You every been to Shoney's? It's a restaurant chain, but it's not everywhere. There are Shoney's restaurants in 20 states, mostly in the South, but there are some up north (Michigan, Maryland, Ohio, Indiana) and some out west (Utah, New Mexico).If you live somewhere that doesn't have a Shoney's, maybe you're familiar with Big Boy. The guy that started Shoney's, Alex Schoenbaum, had franchise rights for Big Boy in the southeastern U.S. So, around here, Shoney's and Big Boy were one in the same.
We lived in a small town in Southeast Georgia. There wasn't a Shoney's. There was a Dairy Queen. And later, a Tastee-Freez. I could probably write a whole bunch about those two places. And probably will. But not today.
Today, it's Shoney's.
When we was little, if we went to Shoney's, it was a big deal, because that meant we had gone somewhere like Savannah, or more likely, Brunswick.
Brunswick meant we had either gone to the beach at Jekyll Island (back before they charged you to get on the island) or to the mall (probably shopping for clothes at Belk's).
When a family of five or six (depending on who all went) went off for something like that, there's gonna be eating involved. And you might as well eat fancy. And that meant Shoney's.
They had some good hamburgers at the Shoney's. And some good desserts. I got no idea what else used to be on the menu, because I never ordered anything else. I don't think I ever saw a menu. Just told my mama what I wanted and she told the waitress.
Well, Shoney's is still around. There ain't no Big Boy out front any more. They got little Shoney Bears for sale inside. But they still got pretty good burgers.
And they got them a spokesman named Jeff Foxworthy. You remember him. He's currently riding a wave of new popularity with the Blue Collar Comedy Tour being so big and all. But, he's really hit the big time now, what with being the face of Shoney's.
If your face has replaced Big Boy as the image of a restaurant chain, you might be a redneck.
But, the food's still pretty good. But I don't like where lots of the places have the smoking section. Some got it in the front of the restaurant. Which means non-smokers got to walk through a cancer cloud just to sit down to eat.
Despite that, it's still a good place to eat. And this past weekend, me and this woman I'm living with went to Shoney's. Now, I know how to show a woman a good time, I'm here to tell you. We even ate off the menu and not the buffet. Yep, I treated her to someone actually bringing the food to her. Nothing but the best for my lady.
And as we was leaving, there was more folks coming in. Seems like others know how to show women a good time. They was dressed up with shirts and everything. They even had on their best flip-flops.
Shoney's. Good eatin'.
Dadgum, Cousin Red, you must be a over-the-road driver or sumpin to afford Shoney's.
ReplyDeleteWhat are you talking about? There's enough Shoney's around that you ain't got to eat in the same one twice if you don't want to! And the cashier's always on the phone and you can just walk right on out.
ReplyDeleteBesides, they change staff every two months, so won't nobody recognize you when you go back.
Ya can't beat them steak fingers, white gravy, hashrounds and blueberry muffins on that breakfast buffet. And them waitresses in them skirts and aprons look mighty fine too. :)
ReplyDeleteThis one time, my buddy and I were in there, and we was oglin' this one waitress..mm, she was a fine filly. Her little hiney looked like two kittens wrasslin' under a blanket when she walked.
Then her shift ended,and they sent us a new waitress. I swear, her hind end looked like two hogs fightin' over a slop trough. It weren't purty. But I still like Shoney's, anyhoo.
Hey, I know that place!
ReplyDelete