NathanGino’s Hamburgers
Ever heard of the saying, “Everybody goes to Gino’s”? Back in the 1960s and 1970s, this was true as everybody went to Gino’s. The fast-food restaurant chain was established by football Hall of Famer Gino Marchetti in the year 1957. It grew to have over 300 locations, where most of them were situated on the East Coast. Gino’s was eventually bought by Marriott transforming all of them to Roy Rogers restaurants.
Sambo’s
Sambo’s was a pancake house which was opened in the year 1957 that immediately gained popularity in the West Coast. By the end of the 1970s, it grew to have over 1,100 locations opened. Since “Sambo” is actually a derogatory term, there were people who found it offensive. Then they started to slowly lose customers. They made an effort to rebrand themselves but it ended up a failure. The last Sambo’s location is still there in Santa Barbara, Calif.
D’Lites
The Georgia-based hamburger chain called D’Lites was established in the year 1978 and in a year’s time, it grew to have over 100 locations. Sadly, because the restaurant chain did not offer healthier food options, their success dwindled away very quickly. Since competitors like McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s, gave healthier food choices, it was unfortunate for D’Lites. The company soon went to the ground after failing to give better alternatives.
Henry’s Hamburgers
Henry’s Hamburgers was set up by an ice cream company which then branched over to making their shakes and malts. Henry’s became a competitor for McDonald’s and one point offered ten hamburgers for as low as a dollar. Henry’s Hamburgers was popular in the 60s but when the 1970s came, they started losing customers. The competition proved too much and they did not offer drive-in and also didn’t diversify their menu. One location is still there in Benton Harbor, MI.
Sandy’s
Sandy’s was a burger restaurant that opened up in central Illinois. The four owners’ initial plan was to set up McDonald’s franchises but ended up opening Sandy’s in order to avail paying higher fees. They decided to take notes from McDonald’s and opened a new chain of restaurants. Their were in business for 20 years but ended up closing every last location when the competition was too tough.
Wimpy
The name Wimpy came from the popular cartoon Popeye’s character having the name. This restaurant chain was opened by Edward Gold in the year 1934 in Bloomington, Indiana. The chain had a whopping 1,500 locations worldwide during their prime. But as soon as the owner passed away, all of the Wimpy locations in the United States began to fade. No one bought rights or trademark of Wimpy’s, hence no one owns it in the US. There are some located in the UK still.