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tesg's guide to big chain road food consumption
CHAIN -- Skipper's I've always had a soft spot for Skipper's. They were all over the place in the Northwest in the seventies and eighties. Even when I moved to North Dakota, Fargo had one. So it's been really sad to watch their demise. Herb Rosen founded Skipper’s in Bellevue, Washington in 1969 and grew it to be one of the big players in fast food fish with over 200 locations across the West and Midwest. Fargo, North Dakota even had one. He sold out in 1989 to National Pizza Company, a major Pizza Hut franchisee who eventually also picked up Tony Roma's. Everything pretty much went downhill after that. Paul Baird, who National Pizza brought in to stop the pain, led a management buyout of Skipper's backed by Seattle-based Meridian Capital, an investment banker group who hoped for a short-term turnaround. The new company was called "Seattle Crab Co.", named after a mid-priced seafood concept they developed and launched in an old Skipper's building. A sale to the Arthur Treacher's chain, who once had a prominent presence in Seattle before selling their locations to Ivar's, apparently was proposed but fell through in 1998. Baird exited in 2001. A management group took over ownership in 2002. During the ownership swaps, changes were made to the menu, the most notable being a pricey variety of grilled fish items intended to attract a more upscale and health conscious audience. A new logo (WHY?!?) and design package was launched as well. Some locations were relocated into newer existing buildings (empty Boston Market buildings were always touted as a prime example). Skipper's and Taco Del Mar co-branded a unit for awhile to see what would happen. But the bleeding continued. Stores continued to close, and the locations I visited in recent years were older stores only updated with sloppy paint jobs. In 2006, Skipper's filed for bankruptcy primarily due to unpaid payroll taxes (some fishy accounting...no pun intended...was alleged). In 2007, the court approved Skipper's plan to close 23 of the remaining stores and sell the others. Ten of the units were purchased by former executive vice president and senior director Scott Way, who apparently also holds the franchising rights under his "Starway Restaurants, LLC". The licensed package goods (canned chowder and jarred sauces) were sold and expected to continue, though I haven't seen a single can of chowder available anywhere since. At least one restaurant re-opened as a franchisee under Starway that I can find. The website locator is spotty about its accuracy...at least one location listed there isn't open, and hasn't been since 2007. Skipper’s had a pretty good fish menu, but it was pricey and quality was inconsistent. I couldn't get out of there under $10, and that was just for fish, chips, chowder, and a drink. The traditional mystery white fish was available in breaded or battered form and was really really good. Salmon and halibut were on the menu, as well as shrimp, prawns, and clams. They also had a “breaded chicken tenderloin”...a nicely seasoned crunchy chicken fillet. Sides included the usual suspects...fries, hush puppies, and cole slaw...plus baked potatoes and salads. Upscale items like salmon or chicken Caesar salad came and went. All of it was cooked or fried to order. Most locations offered an all-you-can-eat platter or even an all-you-can-eat chowder bowl. The award-winning chowder was distinct, a favorite among patrons. Skipper's sold the chowder in a condensed canned version for years before a heat-and-eat version replaced it a couple of years back. Amazingly, the latter was pretty true to the restaurant chowder. Unfortunately, it had 12 GRAMS OF TRANS FAT PER CAN. At least when I bought it, anyway. Skipper's tartar and cocktail sauces have been widely available in supermarkets for years...but I've never seen grocers carry the canned chowder. That was only available in the restaurants. It's still unclear just how standardized or unique the independent Skipper's will be. The location I go to no longer offers the battered fish, even though they were handing out coupons that offered it. The chicken was replaced by generic chicken strips much like the ones Hardee's/Carl's Jr sells. And Skipper's original chowder was replaced with a generic restaurant chowder for awhile, though it's since returned. Without Skipper's chowder, they might as well have changed the name of the place.
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