ronnie_suburban wrote:boudreaulicious wrote:With the way things have been going this year, seeing Barnaby's pop up on the new posts list made my heart race a little. VERY glad to hear the report was good and that it wasn't notification of anything closing!!!
Was also fun to run into your first-ever post here!
=R=
ronnie_suburban wrote: And fwiw, this guy agrees.
I can't believe what I just read. It's been a long time since I had the Niles location and I have long since wrote it off. My brother had it earlier this year and said compared to Northbrook it was s***. Could it have changed that dramatically in a few months? Ronnie, since you also had written them off in the past, why not ask them if they changed anything?ronnie_suburban wrote:Ok, this is going to be a controversial proclamation: Barnaby's Niles may actually be superior to Northbrook. We had another lunch here this week that was every bit as good as the previous one. Yes, 2 lunches is a very small sample size but eat-in over eat-in, at least at the moment, Niles is the better bet. And fwiw, this guy agrees.
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Ram4 wrote:Ronnie, since you also had written them off in the past, why not ask them if they changed anything?
Ram4 wrote:I still haven't been to the Niles location since you mentioned it being really great Ronnie. It has been over 10 years for me. On the other hand I had Barnaby's of Northbrook twice in the last month and both times it was as good as ever.
Panther in the Den wrote:Okay. I figure this might be the place to get a answer?
Which is the first, original location? I suspect it might be closed and lost to history?
I do realize it was a national chain with locations stretching as far as Florida.
I have checked several local websites and Tallahassee and none claim to be the first. I’m sure they would ‘shout it out’. Most claim to be about 50 years old.
Interest generated from a discussion on Facebook...
https://m.facebook.com/groups/242796244 ... ent_filter
Rene G wrote:Panther in the Den wrote:Okay. I figure this might be the place to get a answer?
Which is the first, original location? I suspect it might be closed and lost to history?
I do realize it was a national chain with locations stretching as far as Florida.
I have checked several local websites and Tallahassee and none claim to be the first. I’m sure they would ‘shout it out’. Most claim to be about 50 years old.
Interest generated from a discussion on Facebook...
https://m.facebook.com/groups/242796244 ... ent_filter
Barnaby's Family Inn got its start in 1966 and almost immediately began aggressively franchising. In a 1969 pitch aimed at prospective franchisees they actually claimed to be "the original packaged English pub." I wonder how much truth there is to that interesting claim. At the end of 1969 they had eight locations (three in the city, four in northern suburbs, and one in South Bend) and another 11 under construction. By 1977 they had 26 locations in six states. In 1981 the business was sold to Bally, who hoped to turn it into a food and entertainment concept named Bally's Tom Foolery. I don't believe it was very successful.
I think, but am not certain, the first Barnaby's location was 2832 W Touhy. That was one of the "original eight" (end of 1969) and was the address that handled franchise requests. Also, a 1976 letter to the Tribune referred to it as "home base at Touhy and California."
I hope I didn't simply rehash information from the Facebook link you provided. I wasn't able to access the closed group.
jay2021 wrote:Barnabys Niles is superior to Northbrook.... I've been to both places in the last few weeks and Barnabys Niles wins !!
Yeah, please do.scottsol wrote:jay2021 wrote:Barnabys Niles is superior to Northbrook.... I've been to both places in the last few weeks and Barnabys Niles wins !!
Please elaborate.
Ram4 wrote:Yeah, please do.scottsol wrote:jay2021 wrote:Barnabys Niles is superior to Northbrook.... I've been to both places in the last few weeks and Barnabys Niles wins !!
Please elaborate.
Ram4 wrote:I was at Barnaby's in Niles last week for the second time in the last few months (giving them a fair chance) after many years. It was really mediocre again plus the atmosphere is just not inviting. Crust was too thick, the braided edge was like a huge bland breadstick; sauce and cheese were nothing special. I think the location in South Bend is better than Niles with Arlington Heights being the worst of all. Northbrook stands alone!