Nasty food anyway, if you could even call it that

We checked out on Friendly’s about 3 years ago. Their menu prices went up for mediocre food and the ice cream was pumped with so much air I half expected it to float away. A company can’t cut so many corners and expect people to still show up.

The icecream goes in a glass sunda dish. The only reason it is ‘pumped with air’ is so all the toppings people get on their sunda will actually go to the bottom of the dish and not stay on the top. Personally I think their food is very good. At the store near me they always have a half hour to an hour wait because they are just that good. You cannot take one poor experience at the store you went too and feel all the other stores are the same. The store can only run as good as its staff. Friendlys is actually really tasty and extremely cheap. They have a five dollar menu now and kids eat for a 1.99 on Wednesday. You can take a family out to eat for barely anything.

You get rid of their best ice cream flavor(rocky road) and they go right down the toilet, go figure!?

Perfect example of corporate takeovers ruining a good thing, ruining the product to make a profit and in the end getting a lot of people unemployed.

I used to stop at many different branches while on the road and at home. The food went down hill and I stopped eating there after the stopped doing their burgers anything but well done and rubbery. I stopped getting ice cream there after they jacked up the prices higher than any of the local places

When they redid some of the locations it was for the worse. Instead of the former open and ” friendly” they seemed to eliminate many of the booths and the seating seemed isolated. The take out counter was too small and there was very little room for getting ice cream and people coming to pay.

Perfect example of people coming in and buying a business only to make themselves a profit and really having no clue of what they are doing and running it into the ground. They may blame it on the bad economic times but getting an ice cream cone should have been something inexpensive to lift the spirits but that doesn’t happen when you jack the prices way up.

They also seemed to have closed some of the best locations in eastern MA.

What Friendlies was was great burgers, great krinkle fries and great ice cream at a reasonable price. All of the food items were good. I started eating there in 1966 so I know what they were- the corporations that bought them never had a clue and never were as good. The last bunch pretty much flushed it down the toilet. Who’s idea was it anyway to ged rid of Toasted Almond Fudge anyway?

so many fond memories throughout my youth of the Friendly’s eatery. I am glad I was able to experience it.

I am saddened also by the loss of this eatery. But as pointed out earlier the quality was cut long ago. I will never forgot when they started giving half cherries on the sundaes and the cheapest cherries with no flavor. Whipped cream with no taste and charging for nuts. This is an Ice Cream place. They should of kept things simple and never mind the dinners for $10. The one here in Fitchburg was the worst Friendly’s ever. Too bad.

Where the heck am I going to get a Reese’s Pieces Sundae now?????

This is a bunch of Bologna! They’re closing the Billerica store, NO WAY!!!!! It is always packed and busy and the staff is AWESOME!!!!! The AG should look into this, this has scam written all over it. Wall Street Greed trying to destroy anoher New England Icon!!!!!

You’re going to see a lot more eateries going under in this totalitarian economy.
It’s going to be a big time hurt for the people of massachusetts seeing it’s one of our biggest industries.

THE ONE IN SUDBURY IS STILL OPEN. MY DAUGHTER WORKS THERE .THE FOOD IS GOOD,

Started going to Friendly’s over 50 years ago. My kids went and then my grandchildren. Although I agree the food is not what is was, and they could have stayed out of the meal business I found this a decent local alternative to other fast food hamburger places such as McDonalds, Wendys, Burger King. I think the meat beinging cooked more well done was not them but the fact that almost no where can you get a rare hamburger anymore with the threat of food born illness. At least the one in Holden is still open.

omg i love Friendly’s sosososo much it’s the only ice cream place near me I don’t want it to close! :(

It is a sign of the times in Massachusetts. More businesses will close, too, I’m afraid.

Folks don’t have money to spend as it is, and if they do splurge, there has to be value.

Friendly’s was acquired by Sun Capital Partners in Aug 2007, a merger was just approved this past Aug 2011. Buyouts, takeovers and corporate mergers are the end of small family owned business, and the business many people remember.

Personally I’m not a big fan of Friendly’s – I don’t find the service level to be only enough so I don’t get up and walk out the times I’ve actually eaten in any of the locations.

However, they do have their good points … for example the one in Gardner is doing a benefit tonight between 5 & 8 and A percentage of all sales will be donated by Friendly’s to support the programs and services offered by MVOC.

i went to friendley’s sunday with the grandchildren……. it was excellent

I beleive it depends on which resturaunt you visit,, I have been to many and only go back to a few,, What I am totally surprised by is them closing ones that do a wonderful job , are packed all the timne and in areas which gets tons of traffic.. The hanover mall one is closing and it is always filled every day every weekend its packed and itwould have been so busy this christmas as it has been for decades… I am so glad I have took my kid to them and welove the food.. thankfully many will stay open, sadly so many will be out of work, I hope they find something real soon. Bring back the lemon merienge ice cream it was so good. many still have the3 walk up window to get food and ice cream.. Maybe the corporate greedy employee’s need to take a huge pay cut and stop bleeding the company dry… maybe things would work out better… givetothe waitress, cooks, those that truely put their heart & soul into their work to make their resturant good.. Too many get raked over the coals and made to work far to hard to gain revenue for corporate monguls,,,,,, it needs to change to make it better.

Sad day! Friendly’s is one of the few good things about this God-forsaken part of the country. The other good thing is that the NY Yankees visit here for several games a year.

Another business down the tubes, and more jobs lost. Thank God the gov and his buddy are working on getting us some jobs real soon. It will be real soon won’t it????4 more years!!!!

Friendlies isn’t so friendly anymore! The CEO’s might take advice from Mitt Rommey on filing bankruptcy and restructuring their business. Close some, lay off workers, keep workers benefits, giving short notices and than try to sell whatever they can to recoup their failed CEO’s mistakes.
It isn’t the workers who work at pi-on wages and need to manage on tips to survive that brings this downfall. I don’t believe those 1% er’ s at the top of friendly’s will suffer any monetary loss and will continue to collect in their wages and reap in their bonus’s. Those who have be fortunate to keep their jobs will not agree to this post but am happy for them that they have work. but they must realize that they too could see the hand writing on the wall.
Good luck to those who have retained their jobs and to those who got caught in whiplash and now needs to seek new employment.

I hardly comment, however after looking at a few of the comments here %BLOGTITLE%. I actually do have 2 questions for you if you do not mind. Is it only me or do a few of these remarks come across like they are written by brain dead visitors? :-P And, if you are posting at additional places, I’d like to follow you. Could you list of every one of your social sites like your linkedin profile, Facebook page or twitter feed?