Don't know what this portends...

"Cheeseburger in Paradise" which, though it says it's owned by JB, is actually owned by OUTBACK INC. - the unstoppable megalith of chain restaurants. Maybe it's a partnership or something. Whatever.

So today I hear in Tampa, home of OUTBACK INC. - the most insidious flavor purveyor this side of Pizza Hut, that OUTBACK INC. - Faux Fine Dining for Twenty-Somethings, is going to dump the "Cheeseburger in Paradise" chain.

Wind in My Sales indeed.

They can dump it now since they went private last year. And so they are. Word is it's a money drain.

This, along with the string of Trader Vics closings and the other "Islandy - themed" efforts going the way of Space Food Sticks, makes me wonder if the SpongeBob Generation will grow up in time to save any of it?

I know that uke sales are up. That's a good thing. Luaus are still a popular theme for a party. Hawai'i will soon have condo-to-condo walkways completely around each island so that no one will ever have to touch that yucky sand or that nasty salt water. Yep.

Just musing about the transient nature of cultural imprinting.

From Cheeseburger In Paradise to Trader Vic's to Space Food Sticks to SpongeBob to condos in Hawaii... Just what the hell are you trying to say pablus?!? :)

Why it's perfectly clear to anyone who burnt out all of their synapses from 1982-1998.

Thank God I only learned what orgeat was in 2000 else I'd make even less sense.

I'm just awash in the foam of sub-cultures and their brevity.

I really need a trip to the Mai Kai and Forbidden Island... in the same day.

Well, at least I learned that uke sales are up!

Re-trends never last as long as the original, but the cycles have gotten shorter, too. It took about 25 years for Tiki to be "in" again. IF it's dying right now, it should be back in ten years or less. The collective attention span mirrors the collective memory.

Classic Silver Line Boats

[ Edited by: SilverLine 2008-02-16 16:49 ]

Styles and trends which are proximal, like tiki and "tropical," should be kept separate, in line with the saying, "good fences make good neighbors." However I think it's fun to mix heretofore unrelated things, for example, tiki and the '70s custom van craze. The latter of which is, just you wait, poised to stage a dramatic comeback, despite the doubts raised here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/10/14/DDGEOF7FB01.DTL

By the way (and to be a bit more on-topic), I think the Margaritaville brand is going gangbusters. Pruning a losing branch of an otherwise thriving empire isn't a sign of weakness. Then again, my info and premise could be wrong here -- it's not like I have inside information. In fact I'll bet they fret about demographics -- the name resonates mostly with a graying segment. Will the well run dry in a decade or two, with the young and hip driving past boarded up Margaritaville cafes (in their custom vans!) saying, "Jimmy Who? Marga-what?"?

Margaritaville Casino going up in Biloxi though -- JV with Harrah's.

Mmmmmm...

Outbacks I've been too seem to attract the older, comfort-food-but-not-ready-for-the-all-you-can-eat-buffet crowd. their comp store sales are way down.

The Cheeseburger In Paradise in Bloomington, Indiana does well with the college kids and their parents. (I've a daughter in school there working at CiP part time. The other ones I've been to in the midwest don't seem to be very busy.

I don't know much about style trends, (rather obvious, don't you think), but large restaurant chains are run as serious businesses; opened, closed or sold based on the numbers. Darden Restaurants closed all those Smokey Bones restaurants and empty they sit until they finish selling them off in one big lot.

Local restaurants are often run with personal pride and passion. Which can be the wrong reasons to start a business venture. But when a local restaurant finds its audience, it's awesome!

Good insights Bongo Bungalow. I wonder what percentage of the college kids know/care about the song by the same name and its author's association with modern generic tropicana.

By the way, above I wrote:
**
Styles and trends which are proximal, like tiki and "tropical," should be kept separate, in line with the saying, "good fences make good neighbors."
**
I guess I meant kept conceptually separate, definition-wise, though in practice tiki decor tends to be cohabitate with generically tropical elements all the time, as has been discussed at length here on TC, most recently here:
http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=27357&forum=1&23

On 2008-02-17 04:20, Bongo Bungalow wrote:
Darden Restaurants closed all those Smokey Bones restaurants and empty they sit until they finish selling them off in one big lot.

But not the first one they opened, which is about 15 minutes from my house. It's still open and thriving. (Darden headquarters is in Orlando, btw.) But with my warped mind, everytime I go there, I look around at the stone walls and its exposed beam ceiling and semi-dark interior and think "With some work, this would make a great Trader Vic's!"

Sorry, off topic, I guess.

I don't think it portends anything other than crappy restaurants fail - I have had some marginal to appalling meals at Cheeseburger in Paradise - bland burgers, soggy fries, uncaring servers, pigeons flying around inside the dining area. Fun concept, poorly executed. Maybe some of the outlets have better control over their quality, and a new owner can spread what's right throughout the chain.

On 2008-02-15 18:29, pablus wrote:

Why it's perfectly clear to anyone who burnt out all of their synapses from 1982-1998.

Thank God I only learned what orgeat was in 2000 else I'd make even less sense.

I'm just awash in the foam of sub-cultures and their brevity.

I really need a trip to the Mai Kai and Forbidden Island... in the same day.

Sorry, Most of my synapses were totally charred by 1971. What the heck is this thread about anyway??

Brady

I've never been in a "Cheeseburger In Paradise" franchise, but I have been to the place that inspired the song. JB hangs out in St Barth's a lot; it's where his yacht, the Continental Drifter and his sloop, the Groovy, spend their time, and he is quite visible there. The place in question is called Le Select, and in the town of Gustavia, which is full of super expensive boutiques and restaurants, this is the only cheap place, and it's known for its cheeseburgers and the cocktails, which are inexpensive, and potent, mixed by skilled bartenders who don't skimp. Le Select is right in the middle of everything, half a block from the dock where the megayachts all tie up, and in the other direction, where the Luis Vuiton store is. If you are in search of the local color, the scum and villainy, they are all at Le Select. It is hard for me to imagine franchising this place. It's not that the food is great, or that the drinks are unique, it's that you won't find this stuff anywhere else on this island. Here in the US, you will find that sort of thing, so it's the context that's important there, or the lyric itself, which does not sell burgers, especially if they are crap.

I forgot.

But I love that thread about Sven's house in that magazine.

I know Sven.
I've dined and drank with Sven.
And Chris Sullivan, you're no Sven Kirsten!

(cue appluase and nomination music)

Using up bandwidth(s) that even anatomically correct dolls and uke-porn can't use,
pablus

I thought this thread was about the '70s custom van craze. Oh yeah, I just tried to steer it there but no one wanted to go there apparently. Bummer.

Anyway, the thing about, um, that song is that

1. It's the most annoying song in the history of the world! It combines a jarring rhythm with a jarring melody, with a jarringly shrieking vocalization. And yet,
2. It begins with quite witty lyrics:
   **
   Tried to amend my carnivorous habits.
   Made it nearly seventy days,
   Losin' weight without speed, eatin' sunflower seeds,
   Drinkin' lots of carrot juice and soakin' up rays.
   But at night I'd have these wonderful dreams
   Some kind of sensuous treat.
   Not zucchini, fettuccini, or bulgur wheat,
   But a big warm bun and a huge hunk of meat.
   **
   I mean, who can't relate to that? Still, the song is on balance an abomination, and I'm not even of the anti-JB inclination.

I think Kon Tiki Tucson needs to aquire the JB/Cheese spots.

Would be awesome!!!

But, how could we clone Louie??