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The one on the A64, between Tadcaster and York (for some reason known as York East!) which was 'Hestonised' always seemed to get reasonable reviews on Trip Advisor right up to the end:
It often seemed pretty busy when passing by and I suppose the adjoining Travelodge helped with trade, particularly for breakfast or evening meals etc.
It is still open minus LC branding, but I wonder for how long if EG want to finally kill them off.
The A64 one that you mention is listed as York east but what it really means is York eastbound as we used to have a York westbound opposite, the one that was actually York east as in east of York was known as Malton little chef all very confusing!
Anyway as you mention the York eastbound was described as one of little chefs most profitable restaurants when the TV documentary was on about how Heston was going to change them all.
Not sure what is happening with this one the Burger King is going along with EG running the old little chef as a EG diner, certainly more facilities are needed on the A64 and a Highways England are trying to find more sites for new services.
RichardA626 wrote: ↑Mon May 28, 2018 22:08
I went to a Denny's at least once when I was in the USA & found them OK, with a wide choice food & pleasant surroundings.
When I went to Canada a few years ago there was a Denny's attached to the hotel. I always had breakfast there and a couple of times ate there at other times. The best thing for a Brit is if you order something with eggs they will come however you want them and you get a choice of bread for things like toast. Plus, in Canada at least, maple syrup is a condiment on your table.
RichardA626 wrote: ↑Mon May 28, 2018 22:08
I went to a Denny's at least once when I was in the USA & found them OK, with a wide choice food & pleasant surroundings.
This is the business model that should be followed here. Little Chef failed because they charged too much, the restaurants were dated and dingy, and some had limited menus. A typical American diner will serve a wide range of meals( OK a lot veer towards fries with everything), some are licenced and serve alcohol, and prices are low.
There's a good US diner just off the A40, at the B456 junction in Perivale. You have to take the westbound off-slip to reach it though. Not sure if it is still open though. Haven't been there for about 10 years.
SteveA30 wrote: ↑Sat Jun 02, 2018 21:13
There's a good US diner just off the A40, at the B456 junction in Perivale. You have to take the westbound off-slip to reach it though. Not sure if it is still open though. Haven't been there for about 10 years.
There's a good one in a former garage just before you reach Keswick on the A591. Unusually for Keswick, the prices are quite reasonable( now overcharging and pretentious restaurants are an art form in Keswick).
I went past the Black Cat one today. Only caught a glimpse in passing but it appeared to have what looked like quite a permanent and fancy, as opposed to provisional and temporary, EG sign and there was also some other work going on - either some sort of black cladding going on or some sort of hoarding for major works. As I say, only caught a glimpse.
roadtester wrote: ↑Thu Sep 06, 2018 19:28
I went past the Black Cat one today. Only caught a glimpse in passing but it appeared to have what looked like quite a permanent and fancy, as opposed to provisional and temporary, EG sign and there was also some other work going on - either some sort of black cladding going on or some sort of hoarding for major works. As I say, only caught a glimpse.
Yes I've noticed the EG branding while passing there. At about the time of the last LCs and just after there was clearly still an open restaurant there but the branding was unclear to anyone passing. Despite this, there were clearly diners inside and I wonder whether many of them were regulars who had previously been assured that it was not closing.
EG Diners do seem to be settling in for the longer haul. As the menu is basically the LC one, Little Chef isn't dead, just hiding under a false name. Good to still have a proper choice, beyond junk food and coffee shops, nice though they are.
havaska_uk wrote: ↑Sat Jun 02, 2018 15:24
Well we do have Dennys over here now but they don't seem to have been well received.
It's rather like a lot of American imports, we don't do them very well, although independent American themed restaurants try very hard.
The big problem for Swansea's Denny's was they didn't bother checking if their US food prep and paperwork was compatible with Welsh food standards legislation. It wasn't. They ended up with a Food Safety rating of 1, though after getting some consultants in they have finally got their 5 rating.
Passed the one near Carlisle and John's Plaice( a fish restaurant) seems to be doing OK and nice to see the owner keeping the red LC window surrounds and shutters. Indeed, the site, which once contained a car showroom, seems to be doing well with a service station and Spar on the same site. It beats the smashed up LC on the old A1 near Scotch Corner I saw in July.
talking about car showrooms' for years this old Happy Eater just off the A24 was a Citroen showroom - https://goo.gl/maps/mVA2xYRXJS82 - now flattened though
Reading wrote: ↑Fri Sep 07, 2018 17:21
talking about car showrooms' for years this old Happy Eater just off the A24 was a Citroen showroom - https://goo.gl/maps/mVA2xYRXJS82 - now flattened though
The showroom belonged to rally driver Malcolm Wilson, who sold SAABs for many years.
Reading wrote: ↑Fri Sep 07, 2018 17:21
talking about car showrooms' for years this old Happy Eater just off the A24 was a Citroen showroom - https://goo.gl/maps/mVA2xYRXJS82 - now flattened though
The showroom belonged to rally driver Malcolm Wilson, who sold SAABs for many years.
Often referred to as Malcolm Wislon after a typo in the car magazine he had a regular column in.
Never knew that and i grew up a couple of miles away - i did know Jackie Stewart had a power boat dealership in Southwater that lost it's roof in a tornado though
We stopped at the ex-LC on the A1 south near Peterborough the other night. I've noticed on passing (at speed) before that it had been rebranded to a Burger King, and the OH wanted something quick before catching a flight. So instead of wasting time by using the Extra services nearby, we pulled in. Sadly it seems that the new owners went so far as to put Burger King signage up outside, but have left it locked and abandoned. A quick read of the notice on the door suggests that they have no timescale for reopening it, if ever.
So regrettably had to brave the queues and grab something at the motorway services instead. We were fairly impressed with the food and speed of service at the OK diner at Stamford when we did the northbound run, but decided not to risk missing our flight. OH still giggles at the number of "Adult Stores" along that road. As a Swede she thought us Brits were more reserved
Tony Alice (they,them)
~~~~~
Owner of a classic rust heap/money pit, and other unremarkable older vehicles.
Usually found with a head in an old map or road atlas.
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