Bickford's (restaurant)
Bickford's Restaurants and Cafeterias were mainstays in the New York City area from the 1920s through the 1960s.
Founded by Samuel Longley Bickford (1885–1959), the "lunch rooms" offered modestly priced fare open for extended hours. The restaurants were popular and expanded throughout the greater New York City area into New Jersey and Massachusetts. Other restaurant business expansion continued, with drive-in restaurants and associated locations in Florida, Pennsylvania, and California.
The New York area's crime was a major factor in the decline of Bickford's. According to a New York Times article, "there were 48 Bickford's in New York in 1960, 42 in 1970 and 2 in 1980." By 1982, the last two were closed as well.
In October, 1959, Samuel Bickford's son Harold opened the first Bickford's Pancake House in Peabody, Massachusetts. This specialty restaurant focused on breakfast foods and was a huge local success.
The franchise still thrives in New England, where there are nearly 70 Bickford's restaurants in New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Massachusetts. Known simply as "Bickford's" or "Bickford's Grille," many locations are open 24 hours and offer "Breakfast Anytime," their longtime slogan.
Bickford's corporate headquarters are now located in Brington, Mass.