Roy Rogers Making a Comeback

Roy and woodgrain at Key Bridge, Arlington, sometime in the groovin Nixon era.

It was the Chipotle of the 1970s. A fast food brand started by Marriott, Roy Rogers almost went by the wayside, but then the wayside of the New Jersey Turnpike kept the brand visible, and it lived.

The idea was simple. Serve better ingredients than the normal fast food restaurant, allow people to put their own stuff on the hamburger at a “fixins bar” with lettuce, tomato and mayo and serve a few other things than burgers, including chicken and roast beef. Give the brand the wholesome image of Roy Rogers himself, who was trustworthy, American and safe.

Pictured here, I took a Vintage Cam app photo of Roy visiting the Key Bridge Marriott, back in the 1970s. And yes, he is standing next to a Ford LTD Country Squire, with wood grain.It grew out of the original Marriott chain, Hot Shoppes, and found a strong niche in the 70s and 80s. Marriott eventually sold the chain to focus on its hotels, and the fast food company went downhill quickly. By the 1990s, it seemed to only survive on turnpikes in the Northeast, though some stores continued to be open. Eventually, it was owned by Hardee’s, which was ruined too, and they sold it, thankfully.

Currently, the company is owned by Plamondon Hospitality Partners of Maryland. Owners Jim and Pete Plamondon’s father was an original franchisee, and they are now reviving the brand. In addition to Roy Rogers, they still own some Marriott franchises. This means that they have some integrity, and I would bet on them. They recently opened their 49th restaurant  in Winchester, Virginia, and are aiming to build to 100. I should think this would be a good franchise to buy, with owners who know, love and are invested in the brand. In addition, because it is not a super-sexy franchise, it would be a very good time to get in.

The chain is now courting franchisees more aggressively, including advertising in The Wall Street Journal.

Fast food revivals can work, but it is a slog. International House of Pancakes revived itself, but the last time I went, it was back to the frightening sort of place one might frightening people, a sort of quickly gussied up Steak ‘n Egg kitchen. An original Howard Johnson’s is opening, and that has a very good chance. The A&W revival worked, which is particularly apropos to this story because the Marriotts got their start with an A&W franchise, eventually dropping the brand (which failed as a chain) and then moving onto Hot Shoppes and then creating Marriott’s hotel brand family.

Below, a vintage 1978 ad:

Author

  • Garland Pollard

    J. Garland Pollard IV is editor/publisher of BrandlandUSA. Since 2006, the website BrandlandUSA.com has chronicled the history and business of America’s great brands.

7 Comments

  1. These iPhones are so annoying, I don’t mean robot I mean “Roy Rogers”…….
    I’m glad they’re rebuilding this company again

  2. I remember the last robot years in New York City the closedown years ago it was located directly across from Penn station at 32nd and seventh Avenue on the north east corner

  3. I LOVED RoyRogers..used to be 1 in VA beach,good tasting burgers and the fixin’s bar was GREAT! you could add your preffered toppings to YOUR LIKING.Sure have missed them!!!

  4. Great burgers and the fixing bar was the bomb!!!!!!!

  5. Roy Rogers coming back? Best fried chicken of all of them. Can’t wait.

  6. Fresh sliced roast beef? I’ll be allowed to put my own “fixins” on my burger instead of scrapping half of them off? What’s next; French fries that taste good? Maybe this will be wake up call to McD’s and they will return to their menu of 20 years ago, realizing that we want food that tastes good instead of flavorless food that is good for you.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *