We’ve Solved The Empty Restaurant Problem

We've got an empty restaurant problem. Lots of buildings that once housed fine eating establishments just sitting empty. Roly Poly sat empty for almost two years until Tacos Ink moved in. Rizzo's is going on a year and a half and we just got word about the Mexican restaurant going in there.

In order to speed up this whole process and get some good eats in our town, Sam, Ben, and myself had a For Entertainment Purposes Only brainstorm session to figure out which restaurants should go into which locations. So here's our in no way official, for entertainment purposes only proposal. Someone with more money and/or connections than us should take this list and put it into action. Again... for entertainment purposes only.

Goodcents in the old Panera Location

Panera didn't leave, it just moved slightly forward. But that leaves a small empty space that's perfect for sandwich prep, so our vote goes to Goodcents Subs. The sandwiches are delicious. Sam and I both agree they're streets ahead of Subway and Jimmy Johns. It's the perfect location. There's no reason why it shouldn't go there.

Portillo's in the old Ruby Tuesday

We said Goodbye Ruby Tuesday in our finest Dartford, UK accents all the way back on May 18th, 2016, and it's finally time for the one restaurant that everyone, including various polls we've run, agrees upon to open some doors here in Quincy. And that's Portillo's. Like Goodcents in Panera, it's the perfect location, with the perfect sized space.

Lion's Choice in the old Imo's Pizza

Imo's Pizza was a St. Louis transplant that vacated about a month ago, so Ben suggested another St. Louis transplant move on in, with Lion's Choice. They've got the roast beef that is apparently to die for, according to Ben. I don't know, I haven't had it. As a substitute if Lion's Choice doesn't want to venture this far outside the St. Louis Metro Area is the Pita Pit. That place is delicious and healthy.

White Castle to the 12th & Jefferson Hardee's

We may never know why that Hardee's closed. Or maybe we already do, and I'm just tardy to the party on finding out. But I don't think it was necessarily location, more so proximity to two other Hardee's locations that may have done it in. We were flush with Hardee's. We are not flush White Castle sliders, so that gets our vote.

Red Lobster to the Long John Silver's vacant lot

Long John Silver's sat empty for over three years before they unceremoniously tore it down. I think we should keep the seafood motif, but class it up a bit with some Red Lobster. To paraphrase Homer Simpson, "Mmmmmmm.... Cheddar Bay Biscuits.... *dools*"

And to paraphrase Damien as Santa in Mean Girls, "And none for Chick-Fil-A, BYE!"