BOSTON (CBS) – A popular local fast food restaurant chain is reportedly ready to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Friendly’s ice cream of Wilbraham is in talks with Wells Fargo bank for about $70 million in financing that would keep the chain of 500 restaurants operating during its bankruptcy.
This is TheBoy and BabyGirl G.'s favorite restaurant; I suspect it's because the kids' meals always come with ice cream. They also advertise heavily during kids programming; understandable, given that I don't think anyone over the age of 30 eats there voluntarily (note: this changes back once one hits the retiree years; I think it's because Friendly's offers an earlybird special dinner starting at 4 PM...)
We've certainly given them enough money over the past 10 years to keep them in business; it's sad to hear that they're facing bankruptcy, but it's not unexpected. They started business in Springfield MA; the carefully manicured bushes arranged to spell "Friendly's" greet one heading west on the MA Pike - we see it every time we go to Six Flags. Over my lifetime (and they've been in business since before my parents were born) I've watched a good half dozen local restaurants close - it's clear they weren't keeping pace with the times.
Hopefully they'll be able to pull out of this economic tailspin and resurrect the company. They offer inexpensive family dining and year-round ice cream, somewhat of a rarity here in New England where most ice cream shops are shuttered from October to May. One of our family rituals has been Saturday morning breakfast at Friendly's when Mrs. G. has to work the overnight shift - it gets the kids out of the house while she's trying to get to sleep.
Guess we won't be hearing that annoying "I wanna go to Friendleeeeeee's" jingle much longer...
That is all.
13 comments:
Damn shame.
When I was on overnights MrsZ and I would meet at Friendly's for breakfast - I on my way home and her on the way in. Breakfast with coffee for two with tip for about twelve bucks is tough to find anywhere else.
Unfortunately, I think they've lost touch with their staples as their menu has gotten bigger... and bigger ... and bigger... If they'd go back to patty melts, a couple burgers, fish, clams, etc, they might get somewhere. Do a few things well...
Dang, I'm sorry to hear that. I wonder if that means the Friendly brand of ice cream at the supermarket is going too.
I worked for Friendly's for a couple of years. I'll have to put up some stories. I could run the make (the ice cream counter), the grill, the SR, and was a shift supervisor for a while.
ZerCool is right. Simpler would be better. Focus on the ice cream and a few basics.
The memories...
Oh, no! I have fond memories of eating at the Wilbraham restaurant ( the original one! ) with my grandparents back in the ‘70’s. Visiting them was always such a treat because there were no Friendly’s where I lived; only in Massachusetts where they lived ( Monson ) . I also remember driving on the Mass Turnpike and seeing the big “Friendly’s” sign done in green shrubbery on the slope of the hill…
*sigh*
We have a Friendly’s here in MD, near my house – and it does not ever live up to my childhood memories of hamburgers served on perfect toast…
We eat at a Freindly's in NJ all the time. The place is always packed.
Bummer. My first gf worked in a Friendlys in CT.
WHAT! MY VANILLA FRIBBLE IS GOING AWAY? Mother Frackin'$#%&&^^^!
Saw this on the news this morning, husband called a few minutes ago to say he wasn't feeling well and was coming home early, did I want him to pick up anything? I sent him to Friendlys for mint chocolate chip shakes and some waffle fries.
I think they did try to expand the menu to much honestly, but I usually enjoyed my food there even when the service sucked, so I'll miss them.
That's too bad. I haven't lived in New England in over a decade, but I used to like eating there.
Awwwww, that sucks. Back when I lived in Maryland when I was a kid, Friendly's was a place I loved going to - and I suspect that it was because of the ice cream! I got my McFlurry clone with gummy bears in it every time!
I grew up a block from a Friendlies. I can't imagine the place without it. It was one of the things that kept the street feeling like a neighborhood when everything else got bought up by developers and turned into crappy businesses.
Jay,
You're not alone. Lots of people love Friendly's.
Like this guy for instance:
http://www.midgetmanofsteel.com/2011/09/why-i-pay-for-happy-endings.html
NSFW!!
That chain is one of very few things I remember fondly from the East Coast. Went to the one in Mystic quite a few times. When Bobbie was little, their communal toys & art supplies were well-appreciated.
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