1980s Restaurants That Are Almost Lost to History

The 1980s were a remarkable era for family-friendly dining in America. Numerous restaurants flourished during this time, with a multitude of corporate and franchised locations springing up across the country. However, as locally owned boutique restaurants gain popularity in cities nationwide, chain restaurants seem to be dwindling.

Even in 2025, many popular restaurant chains have filed for bankruptcy. On the Border, a Tex-Mex chain that first opened in 1982, closed over 70 locations earlier this year after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Bar Louie, a popular gastropub, filed for bankruptcy for the second time in March of 2025.

If you grew up in the 1980s or were raising a family of your own during that time, you might remember some of the iconic restaurants that have started to disappear. Here are seven 1980s restaurants that enjoyed their heyday in the 1980s but are now nearly lost to history.

This post was updated in September 2025 to include updated information about some of the restaurants that were popular in the 1980s.

Steak & Ale

Founded in 1966 by Norman Brinker
Filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2008 and closed for good
Had as many as 280 locations in the 1980s
Announced in April 2024 that Steak & Ale is being revived

Howard Johnson's

Began as a drug store/soda fountain
The first restaurant was opened in 1929 by 32-year-old Howard Deering Johnson
HoJo's was the largest American restaurant chain in the 1950s and '60s, with more than 1,000 restaurants by 1979
Today, after multiple company ownership changes, there are no Howard Johnson's restaurants still in operation. The last location, in Lake George, New York, closed in 2022

Bonanza Steakhouse

Founded in 1963 by Dan Blocker, who played "Hoss" on the show Bonanza
First location opened in Westport, Connecticut
Peaked in 1989 with nearly 600 locations
As of April 2024, only three Bonanza locations remain in the U.S.

D'Lites

Founded in 1978 in Norcross, GA
Brought a nutritious flavor to fast food
More than 100 stores open by 1985
By the end of 1986, all were closed due to bankruptcy, caused in large part by the fact that other fast food restaurants began offering more nutritious options

Chi-Chi's

Founded in Richfield, MN, in 1975
The co-founder's wife's nickname was Chi Chi
Rose in popularity in the 1980s, and had 210 locations by 1995
Filed for bankruptcy in October 2003
In November 2003, Chi-Chi's had the largest hepatitis A outbreak in American history