Cranston native Lloyd B. Sugarman grew up ordering hamburgers and coffee shakes at the Cozy House. He liked the fact that the owners knew his order and the ambiance of the mom-and-pop establishment.
Now the Johnny Rockets franchise owner is bringing a little bit of that 1940s hamburger malt shop experience to his hometown.
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Sugarman, who owns the Johnny Rockets development rights in Rhode Island, will open a third Ocean State location at Sockanosett Crossing in the summer of 2006. The 2,600-square-foot restaurant will occupy space that was formerly the Boys’ Training School at Sockanosett.
“It’s different architecturally than what we usually do at Johnny Rockets,” Sugarman said. “We’re creating a building within a building.”
Sugarman’s restaurants on Thayer Street, which opened in January 2001, and at Providence Place mall, which opened in November 2000, have proven successful enough to earn the restaurant Rhode Island Monthly’s “best burger and fries” award five years in a row. The eatery also won second and third place from CitySearch’s best burger in Providence.
Commitment to the quality of the food and attention to the bright, nostalgic atmosphere are part of the Johnny Rockets experience, Sugarman says. Waiters and waitresses in “soda jerk” uniforms pass out nickels for the juke box – and they’ll sing and dance when Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” plays.
So committed to the quality of food is Sugarman that he can name the town and state from which the restaurants get their cheddar cheese – it’s Tillamock, Ore.
“It’s the best cheddar in the country,” he said. Burgers are made with a special blend of Hereford beef made locally.
Sugarman is also shopping for a fourth site in Rhode Island, but doesn’t imagine he’ll build many more Johnny Rockets here after that.
“I want the restaurant to remain special,” he said.
The idea of opening a Johnny Rockets in Cranston when Providence already has two doesn’t faze Sugarman.
“As a Rhode Islander, if I’m in Cranston and want to go out to eat, I’d try not to drive to Providence if I didn’t have to,” Sugarman said. “For those people who live in the south part of the state and like Johnny Rockets, I think there’s opportunity to build that customer base.”
Sugarman also owns the development rights for the franchise in New York City and Connecticut. His location in Mohegan Sun is one of the busiest Johnny Rockets in the world. In New York, he’s scouting locations in Times Square.
Sugarman has been involved with Johnny Rockets pretty much since the beginning in 1986. After leaving Rhode Island, Sugarman got his start in clothing manufacturing. During his travels, he met Ronn Teitelbaum, who opened the original Johnny Rockets on Melrose in Los Angeles. The pair became partners, and Sugarman opened a San Francisco location. In 1995, he sold all his franchises to work in the corporate offices, overseeing design and location. But constructing the restaurants and running the businesses proved to be his first business love.
“But I believe in building and operating them,” he said. He’s now involved in 18 locations. The restaurant has 173 locations and recently announced a plan to increase the number of units by 70 percent.
“For a company that’s 19 years old, we’re a very fresh concept – those who try to copy us tend to miss the essential ingredients,” Sugarman said.
