With Nostalgia And A Last Nosh, 1 Of 3 Remaining HoJo's Closes
In the 1960s and '70s, Howard Johnson's restaurants were the biggest chain in the country, with more than 1,000 locations.
Their iconic orange roofs were fixtures of the American highway, beckoning hungry motorists to come and dine at HoJo's, as they were affectionately called. The ultra-dapper Don Draper dines at one location in an episode of Mad Men. At one point, the chain even sold a line of frozen foods.
Now, almost all of the restaurants are gone. One of the three last surviving Howard Johnson's eateries closed its doors yesterday in Lake Placid, N.Y.
The restaurant was going nuts Tuesday as locals crowded in to get a last taste of fried clams or the "wonderful world of 28 flavors" of ice cream that HoJo's ads once boasted.
The Lake Placid HoJo's had been running since April 1956. It stayed strong even as the national brand faltered in the 1980s, falling behind as competition grew, and as other chains introduced fresher, more appealing menus.
The current owner, Ron Butler, worked here for more than a half-century. He had been keeping the Lake Placid HoJo's alive with long hours and help from his sons, Mike and Patrick. "We were here every day, and we took care of business and this was our life," Butler says. "We didn't have another life, right?"
"No," Mike replies with a laugh.
Michael Butler works the counter on the final day of business for a restaurant that opened in 1956.
Mike Butler started working in the kitchen when he was 5 years old. "I'd stand on the milk crates and butter the roll pans and get a quarter or something," he recalls.
Long after the national brand faded, Lake Placid's Howard Johnson's was a place you could bring a hockey team or a big family on a budget. On this last day, two gray-haired businessmen, Robi Politi and Wayne Feinberg, sit at the lunch counter eating clams. They say they came here as boys, then brought their own kids.
"It's a landmark — everyone has good memories," Politi says.
Feinberg adds, "I remember coming to the Friday night fish fry with my parents many, many times when I was little."
The Butlers say they loved being part of the brand and part of this chapter of American life. But after 58 years, they're ready to step away from the restaurant business. It's a tough industry, with long hours and few vacations.
With the closure of this Howard Johnson's restaurant, there are just two of the eateries left in the whole country — one in Lake George, N.Y., and another in Bangor, Maine.
A version of this story first ran on North Country Public Radio.
9(MDE1MTIxMDg0MDE0MDQ3NTY3MzkzMzY1NA001))
Transcript
AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:
Now a little detour down memory lane.
(SOUNDBITE OF HOWARD JOHNSON'S AD)
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Singing) On the road, around the corner - here's the place to go. The orange roof of Howard Johnsons' - join the folks who know.
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: (Singing) Good food, good fun, kids count, too.
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Singing) 28 flavors just for you at Howard Johnson's.
CORNISH: In the 1960s and '70s, Howard Johnson's was the largest restaurant chain in the country - a fixture of the American highway. Now the restaurants are almost all gone. One of the last three surviving Howard Johnson's eateries closed its doors yesterday in Lake Placid, N.Y. North Country Public Radio's Brian Mann was there.
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: I'm coming back for that grilled cheese.
BRIAN MANN, BYLINE: Howard Johnson's is going nuts as locals crowd in to get a last taste of ice cream and fried clams.
MIKE BUTLER: Hey, Dad?
RON BUTLER: Yeah?
M. BUTLER: Could you seat please?
R. BUTLER: Sure.
M. BUTLER: Thank you.
MANN: Mike Butler and his dad Ron are working the floor one last time, greeting customers, doing what they've been doing for half a century.
R. BUTLER: I came to work here for the Brewster girls who built this restaurant in April of 1956.
MANN: That's Ron, he's a big, cheerful guy. A couple of years after starting here as manager, he bought the place. He was here when the chain was huge and when Howard Johnson himself, the guy who started the franchise in the 1920s, was an icon of American business.
R. BUTLER: I knew Mr. Johnson Sr. He passed away in 1975. I can remember this one time all the licensees got together and we bought him a Rolls-Royce, and we rolled it out at the Waldorf Astoria.
(SOUNDBITE OF HOWARD JOHNSON'S AD)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (Singing) The home of good, good food is Howard Johnson's. Now have Howard Johnson's good, good food.
MANN: The good times didn't last. In the 1980s, the chain with its distinctive orange roofs and its 28 flavors of ice cream began to falter, falling behind as competition grew - as other chains introduced fresher, more appealing menus. Until yesterday, this was one of the last three Howard Johnson's restaurants in the country. Ron says he survived as an independent business by putting in long hours and making it a family operation.
R. BUTLER: We were here every day, and we took care of business. And this was our life. We didn't have another life, right?
M. BUTLER: No.
(LAUGHTER)
MANN: Mike Butler says he started working here in the kitchen when he was 5 years old.
M. BUTLER: So I'd stand on a milk crate and butter the roll pans and get a quarter or something and then - a few cents.
R. BUTLER: Yeah, you didn't get much. I wasn't very generous.
(LAUGHTER)
MANN: So long after the national brand faded, Lake Placid's Howard Johnson's was a place you could bring a hockey team or a big family on a budget. On this last day, two gray-haired businessmen, Robi Politi and Wayne Feinberg, sit at the lunch counter eating clams. They say they came here as boys, then brought their own kids.
ROBI POLITI: It's a landmark, everyone has good memories.
WAYNE FEINBERG: I remember coming to the Friday night fish fry with my parents many, many times when I was little.
MANN: But after 58 years, the Butlers say they're ready to step away from the restaurant business. It's a tough industry with long hours and few vacations. Still, they say they loved being part of the brand - part of this chapter of American life.
(SOUNDBITE OF HOWARD JOHNSON'S AD)
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Singing) Next stop.
UNIDENTIFIED MAN: It's Howard's Johnson's for a famous grilled and buttered Frankfurt in a toasted roll.
MANN: With the closure of this Howard Johnson's restaurant, there are just two of the eateries left in the whole country - one in Lake George, N.Y. and another in Bangor, Maine. For NPR News, I'm Brian Mann in Lake Placid, N.Y.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HOWARD JOHNSON'S GOT HIS HO-JO WORKING")
NRBQ: (Singing) Howard Johnson's got his Ho-Jo working, Ho-Jo working on. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
300x250 Ad
300x250 Ad