Retail Watchers

I know that there's Panda Express in some Vons/Pavilions, Auntie Anne's in a few H-E-B stores, Chick-fil-a Express in some Atlanta Kroger stores (the Atlanta Kroger division must not be all that bad, I loves me some CFA, even if the "Express" stores tend to be inferior), and of course Starbucks everywhere, but do any other examples of fast food locations inside supermarkets exist in the wild otherwise? McDonald's experimented with Jewel-Osco and Farmer Jack in the past, and Taco Bell flirted with Kroger (possibly others), but those are all long gone. Are there any isolated instances with branded fast food anymore, or have those gone the way of video rentals inside most supermarkets?

pseudo3d wrote:I know that there's Panda Express in some Vons/Pavilions, Auntie Anne's in a few H-E-B stores, Chick-fil-a Express in some Atlanta Kroger stores (the Atlanta Kroger division must not be all that bad, I loves me some CFA, even if the "Express" stores tend to be inferior), and of course Starbucks everywhere, but do any other examples of fast food locations inside supermarkets exist in the wild otherwise? McDonald's experimented with Jewel-Osco and Farmer Jack in the past, and Taco Bell flirted with Kroger (possibly others), but those are all long gone. Are there any isolated instances with branded fast food anymore, or have those gone the way of video rentals inside most supermarkets?

To a large extent, they've gone away, for the obvious reason: paying franchise fees doesn't pad profits like an in-house deli does. I can't think of any store within 100 miles of me (beyond Walmart, and that's a mixed bag these days with McDonald's and Subway) that has anything beyond the in-store deli. We have some here that have sit down areas, but no brand outside the company on the front of the building.

wnetmacman wrote:

pseudo3d wrote:I know that there's Panda Express in some Vons/Pavilions, Auntie Anne's in a few H-E-B stores, Chick-fil-a Express in some Atlanta Kroger stores (the Atlanta Kroger division must not be all that bad, I loves me some CFA, even if the "Express" stores tend to be inferior), and of course Starbucks everywhere, but do any other examples of fast food locations inside supermarkets exist in the wild otherwise? McDonald's experimented with Jewel-Osco and Farmer Jack in the past, and Taco Bell flirted with Kroger (possibly others), but those are all long gone. Are there any isolated instances with branded fast food anymore, or have those gone the way of video rentals inside most supermarkets?

To a large extent, they've gone away, for the obvious reason: paying franchise fees doesn't pad profits like an in-house deli does. I can't think of any store within 100 miles of me (beyond Walmart, and that's a mixed bag these days with McDonald's and Subway) that has anything beyond the in-store deli. We have some here that have sit down areas, but no brand outside the company on the front of the building.

One reason I saw, at least for burgers, is that Asian food will survive going home as fresh to-go food. McDonald's...not so much.

Oh, I guess King Soopers has Chester Fried, too.

The Vons (formerly Pavilions) in Arcadia (CA) has a Starbucks, a Panda Express and a Jamba Juice.

The Chester Fried at King Soopers is just served out of the deli like any other deli fried chicken.

I think some grocers have concepts that are in house that appear like fast food, or maybe like a mall food court is a more accurate description. Safeway's Sandwich Program appears more like a freestanding sandwich place. Kroger seems to be trying some concepts with rather mixed results. Whole Foods has a number of concepts.

pseudo3d wrote:I know that there's Panda Express in some Vons/Pavilions, Auntie Anne's in a few H-E-B stores, Chick-fil-a Express in some Atlanta Kroger stores (the Atlanta Kroger division must not be all that bad, I loves me some CFA, even if the "Express" stores tend to be inferior), and of course Starbucks everywhere, but do any other examples of fast food locations inside supermarkets exist in the wild otherwise? McDonald's experimented with Jewel-Osco and Farmer Jack in the past, and Taco Bell flirted with Kroger (possibly others), but those are all long gone. Are there any isolated instances with branded fast food anymore, or have those gone the way of video rentals inside most supermarkets?

Well I know there were quite a few Jamba Juices in Vons and Pavilions. I don't know if they are extant.

At one point, the Fred Meyer in Gresham, Oregon had a McDonald's inside. It seems like they have also experimented with small independents at times but it wasn't consistent from one location to the next.

Another reason why fast food concepts have largely disappeared from supermarkets is due to the cheapened image which they present. Since so many grocers today are heavily focused on presenting an image of freshness and health-consciousness, having a McDonalds or a Taco Bell in your store would negate that image somewhat. The exception is chains which either have local flair (such as Panda Express in SoCal Pavillions and Chick-fil-A in some Kroger stores around the south) or chains which contribute to this image of freshness and convenience (such as Jamba Juice or Starbucks).

In all honestly, not only are the profit margins on deli-prepared items higher, they are also preferred by many customers for their better quality (if rotated properly) at a similar price point to many fast food chains.

Rice Garden still has a few supermarket locations:
http://thericegarden.com

One of my earliest supermarket memories is my grandmother showing us the large, new Smith's in Scottsdale with a Chinese restaurant inside. I ate from the 9th & 9th Smith's from time to time.

Personally, I've not seen branded food anywhere except the mentioned Walmart supercenters above.

I do remember that several of the Fiesta stores in Houston have Church's Chicken franchises in them as well. They are simple units in the front of the stores.