC called "Prexy's?

This would have been in the late 50'S into the 60's

Their slogan was "The Hamburger With A College Education"

If so, what do you remember about it?

Yes! I definitely remember Prexy's! I recall going to their location on the Upper West Side, circa 1962 (??). It was located on the west side of Broadway, somewhere around 105th St. to 106th St. It was a typical NYC coffee shop-type interior, with small booths on the right side, and a counter on the left.

What made me fall in love with Prexy's was the presence of a bowl of raw onion rings on the tables and on the counter. Since anything spicy was verboten in my mother's kitchen, this was my chance to have a hamburger with some kick to it, and I loved it! I think that I probably ate there twice, or perhaps three times, circa the early '60s, but I have not forgotten the taste of those burgers.

While I am not positive about it, I am under the impression that Prexy's had a few other locations in Manhattan, but I can only vouch for the one on the UWS.

I recall a chain called Kemp's (I think that's the spelling) in the southeastern Mass area.

Tops, Oh that brings back memoris.When i was a kid growing up in Wash. D.C. we would visit my sister in Fairfax Va.On the was home we would stop at Tops which i believe was in Arlington Va.

They had a burger called the Sirloiner is like the pre Big Mac and also had the first KFC dinner in a bucket. Those were the days!!!


Jim

Went to school in Cape Canaveral area in late 60's. Any one remember "The Moon Hut" on A1A ?? OK, there was another place that I believe was a chain down near the Merritt Island causeway that I believe went
by the name "Royal Burger", they had a menu with royalty names "King burger", etc. I can't find any references to this place on the web, was I dreaming, or did such a place really exist?

If by chance you remember these post here, I'm really curious..

TKS,
Beerbarrel

Went to school around Cape Caneveral Fla during the late 60's. Any one remember "The Moon Hut"? Greatest hamburgers, and you could buy a deed to a plot on the moon as the same time. I remember another hamburger place down by the Merritt Island causeway, and I thing it's name was Royal Castle or Royal Burger... The burgers were named something like "King burger", "Queen burger", ... etc.
Prices were reasonable, and the burgers tasted pretty good. I just can't find any thing on the web, and I'm sure I wasn't dreaming.. Anyone else remember this place ??

Thanks,
Beerbarrel

quote:

Originally posted by Pancho

My dad used to take me to the "Little Tavern" on Wisconsin Ave. in DC. It was a chain, but were they ever good. Sit on a little stool and watch the grill man cook 'em for you. I always got 2 "jumbos" which were basically just a regular size burger. My dad was a cool dude....if it wasn't there we'd go down and BS the oyster captains and sample a few dozen. The winner always came out selling us a bushel.

There's still one or two in Dundalk around Baltimore. We went to one down by the docks this past December. Little burgers had a surprisingly large patty, probably more so than any McD's burger you get now.

Kewpee hamburger in Lima Ohio is still my favorite. Good burger for 1.50.

quote:

Originally posted by Big Sausage
Speaking of burgers, does anyone out there consider the maid rite loose meat sandwich a burger ?

Big Sausage; Dearfolk,
No, but a Maid Rite, a Loosemeats, a Tavern, or even a Sloppy Joe are the first cousins to hamburgers from the "looser" side of the family, maybe... sort of like the relation of Scrapple to Goetta and Livermush.
Unhungrily, Ort. Carlton in Unsloppy (Except During Football Weekends!) Athens, Georgia.

quote:

Originally posted by RWacker
And what happened to Shakey's Pizza & Christiano's Pizza that was as big as a table!!!

RWacker,
There is a Shakey's Pizza in Warner Robins, Georgia, still operating as of last Christmastime (thriving). If you are ever on I-75 to Florida, it's about 15 minutes east of there, if that far... you can Goodle it up easily enough.
Unshakeyly, Ort. Carlton in Burger-Chef-Less Athens, Georgia.
P. S. If I really thought about it, I could post the entire Burger Chef radio jingle. A Dairy Science professor here named Sheuring invented their milkshake formula.
P. P. S. The second portion of the jingle (I've forgotten the lead-in to this) went:
"Yes, it will -- at Burger Chef!
A nickel and a dime will get...
French fried potatoes, big thick shake, or the greatest, tastiest hamburget yet!" Tag: Burger Chef -- now open on Alps Road in Athens! (It's a liquor store now.)

Anthony Wayne, on Route 46 in Jersey, may it rest in peace. Char broiled burgers, red pickle relish and sliced raw onion on the counter all chased down with a dutch apple ice cream cone.

Wetsons - I quite my job washing dishes at the Five Star Diner in Parsippany to work the counter and grill at Wetsons in Pine Brook. Lived on California Cokes - half coke, half orange drink. I still miss the Five Star Diner.

quote:

Originally posted by Greyghost

I don't know if they are completely dead, but the Ground Round restaurants around here have disappeared. They started out rather good, huge burgers cooked to order, a good selection of sides and for the adults they had a bar.

They did go downhill fast though, the burgers became less digestible to the point of despicable to a burger fan. In their heyday, the Ground Round was a pretty good place for a burger fan.

Something did go wrong though. I think they tried to cater to too diverse a crowd. They did not know who they were. Were they a family place, a sports bar, a chain caught up in corporate greed, or a combination of all?

What do you think, or better yet what do you know.

Here in northeast PA there are 3 Ground Rounds that I know of. One in Scranton, one in Wilkes-Barre and one in Hazleton which are all owned by the same group. There used to be one in Binghamton, NY but it closed and then re-opened as a Hooters and then that closed and is now vacant. The place itself was originally a Howard Johnson's.

quote:

Originally posted by californyguy

toms river 37- I went to the very same places on 37 in nj- I think somehow genos got hooked up with kfc at one point ..I rememeber an early mcdondalds there had two restrooms out around back--one for mcmen and one for mcwomen

Geno's was one of the original franchises of KFC. Back in the day, the Colonel used to go around and sell his chicken not as a stand alone store, but a menu item on an independent restaurants offerings.
Ameche's in Baltimore was also a Kentucky Fried outlet back in the very early 60's.