Damon’s Grill
Wow, there sure are a lot of stores that got their start in Columbus, Ohio! This was also the case for Damon’s Grill. First founded in the state capital, it eventually spread and had 140 locations in the eastern United States as well as the United Kingdom. The casual dining restaurant chain was known to be a part steak-and-barbecue place and part sports bar. It suffered a blow after its competitors improved their menus by offering more variety than one would find at Damon’s. It filed for bankruptcy in 2009, made a comeback, and dwindled away once more. There are only three restaurants in the US at this point.
Damon’s Grill
Ollie’s Trolley
John Y. Brown Jr. was best known as the man who developed Col. Harland Sanders’ Kentucky Friend Chicken into a huge national chain. In the ‘70s, he tried to do this with the spiced burger he discovered at a North Miami Beach restaurant. The story has it that he told Oliver Gliechenhaus, the inventor of the burger, that he was about to become “bigger than the Colonel.” When 1976 rolled in, there were nearly a hundred locations of the streetcar-themed restaurant all over the country. Unfortunately, the burgers did not make it big, and the restaurants had been too small to come with drive-thrus. In those days, customers wanted to simply get their food and eat elsewhere. Despite this, there are still three locations. You can find them in Cincinnati, Louisville, and Washington, D.C.
Ollie’s Trolley
