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Should Lh Businesses Change Names To Appeal To Tourists?


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A story in the Tribune-Democrat from Johnstown, PA (near Bedford and the old Ship Hotel) notes that the new manager of Adele's Diner on the Lincoln Highway/US 30 at Reels Corners has renamed it Heritage Highway Restaurant.

 

“'We had a lot of people tell us we should change it,' Blough said." She wants "to remind visitors that they’ve taken a storied route to lunch."

 

I wonder how the rest of you feel about this? Is it a good sign that roadside awareness has reached business owners along the route after 15 years of trying? Or the start of generic-sounding names replacing local flavor? I'm sure Route 66 experienced this same pattern.

 

Brian

www.brianbutko.com

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If a business has a long-standing or historic name, I'd oppose changing it to honor a road.

 

I'd think that businesses could acknowledge the roads on which they sit in other ways. The Adele's Diner sign could have been amended to add, "on the Lincoln Highway," for example. Here in Indiana, I see National Road stickers in the windows of some businesses along US 40. Although those stickers are too small to be easily seen from the road, something like that could be executed more effectively.

 

jim

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I like Mobilene’s answer.. but I can’t leave well enough alone.

 

Before I jump in, don’t miss the Lincoln Highway photos up for sale on Ebay by sfxarchive. They are original photos from the San Francisco Examiner archives.

 

If it were solely to meet my interests, Adeils Diner would never change. But they are obviously responding to the recognition now given to the Lincoln Highway as a heritage highway.

 

Given the obvious choices....Adele’s Diner remains Adele’s Diner on a road no one knows, recognizes or cares about...or Adele’s becomes the Heritage Highway Diner because it is on a road many now enjoy and appreciate...it is a no brainer. And even for old roadies like me, if calling the diner the Heritage Highway Diner increases business, which I think it may, then better the diner survive as the Heritage, then die as Adele’s.

 

From a strictly personal perspective, I don’t prefer a change, and specifically, it is a shame that the new sign doesn’t better represent the historical time period of the diner. We have a roadhouse near here that also dates from the 1930’s and the signage uses fonts and colors, as well as designs typical of the period.

 

Don’t miss the Lincoln Highway original photos I noted above.

 

Keep the Show on the Road!

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[

 

I wonder how the rest of you feel about this? Is it a good sign that roadside awareness has reached business owners along the route after 15 years of trying? Or the start of generic-sounding names replacing local flavor? I'm sure Route 66 experienced this same pattern.

 

If I owned a business on a historic highway (or any other highway) I'd be in favor of using any name that would keep the doors open and the cash register ringing. As a nonowning consumer, though, I prefer no name changes.

 

For example, the Red Cedar Inn on 66 in Pacific, MO just would not have been the same if the decades-old name had ever been changed. (Sadly enough, the Red Cedar now sets empty and is for sale.) Johnnie's Bar on 66 in St. James, MO just wouldn't have the draw (pun intended) it currently does if the name was changed.

 

On the other hand, there are times when a name change works wonders for the bottom line. Our cruisin' friend Fran from Cuba, MO and her former husband operated a saloon on 66 for years that was named Buzz's. When they divorced and Fran got the saloon she changed the name of the place to Was Buzz's and still drew the same local customers. In the early 90's when she became a board member of the Route 66 Association of Missouri she changed the name of the saloon to Route 66 Lounge and had the new name painted in large letters on each end of the building so that 66 cruisers could not miss it. The new name attracted hundreds and perhaps thousands of new customers and the bar became a Route 66 icon until she sold the business a few years ago.....Bliss

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I think if the food and service are good, people will go there.

 

We stopped there on our way home from Connecticut several years ago, and we enjoyed it. Excellent breakfast. :coffee::ready2eat:

 

Be that as it may, I prefer the original name to a contrived name, and agree with Mobilene's thoughts on the name (tacking on on the Lincoln Highway, with a shield or something); and I also agree with KtSoTR about the new sign...it's very uninspiring. :huh:

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We had a fine breakfast at Adele's 3 years or so ago on our way back from Connecticut. It was there where we discussed mom & pop businesses and how you can almost never have a bad experience (food wise) in a mom & pop eatery, but a mom & pop motel is a different story. Also thanks to Adele's, they had info on their menu regarding Flight 93, which crashed just 4 miles west of there, which we had no idea we were that close to the crash site.

 

As for the name changing, I'm mixed. I think the thing that really matters is a change in ownership. Iconic places can change for the better or worse because of an ownership change. Case in point is the Dixie Trucker's Home in McLean, IL. The place has been in biz since the late 1920's, and has been a Route 66 icon. But, a few years ago the place changed hands after being in the same family for years. The IL Route 66 Hall of Fame was in there and subsequently left, and the quality of the dining experience seemed to lose it's touch as well. Ten years ago you'd hear a lot about the Dixie in terms of it being a "must stop" on a 66 trip, but I don't hear that anymore. In recent years if we were in the area, I'd just stop there for a bathroom break. I might give them another chance to see if things have changed for the better. Besides, that gives me an excuse for a roadtrip! What's a 3 hour drive for breakfast? Heck, I've traveled 1,000 miles to Amarillo just for a steak dinner! :ready2eat:

 

On the flip side of this, I don't believe at all that a place should turn its back on its heritage (no pun intended) just for the sake of making a change. I don't know if Adele's was an icon (local or national) on the Lincoln Highway, but in some ways changing a name of an establishment forces you to have to start from scratch, in terms of keeping customers and establishing a new customer base. There are some folks out there who'd stop going to a place they're used to if they go through changes like that. Some don't like their "comfort zone" rocked.

 

OK, probably a little too analytical here, but I've got nothing else to do on this cold, cloudy Saturday morning! ;)

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I think there should be a way to keep the old name and add the information that they wanted such as

"Adele's Lincoln Highway Diner" or "Adele's Heritage Highway Diner". This would allow the history to remain while letting new people know that this is a vintage landmark to be visited.

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Change the name to keep the tourists happy?? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Two things come to mind:

(1) Change something and the original is soon forgotten (ie, change Lincoln Highway to Heritage Highway, or whatever, and soon the Lincoln name is forgotten. And Abe's contributions to the world will be relegated to obscurity.

(2) The other is an old adage in the old car (or anything else for that matter) hobby - if it ain't broke, fix it until it is.

My nickles (inflation) worth.

 

Hudsonly,

Alex Burr

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Keep the name. add the highway.

 

Whenever I'm on a historic road, I always try to talk to business-owners and get them to put up something outside the place and inside denoting the road. I try to explain that it won't cost much and very likely will lead to increased patronization. How do you go wrong with that?

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