Quote:
Originally Posted by Jejuca
...South Pasadena which is only a couple of minutes from St Pete Beach and Treasure Island is very nice and affordable.
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In 1969 there was a new franchise fast food restaurant called 'Wagon Ho'. They were headquartered in St. Pete and had plans to open 200 locations in Florida. The first one in Florida was on Pasadena Ave on the left side headed toward the beach.
I was going to St. Pete JC studying Hotel-Restaurant Mgmt and worked at the Wagon Ho in '69 for about 5 months. They were trying to combine an Arbys thin sliced roast beef style sandwiches and flame broiled Burger King style hamburgers, and McDonalds thin style french fries. We wore jeans, western shirts and cowboys hats. We greeted the customer with 'Howdy Partner, can I take your order?' This is all true.
In May of '69 I took the summer off and headed to Ocean City, Maryland to work at my cousins sub shop on the boardwalk. When I returned in August and went by Wagon Ho, the place had completely changed. The very nice couple who bought the franchise were gone, replaced by a manager who worked for the company. Half the employees were gone and business was very little. I actually went back to work for about a month and the location and the company went out of business. It looked like this, with a 15' high wagon master on top with a real canvas cover.
