Can you believe there is only one of these left in all of Rhode Island? I took the wife and kids there tonight for a treat. I was going to put the lights on for service (yup - they still do car hops there), but Ann had a better idea - we ate at one of the outdoor tables. Considering I got to watch some really nice classic cars pull in, the wife's idea was a charm. After we ate we got to check out some of these nice street rods - a couple of Vettes, a couple of Dodge Coronets from 1967 or so (one was a Coronet 440, the other a Coronet 500), a 1970 Coronet that had a "For Sale" sign on it (dang - didn't have the $12,500 they were asking), a 2006 or so Mustang Cobra (yeah, the ones that replicate the 1969 'Stangs quite nicely), a nice cherry red 1967 'Stang parked right next to the '06 'Stang, and finally, a late 70's Pinto wagon which didn't look to bad for, well... a Pinto. And the food still kicks butt!As for classic restaurant chains - this A&W we went to, like I mentioned is the only one in RI - it's on US Route 44 in Smithfield. There is only one Dairy Queen in RI - at the last place in RI you'd ever catch me in: the Providence Place Mall (or as I call it, Providence Waste). I keep seeing Sonic commercials on TV, but the nearest one from here is in Ohio. I did, however, visit one in October 2004 in Indianapolis. We (wife, kids, yours truly) met up at the Indy Sonic with Chris Sedlak, a good friend of the CV Snark Trio who is music director for a parish (SS. Cecilia and Philomena) that is dedicated to the Extraordinary form of Holy Mass. At that time I was en route to an interview at a church in Southwest Missouri, only to get a phone call from Holy Ghost on my way home on I-70.
As I write this, I clicked on the Sonic website and lo and behold!
Yup! I showed that to Ann and I had her taste buds doing flip flops!
Incidentally, Rhode Island also has only ONE drive-in movie theater left - the Rustic. Back in the '70's when there were still a bunch of drive-ins, the Rustic, located on RI Route 146 in North Smithfield, was dedicated to X-rated films. Now the Rustic has three screens and plays everything EXCEPT X-rated films. And they're usually very good about keeping two R-rated films on one screen, a couple of PG's on another, or even a G and a light PG on one screen, so that you can take your kids to see a cool Disney/Pixar flick and not having to worry about F-bombs and nude scenes abounding in the next flick.
So - our consumer needs in Rhode Island are as follows: more A&W's, more Dairy Queens, bring Sonic to southern New England (it WILL succeed here - I'll see to it, ho ho ho!), more drive-in theaters, and dang it - let's get some candlepin bowling houses put up here. The last RI joint to have candlepins was in Middletown. It had both candlepin and tenpin (normal big balls) bowling, but was sold, sadly, and became tenpin-only.
Thus far, the consumer demands of John Q. Public of RI.
Peace,
BMP
7 comments:
The missus is a mucky-muck at the Sonic seat of power here in OKC. The more SONIC stores the better.
Do not, however, expect any "coffee" flavored items on the menu anytime soon. :)~
For me, if In-N-Out Burger could make their way east of the Rockies (really, all the way out to the East Coast), I would be one very happy camper.
I'll have to admit that I miss Friendly's - there aren't any down where I'm at. And of course, I miss Boston's Chinatown - just an awesome place to find some of the best food, IMHO.
On the contrary, mon frere, there are 3 Sonics in south-central/south-western PA, and Delaware. Search PA, put in 17101 for ZIP (downtown Hbg) and set parameters to 150 miles. You'll see they are closer than Ohio...
That's still at least three states I have to cross to get there (albeit RI and CT are tiny and even NY is quick via I-84). snark snark!
We also once had a Burger Chef chain (anyone remember those cartoon commercials with Burger Chef and Jeff?), until around 1983 or so when Hardees took it over. They didn't stay north too long, however. I know the south has a bunch of them. I always liked Burger Chef, but didn't mind Hardees either.
BMP
OTOH, Rhode Island has Tim Horton's and the Boston area does not. I'm not a fan of all their stuff, but the chocolate "walnut stick" cakes are pretty good.
I also remember Burger Chef (and Jeff) from when I lived in Virginia in 1974--not bad burgers.
My dream town would have both White Castle and In-N-Out.
I've never heard of the In-N-Out. Unfortunately there are no White Castle restaurants around here, but their burgers are packaged and sold in supermarkets around here.
We still have Friendly's, but Newport Creamery downsized big time.
I haven't been in a Tim Horton's yet, but did go to Bess Eaton's before Tim Horton's bought it out.
BMP
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