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You can't even talk about Roy Rogers and Arby's in the same sentence (though I know you just did ). Arby's can't even begin to touch Roy's.
Shoney's is a restaurant in search of an identity. Time was, their spaghetti with meat sauce and garlic bread was the gold standard. Now they do some kind of baked thing. No thanks. Bob Evans has a similar problem. They don't know what they want to be, and end up being a little bit of everything to everybody. As with Shoney's spaghetti, time was, Bob's breakfast was the gold standard. It may still be.
I wouldn't mind seeing a Big Boy open around here. They were always good. Denny's, prepared right and served timely, is also very good for what it is. My son and I suffered from abysmally slow service the last few times we went to the US 21 Flying J location, and the last time, it was so bad, we walked out without having been able to order --- and were STILL charged for our drinks! I was so put out with them, that I contacted corporate. $20 gift certificates in the mail, as a courtesy, would have been nice, but no. Thankfully that is not your typical Denny's.
Yes Shoney's lost identity when they left Big Boy and has never recovered. No more classic Big Boy burger, and the other menu items have changed. Although they may still have the hot fudge cake and the breakfast bar. But most locations have closed and some suffer quality control issues.
And yes, Roy Rogers offers real roast beef sliced fresh, and topped with au jus sauce. Then you can go to the Fixin's Bar and add horseradish, lettuce, tomato or other toppings as desired. Arby's is a processed loaf of mush that is microwaved and masquerades as slices of roast beef stacked on a sandwich. No where near the quality of Roy Rogers. But many under 35 only know of Arby's as the roast beef sandwich restaurant, and are not even familiar with Roy Rogers unless they are from the Mid Atlantic or Northeast and may have heard their parents talk about it.
Hardee's brought back their roast beef sandwich about a year ago, and it does not taste bad but is still not on the level of Roy Rogers. But some Hardee's still serve fried chicken as a holdover from the Roy Rogers merger, but only select franchise locations with the nearest apparently being in Swansea, SC.
Another thought. What about a Culver's for Columbia? They are quite good and known for Butter burgers and custard style ice cream. They have locations in Charlotte and Greenville.
Yes Shoney's lost identity when they left Big Boy and has never recovered. No more classic Big Boy burger, and the other menu items have changed. Although they may still have the hot fudge cake and the breakfast bar. But most locations have closed and some suffer quality control issues.
The HFC was always the bomb (though Rush's does a good job considering it is fast food), and there is nothing quite like the Shoney's breakfast bar. I always liked their salad bar too, especially the cabbage soup, pure poetry in a bowl.
The last time I was at Shoney's, was at Lugoff over a year ago, when I was out there on some business. I had chicken and sides from their dinner buffet. It was OK but nothing especially good. When indoor dining is once again feasible, I wouldn't mind trying their breakfast bar, if they have one. Ditto for Garners Ferry.
If I can get in yet another plug for Jimmy's Mart (Two Notch near Sesqui, truly God's country ), their breakfast is amazing, and very reasonably priced. They bake their bacon, which is possibly the best way to serve bacon. The biscuits, though probably frozen (they taste just like Grands), are excellent. And they give you more gravy than you could possibly eat with one biscuit, I normally have to add an extra one when I get home (Grands in the oven), or save half of the gravy until the next day, depending on how hungry I am that morning.
I wonder if Shake Shack would consider locating in Columbia? They have several locations in Charlotte now and are performing very well. They are good but a bit pricey.
I wonder if Shake Shack would consider locating in Columbia? They have several locations in Charlotte now and are performing very well. They are good but a bit pricey.
Don't know. Columbia can be a quirky demographic. Keep in mind, too, that Columbia is an incredibly sprawling place, Northeast is pretty much its own critter, as is the Harbison/Irmo area. It basically functions as at least four separate cities (and I use "city" in the loose sense to take in urbanized county areas), downtown/Eau Claire, Devine/Garners Ferry, Northeast, and Harbison/Irmo/St Andrews. Forest Drive/Arcadia Lakes are also kind of world unto themselves. Northeast is probably the most "transplant-rich" part of the Columbia area, lots of ex-Northerners, retired military, and two fairly large Catholic parishes, which is probably a pretty good barometer of how prevalent that non-natives are (our family included in this, though we go to St Peter's downtown at the moment, they have also begun offering the Traditional Latin Mass at Our Lady of the Lake in Chapin, which we will attend when our family circumstances allow it).
Don't know. Columbia can be a quirky demographic. Keep in mind, too, that Columbia is an incredibly sprawling place, Northeast is pretty much its own critter, as is the Harbison/Irmo area. It basically functions as at least four separate cities (and I use "city" in the loose sense to take in urbanized county areas), downtown/Eau Claire, Devine/Garners Ferry, Northeast, and Harbison/Irmo/St Andrews. Forest Drive/Arcadia Lakes are also kind of world unto themselves. Northeast is probably the most "transplant-rich" part of the Columbia area, lots of ex-Northerners, retired military, and two fairly large Catholic parishes, which is probably a pretty good barometer of how prevalent that non-natives are (our family included in this, though we go to St Peter's downtown at the moment, they have also begun offering the Traditional Latin Mass at Our Lady of the Lake in Chapin, which we will attend when our family circumstances allow it).
Shake shack could move into one of the open spots in the vista once the Cambria is further along a few months
There will be enough hotel walk by traffic to sustain it
If not a Topgolf at least a Drive Shack. It's a Topgolf alternative.
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). Arby's can't even begin to touch Roy's. 
), their breakfast is amazing, and very reasonably priced. They bake their bacon, which is possibly the best way to serve bacon. The biscuits, though probably frozen (they taste just like Grands), are excellent. And they give you more gravy than you could possibly eat with one biscuit, I normally have to add an extra one when I get home (Grands in the oven), or save half of the gravy until the next day, depending on how hungry I am that morning.
