Are there any howard johnson restaurants left

That didn't work because customers kept comparing the new model to the old and didn't like the changes. As of there was only one Howard Johnson's restaurant still operating in the United States. It is in Lake George, New York. Our Facebook page has more than , followers who love off the beaten path Florida: towns, tourist attractions, maps, lodging, food, festivals, scenic road trips, day trips, history, culture, nostalgia, and more.

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Privacy Policy. He wanted his own business and be his own boss. Shortly after that we moved to Cape Cod where he had a very successful business…. We continued eating at Howard Johnson restaurants for years. I had the meat loaf dinner. The last standing Howard Johnson is in Lake George…. Hmmm…wonder where we would be if Dad had taken the job…. We spent vacation in Rainbow Lake near Saranac Lake. If we were lucky, we got a table at the back window and watched the waterfall. The boys loved the old Ho Jo car that was parked in front of the restaurant.

We were very sad when it closed. As a teenager I lived just a 5-minute walk from my local Howard Johnson restaurant. I loved the clam roll and ordered them very often of course, that was before I had ever experienced such a thing as a whole belly clam, which changed my life.

I was glad to see someone mention the 3D burger, which was my favorite burger ever. I believe our closest restaurant was in Manasses, VA so off we went. We enjoyed our meal but wish I had felt better. Our ship was stationed in Portland, but was in Boston for repairs. Not exactly the most healthy breakfast but the pie and coffee hit the spot for an early morning treat! By any chance were you on the cutter Duane?

My brother in law and a couple of friends were about that time? I am from Maine. In the 70s and 80s my family drove to and from Massachusetts a lot to visit family. I stayed there with my mom after our car broke down on the evening of December 8, I was secretly pleased because that meant I would be able to watch the second half of the Patriots game on MNF.

That was the same night that Howard Cosell informed much of the nation that John Lennon had been shot and killed. And I never called it HoJo, I thought that was rather demeaning! I first worked at a HJ down in Homestead Fla from 60 to probably Very good training for waitresses — not like now, no wonder the servers are so bad. Finally after finding out more info, a lady who we never really did know her name, had cone to the US to help PresKennedy promote physical fitness. And of course the Head Waitress decided to give her to me as no one else had courage to wait in her.

They all were Asked — I was Assigned!! Where did the out her — of course at a deuce facing the hallway to the bathrooms! I was mortified. After serving her, we got to talking and had a great time.

Much to the Head Waitress dismay. The other memory from Homestead was I was now an old pro of probably 6 months. This Waitress was SO lazy. If she took a table in her station she usually only got the order — WE had to do the rest. Finally after a few weeks, HWaitress called a meeting and said no more pooling on Tips, we were all responsible for our own stations and money. Then she turns and says you have 2 stations every day this week. Hers and yours! Money was great too.

By the end of the week, she was gone! She retired from the University Store after 40 yrs. It will always be the best resturant in my book. I will share this with you, I hold one piece of treasure from the good old days. The Green apron with the log, three pockets.. That was my first job as a Kid… Those were home made products without all the preservatives, maybe. I just think because people back then were not couch potatoes, therefore could really enjoy the food. Thanks for sharing a moment on one of my best memories.

Waitresses for Friday Fish Fry and Sunday breakfast. Liked the atmosphere and staff, but hated the tips. Travelers along 95 figured they would never see you again so why bother tipping. In 84 moved to their sister restaurant Ground Round in Groton, Ct. Remember a Small Venue!!!! Then we all look at each other and just start laughing hysterically………The Wang theater was very smoke filled that evening and not cigarette smoke!!!!

We did not partake but unfortunately we did not have a choice……We partook!!!!!! Secondary High We could not stop laughing once we realized and of course eating!!!!!! Mall back then with Chocolate milk….. Two Thumbs UP!!!! Also loved the one off of in Newton because that meant I was with my Grams and we were most likely heading to the Cape. I Remember he showed us his car with extended pedals. What a super nice guy he was!!! They were always up high on a shelf if I remember right.

Howard thought about the kids so they were not always saying they were bored. Good times!!! Fried Clam Strip night was looked forward to each week as we went for them often.

First restaurant took my children too as so family orientated and appreciated. My one daughter always got their spaghetti and the other a grilled cheese and eventually, when older, the friend clam dinner too. Ice cream after was the treat of the visit to top it off! Shall miss the touch of America and memories of a really good home town restaurant.

When friends and family came to visit they often stayed at the motel. We stayed in a Howard Johnson in Illinois on our wedding night in We had a dinner of fried clams—my very favorite. Only in Boston while visiting my son have I had better fried clams. Enjoyed the story which to me back to my very first restaurant job. It was the summer of and I worked at HoJos in Battle Creek, Michigan bussing tables and washing dishes until school started in the fall.

Miss those blueberry corn toasties. On ski trips out West, we would do the same. As a kid, I had some procedures performed at the Northwest hospital in Arlington Heights , Illinois that involved fasting. They were very popular, and I can attest to the fact that they were very good. In my opinion, better than the big- name ones today. These two Kavanagh brothers established their business in , using a family recipe from Ireland.

I used to go to the one in Weymouth until it closed. I ran down to HoJos to get out of the rain but had the last burger and fries that I would ever eat at this great institution. They were literally gray! So many years of those great clam rolls and sometimes dinners, marred by the disappointing experience.

I remember driving by the same restaurant a few years later. But now they are all history. Biting into my first one, I got a mouthful of——belly. Imagine the face on a 7-yr-old not knowing what to do with a mouthful of goosh. Yes, I totally remember the choclate pops with white chocolate pictures- my sister and I would spend too much time in line deciding which one we destroy in 5 seconds.

ANd the milk chocolate was the best. Boston, Hingham Ma. Red Coach Grill was awesome. Anyone remember the clown sundaes. They had a nice one in Cambridge too. Great family memories. My mouth waters still for the quart of bellied fried clams I used to buy at the Chestnut Hill, Mass.

The quart of clams cost 90 cents and I ate them all myself! I just loved them. I hated to see that H. It feels like we must have stopped there every time we took a trip to one of the neighboring New England states. I wish we could have them back.

As a child, shopping in Uniontown, PA and stopping in Hopwood, PA for hamburgers on those buttery buns and butter pecan ice cream. Then with my daughter for Clam Strips on those delicious New England buttery hot dog buns, French fries and Clam Chowder … it was so yummy. I feel a kinship with all the lovers of HJ, we have a nostalgic love for the food and those days. Mine was ginger ice cream and clam strips at HJ in Weymouth, but Sunday drives with Dad and Mom were not complete with out a stop for ice cream.

Ninety now and lots of great memories, buying our German Shepherd pistachio ice cream at aHJ near Swanzey NH, their hot dogs were an acquired taste. It was part of our childhood. When I was a little boy, they had a chopper pad in the back. I remember my Dad used it to go to Logan in less than 20 minutes. When did we start to fear color this much. I grew up in Wollaston, MA. My mother was the papergirl for Howard Johnson when he opened the original store on Beale St.

I believe there is a plaque of somekind in the area. When I was in college I worked at Pemberton and among my duties I had to clean the ceramic orange tiles. Just wanted to add to the dialogue. Ken Thomas. Very informative. I heard he started across from Wollaston beach.

I remember the restaurant in Quincy Square. Thrilled to have found a place near Concord. NH, that serves very similar fried clams. Also missed my friend. God Bless. How could we afford gas, admission, and then Lobstaah Rolls with Coffee Frappes as highschool kids back then? New England Mag wont let me insert the links for convenience.

We ordered the whole ones. I may have introduced South Americans to Boston baked beans. Sitting at the counter I ordered a pot of baked beans and a couple of hot dogs. As I waited for my order the seats next to me became occupied by three traveling South American diplomats who expressed huge interest in my baked bean order when the pot arrived. I offered tastes and they dug into the pot eagerly with spoons from their counter settings. It was obvious to me that they became hooked on Boston baked beans forever.

Several HoJo experiences: 1 my hometown Springfield, Pa. Loved it! Oh, for the good old days. In the summer of , between high school graduation and the beginning of nursing school, I worked at the Howard Johnson in Springfield, PA. It was my first real adult job, and I loved working there. Marks, the manager was great, and the cooks and waitresses were a joy to work with. Great memories. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!

We use to go to any and all Howard Johnsons in Massachusetts. My mother enjoyed Mapel Walnut ice cream. It makes me really sad to see this important icon of another time disappear. Farewell old friend. My sister worked there also.. I was soooo happy!! Graduated to behind the counter to serve 10 cent coffee.. Graduated to cashier and ice cream server and then on to waitress for several more wonderful years..

Saved enough money to buy my horse…and car…. Thanks for the memories!!!! My family also ate at the Brattleboro, Vt location from until it closed. Every night from Riverside cabins we would go back and eat ice cream! Ate there every night and fond memories.

Miss those fried clams! Thanks for the memories! I too have fond memories od HOJO. It was so good. This was in Rochester, NY. Of course it is gone now. I will cherish those times forever.

We got hooked excuse the pun! Often think of trying to recreate it at home! Fond memories of Howard Johnson dinners. No matter what I ate, I always had room for a hot fudge sundae for dessert! It was called Dutchland and they had their own dairy farm. However, if i remember my reading, Howard Johnson could use the colors but were not allowed to use the Dutchland windmill.

History is fascinating. Growing up, we spent summers camping in Buzzards Bay, Ma and naturally loved ice cream. Our parents, plus others at the campground would give us money to go for ice cream in the afternoon. Great memories, great ice cream. That was the same year that the prevailing architecture and design of the restaurant, an outline now firmly etched into the suburban landscape and the visual memory of generations of Americans, was established.

You could make money anywhere One them was a young Jon LaRock, who worked the night shift, from 5 p. The little kids are going to want to kiss her, the mothers are going to want to hug her, and the dirty old fathers are going to want her to sit on their laps! She can handle herself. One of those residents, Tim Jansen, needs a calculator to remember how old he is, but he still recalled his childhood order when I asked: the No.

The business was good to the year-old DeSantis, who eventually became president of the New York State Restaurant Association and still lives in Lake George during the summer.

The service is poor, very poor, and the product is just not good anymore. After the company went public in , DeSantis recalls mounting pressure from shareholders to cut spending as well. The rise of fast food and the resulting change in American tastes were death blows. Over the next several years, the brand was passed around from company to company: The motor lodges, which Howard Johnson began building in to extend his vision of hospitality for highway travelers, were split off from the restaurants as a hotel chain, while the franchised restaurants were cleaved from the corporate ones, which were then either rebranded or closed.

Carl DeSantis got out early. As he began preparing it for demolition, he placed calls to former employees — really, anyone connected to the restaurant — to see if someone would take on the project of reviving the space, just in case.

LaRock, who used to run the graveyard shift, agreed to lease it from the younger DeSantis. The restaurant was ready to be leveled, so it was in disarray, its electrical wiring stripped and its panel boxes removed. Even with improvements, the building turned out to hold far less value than the name, which LaRock is allowed to carry simply because it was grandfathered in from a previous franchise in a building still in the possession of its original owner.

Later that night, there were just three open bars in town, and one of them lost power at around 8 p. The future looked a lot cuter back in the past. By the s, HoJo's iconic orange roofs were popping up all along the interstate highway system along with the hotels that America Comes Alive! Business boomed throughout the 60s but started to sputter in the 70s. Throughout the 80s, 90s, and 00s the restaurant chain, now divorced from the Marriott-owned hotels which still exist , fizzled out to the point where the Lake George Howard Johnson's restaurant is the last of its kind.

No visit to HoJo's was complete without sampling at least one of the 28 flavors — and according to America Comes Alive! Sadly, Eater reports that Howard Johnson's hasn't produced ice cream since the last millennium, so now the Lake George restaurant sources their ice cream from Gifford's instead.

As to those other long-lost menu items, the New York Public Library has a vintage Howard Johnson's menu in their archives.

A quick perusal has us nostalgic for those Ipswich clam strips, the "hamburg steak," and of course the grilled "frankforts" in tasty toasted rolls.