Happy Eater
Encyclopedia
Happy Eater was a roadside restaurant chain in the United Kingdom
, that ran from 1973 till 1996 and was notable particularly amongst a certain generation for the lego
that was inside the restaurant for children to play with, and the imaginatively-shaped playground equipment outside.
) in 1973. It was run by Alan Jones, minor shareholders included Michael Pickard, David Alemore (General Manager and Operations Director), Openings manager Graham Fothergill.
In 1980, when it had 21 restaurants, it was taken over by Imperial Group and sold to Trust House Forte in 1986. Rocko Forte visited latest opening then run by Graham Fothergill being Happy Eater Weston Avenue London to celebrate.
It was owned by the Trust House Forte hotel group from 1 August 1986 when THF bought its 75 restaurants from the hotel division of Imperial Group plc (including Welcome Break
service stations). Three Happy Eaters were at motorway service stations. THF was taken over in 1995 by Granada
. Most Happy Eaters were in south-east England, the Midlands and most noticeably along the A1. They had many excellent facilities for young children to occupy themselves with, usually outdoors.
The brand ceased to exist in 1996, when Granada converted the restaurants into Burger King
and Little Chef
, or they simply just closed restaurants completely. Granada said this was because people were eating at Little Chef rather than Happy Eater. However, the Little Chef brand itself soon ran into financial trouble following the conversions.
After the buyout Alan jones went on to launch AJ's (which stood for Alan jones and Jane pickhard the major shareholders) which after building up a chain of 21 restaurants was sold to The McDonald's Group
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, that ran from 1973 till 1996 and was notable particularly amongst a certain generation for the lego
Lego
Lego is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures and various other parts...
that was inside the restaurant for children to play with, and the imaginatively-shaped playground equipment outside.
History
Happy Eater was formed by Michael Pickard (a former managing director of THF and former pupil of Oundle SchoolOundle School
Oundle School is a co-educational British public school located in the ancient market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire. The school has been maintained by the Worshipful Company of Grocers of the City of London since its foundation in 1556. Oundle has eight boys' houses, five girls' houses, a day...
) in 1973. It was run by Alan Jones, minor shareholders included Michael Pickard, David Alemore (General Manager and Operations Director), Openings manager Graham Fothergill.
In 1980, when it had 21 restaurants, it was taken over by Imperial Group and sold to Trust House Forte in 1986. Rocko Forte visited latest opening then run by Graham Fothergill being Happy Eater Weston Avenue London to celebrate.
It was owned by the Trust House Forte hotel group from 1 August 1986 when THF bought its 75 restaurants from the hotel division of Imperial Group plc (including Welcome Break
Welcome Break
Welcome Break is a company which operates thirty-five motorway service stations in the UK. It is the second largest motorway service area operator behind Moto.-History:...
service stations). Three Happy Eaters were at motorway service stations. THF was taken over in 1995 by Granada
Granada Ltd.
Granada plc is a former British conglomerate which was best known as the former parent of the Manchester-based Granada Television....
. Most Happy Eaters were in south-east England, the Midlands and most noticeably along the A1. They had many excellent facilities for young children to occupy themselves with, usually outdoors.
The brand ceased to exist in 1996, when Granada converted the restaurants into Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
and Little Chef
Little Chef
Little Chef is a chain of roadside restaurants in the United Kingdom, founded in 1958 and owned by the UK private equity group RCapital. Little Chef's previous owners were The People's Restaurant Group Ltd., a company belonging to British catering entrepreneurs Simon Heath and Lawrence Wosskow,...
, or they simply just closed restaurants completely. Granada said this was because people were eating at Little Chef rather than Happy Eater. However, the Little Chef brand itself soon ran into financial trouble following the conversions.
After the buyout Alan jones went on to launch AJ's (which stood for Alan jones and Jane pickhard the major shareholders) which after building up a chain of 21 restaurants was sold to The McDonald's Group