Roy Rogers Roast Beef

[BBatesokc]

"Howdy Partner" and "Happy Trails" --- those two lines will haunt me forever! And those damn wooden coins. I worked at the Roy Rogers on 39th street when I was a young teen.

[ctchandler]

Gjl,
Roy Rogers capitalized on some really bad publicity when a federal group (FDA, FTC?) found that Arby's roast beef wasn't roast beef, it was reconstituted roast beef. Not bad, actually tasted good, but truth in advertising kind of got in the way. Roy Rogers expanded rapidly during that time because their roast beef was what they advertised. I don't remember why RR left the state, they seemed to be busy. Probably mis-management of the overall RR brand (pun intended) country wide. Looks like they are only in Md, Va, Pa, and WV. Too bad.
C. T.

Roy Rogers roast beef looked and tasted like real roast beef. The stuff Arbys tries to pass off as roast beef reminds me of that cheap Buddig lunch meat in the stores. The cheapest of the cheap lunch meat. I call it plastic roast beef.

[SoonerDave]

Remember the RR over on 59th and Blackwelder...ate there a lot back in the day. I just can't get into Arby's much. Their roast beef sandwiches have this funky......flavor.....that just kinda makes me curl up my lip and wish I were somewhere else. They used to have a decent roast chicken club sandwich, and some italian-style subs, but they (of course) discontinued them, so I just don't have much reason to go to Arby's anymore.

I do remember that RR and Hardee's were comingled in the NE around Maryland many years ago...don't know if that's still the case. The funny thing I remember is that in that part of the country, Dr. Pepper is virtually unheard of, so when I walked in and ordered a burger and a DP, they looked at me like I had four eyeballs, and said "What's a Dr. Pepper," and when I said "Seriously?" I gave up...

I mean, okay, some drinks are regional, less popular in some areas than others, but good grief, Dr. Pepper is pretty well known...or at least I sure thought it was....

[bluedogok]

Dr. Pepper is in worldwide distribution now, probably expanded even more since the Cadbury-Schweppes takeover and subsequent spin off of the brand into the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group. I even found some in Tokyo in 1996.

[ctchandler]

Actually, I lived in Maryland on the Pennsylvania border (Cascade, Md.) from 1965 till 1968 and they had Dr. Pepper, it just wasn't very popular. Probably because of the distribution. I don't remember if they had Mr. Pibb or not, which is a soft drink that tastes a lot like Dr. Pepper. I don't remember any Roy Rogers restaurants in the area, but there may have been some.
C. T.

[Steve]

Gjl,
Roy Rogers capitalized on some really bad publicity when a federal group (FDA, FTC?) found that Arby's roast beef wasn't roast beef, it was reconstituted roast beef. Not bad, actually tasted good, but truth in advertising kind of got in the way. Roy Rogers expanded rapidly during that time because their roast beef was what they advertised. I don't remember why RR left the state, they seemed to be busy. Probably mis-management of the overall RR brand (pun intended) country wide. Looks like they are only in Md, Va, Pa, and WV. Too bad.
C. T.

Roy Rogers met the same fate as Howard Johnson's - both were owned and controlled by Marriott, and then sold off too new owners who ruined the brand (with Roy Rogers, it was the company that owns Hardee's and Carl's Jr.). Several years ago the surviving franchisees managed to escape from the inept corporate set-up, went out on their own, and they appear to be making a better go of it than a similar attempt once made by surviving Howard Johnson's franchisees (to my knowledge, there is just one or two HJs left). What's sad for me is that HJ and Roy Rogers were the two places my grandmother loved to take me to as a kid, and I can't share the experience of those memories with my kids.

[mkjeeves]

Double R burger on 23rd. Yum.

right after cashing my paycheck at citizens

[SoonerDave]

Actually, I lived in Maryland on the Pennsylvania border (Cascade, Md.) from 1965 till 1968 and they had Dr. Pepper, it just wasn't very popular. Probably because of the distribution. I don't remember if they had Mr. Pibb or not, which is a soft drink that tastes a lot like Dr. Pepper. I don't remember any Roy Rogers restaurants in the area, but there may have been some.
C. T.

I don't think Mr. Pibb, a Coke-created Dr. Pepper knockoff, has been around much more than a decade or two. Soft drink buff might prove me wrong, but I think Coke made Mr. Pibb in a bid to squeeze out Dr. Pepper, then coerce retailers to stop selling Dr. Pepper by offering the inexplicably evil Pibb for a lot less money because it was a "Coke family product." Don't do much soda any more, but man, Mr. Pibb was a poor, poor copy of Dr. P in my book.

If there was a place that offered Coke and Dr. P, I always chose the latter, but if it were a Coke-product only place that tried to sell you that Pibb was the "same thing" as Dr. Pepper, I'd be forced to punish them by getting a cup of water instead....wasn't about to give Coke my money that way.

[rezman]

Mr Pibb has been around since the 70's.

[Bill Robertson]

One of my best friends in high school worked at the NW 58th & May store. I went there a lot. He was there one night when a gunman robbed the store and made all the emloyees stay in the walk-in cooler. It was too much like Sirloin Stockade and about the same time. He quit and I just couldn't go back either. Too bad because they really good.

[bluedogok]

Mr Pibb has been around since the 70's.

Yep....introduced in 1972 as Peppo, reintroduced in 1973 as Dr. Pibb and later renamed Mr. Pibb that year.

[kevinpate]

Mr Pibb has been around since the 70's.

Sad, but true.

[GaryOKC6]

I worked at the one on 57th & May in high school at 15 years old. I worked in the back where we cooked the meat and prepped everything. The place was over run with crickets. They were everywhere including the food. It is now Chelenos and I hope that they were able to get rid of them. I still loved Roy Rogers though and wish they were still around.

[kevinpate]

Crickets huh ... and just when i had convinced myself all my crunchy memories were fresh cracked black pepper.
thanks.


I keed. Loved discovering me some RR when I came to Norman.

[soonergeezer]

The Double R burger was great, especially with the bbq sauce(my mouth still waters thinking about it). They had a dessert I believe was called Apple crisp(apples cinnamon butter) and it was tart and tangy and sweet and really good. The meat for the roast beef was actual meat(brisket), not that crap they try to pass off as meat at Arbys. I had 2 friends that worked at the one on nw 59th and May. This was the time period when Linda Cavanaugh worked there. One of my friends was a manager and decided to quit. The last night he worked he called me and asked for a ride home. when I got there, he came out with a package under his arm and had an entire brisket cut into 3 pieces. He gave me one piece and kept the others for himself. I really miss the food from there. Even when it wasn't free.