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Home > Blogs > Taste: Dayton food and restaurants > Archives > 2009 > June > 04 > Entry
Sonic Drive-In open less than a year closes
PIQUA — A Sonic Drive-In that had been open just under a year has closed abruptly.
The restaurant at 1292 E. Ash St. apparently closed over the weekend or early this week, said Lisa Whittaker, director of the Piqua Area Chamber of Commerce, who learned of the closing on Tuesday.
“There was definitely no warning, and yes, I’m very surprised,” Whitaker said. City and chamber officials held a ribbon-cutting at the restaurant in late June 2008.
A man who answered the phone at the Piqua Sonic said he was cleaning up the restaurant and could not comment on the closing. Representatives of Houchens Industries, the Bowling Green, Kentucky company that is the franchise owner for other Sonic Drive-In restaurants in the Dayton area, did not immediately return phone and email requests for comment.
In April, a Houchens employee who oversees some Dayton-area Sonics told the Dayton Daily News that the company was more than halfway toward its goal of opening 29 restaurants in the Greater Dayton area. A Sonic opened a few days ago in Sidney, and another new Sonic at 7888 Brandt Pike in Huber Heights is scheduled to open soon.
Permalink | Comments (47) | Post your comment | Categories: Restaurant closings
Comments
By sonicker
June 10, 2009 3:32 PM | Link to this
I love me some Sonic! The onion rings are SWEET BATTERED, that’s the meant-to-be flavor of them. It’s not the cooks fault. It’s the ingredients! Either you like them or you don’t. Oh wellBy sonicker
June 10, 2009 3:30 PM | Link to this
Well, the onion rings are “sweet battered” so that explains the sweet thing. If you don’t like them, don’t order them! I’ve been eating Sonic for yearsBy Sorry Beej
June 8, 2009 11:06 AM | Link to this
You lost me when you said Sonic had great food. When you said that, your lecture lost all credibility.By Nancy
June 6, 2009 3:53 PM | Link to this
Piqua location’s food was not good. After years of Sonic commercials and no restaurants in this area, my first visit was a big letdown. How can you ruin a fried tater tot?! Sidney store seems good so far. Too much growth in a bad economy maybe?By Chad
June 5, 2009 10:35 PM | Link to this
Maybe if Obama and the Dems would stop taxing the “greedy corporations” so such they could stay open!!!By me
June 5, 2009 9:20 PM | Link to this
not all sonics suck.you have a wait at most fast food restaurants,but the friendliness of the employees can ease the pain.it stinks these sonics had to close, but those who are criticizing them really should give it a rest. all fast food is a choice,don’t eat there but don’t criticize the jobs that pay for these kids to learn responsibility.patience is a virtue. choice,don’t eat there but don’t criBy BEEJ
June 5, 2009 9:10 PM | Link to this
Wow,easy to criticize Sonic, they have great food,the rings are an aquired taste but far from nasty.WC is what it is, kinda snack food if you me.Work fast food for a week, all of you critics that wait so long for service….you’ll learn that you too are not perfect and mistakes get made notl always.The closing ask meBy priorsonicfan
June 5, 2009 8:43 PM | Link to this
To David M, I don’t care if the staff is 50 or 15 the training and expectations should be the same. They should be at least competent enough to take a tater tot and drink order without messing up 3 times and still serving it incorrectly. If you want a successful business it begins with customer service and a quality product. The Sonic on Colonel Glenn has neither.By ArmChairEconomist
June 5, 2009 3:13 PM | Link to this
Another fine example of keeping employees in the dark, then throwing them under the bus at the last possible second with no notice. There is no loyalty anymore, no onBy Hawk
June 5, 2009 8:17 AM | Link to this
No surprise, they came into this area too aggresively with too many openings in such a short time, just like Quizno’s. I tried the Piqua Sonic a couple months ago, I got tired of waiting in a non-moving drive-through so I left. I didn’t move for like 10 minutes. Still better than foodd-poisoning haven Jack in the Box.By Neonmoon
June 4, 2009 10:15 PM | Link to this
Try a mocha java chiller. Yum, yum.By Doc
June 4, 2009 10:01 PM | Link to this
I’m with ya, WC dude!!By White Castle
June 4, 2009 9:45 PM | Link to this
For all of you who complain about WC’s burgers…Rest assured they’re 100% beef…Not every one’s cup of tea! I eat them 3/4 times a week for the last 40 years. And no my health is just fine as is my waistline. It’s all in moderation! Sonic??? Good drink deals but that’s about it!By sh
June 4, 2009 9:12 PM | Link to this
my daughter got a banana split at sonic a while back… and they forgot the banana!!! how does that happen???By Doc
June 4, 2009 8:48 PM | Link to this
To the White Castle haters- Yes, much like your mother’s and you wife’s cooking, WC burgers are an acquired taste. But once your taste buds awaken and grow up, you’ll never want mom’s cooking again!!By David M.
June 4, 2009 7:16 PM | Link to this
I for one think that Sonic is a great place to go. So what if they have bad Onion Rings. There are 50 other things on the menu to choose from. If you are just going to a restaurant for onion rings go to Red Robin. Plus, for the people that complain about the service, what do you expect? Sonic is not a fancy, sit down restaurant. You either eat at the tables outside, in your car or you take it home. You have teenagers and young adults taking the orders and making the orders. They are going to make mistakes. This is not a career for most of them. They want to get paid, plain and simple. If you don’t like your order getting messed up then I would suggest not going to a fast food establishment. Also, for the people that Sonic is doomed to close because they get no business look no further than the McDonalds across the street from the Sonic in Kettering. That place is dead 5 days out of the week. I think the main reason that I like Sonic so much is the variety. It is the only fast food restaurant in Dayton that serves breakfast all day. And when it is hot out nothing is better than one of their Cranberry Limeades.By stuck
June 4, 2009 7:09 PM | Link to this
Sonic is awful. I had gone to the one on Col. Glenn a couple of times and the drive thru line was ridiculous. They came out and told us we’d get faster service if we pulled into the carport… insane! The food was meh… For argument sake, I tried another one.. same crappy food (overpriced, at that) same slow service. The only saving grace is that they’ve got some neat drinks.By annoymous
June 4, 2009 6:16 PM | Link to this
i worked for sonic in greenville and Englewood. the piqua store closing is a surprise to me cause the lat timei spoke with my freinds at those stores, there was no talk of closing any stores. so now i wonder if they willbe closing my local Sonic. I like the food at Sonic. I hope they reown the Piqua store.By sallie mae
June 4, 2009 6:12 PM | Link to this
I WANT JACK IN THE BOX!!!!!!!By David
June 4, 2009 6:07 PM | Link to this
I went to Sonic once and have never been back.The food was way overated The parking lot is always empty when I drive by. I think Sonic will eventually go the way of Rally’s. I can’t believe there will be two in .Huber within miles of each other. I expect one will close.By Pete
June 4, 2009 5:59 PM | Link to this
I have tried several of the local Sonic restaurants and found the food good and the service good for a fast food restaurant. we should be concerned with all the local business and stop piling on. When McDnalds is the only choice left, I will choose not to eat out.By John
June 4, 2009 5:59 PM | Link to this
You can’t really open several restaurants in one year. I think that kind of growth in this industry is way too fast.By Joe
June 4, 2009 5:46 PM | Link to this
I have been told the Sonic in Urbana has closed as well. Open less then a year. oh well……By Bill
June 4, 2009 5:45 PM | Link to this
I eat at the one in Clayton about twice a week and yet to have a complaint. Use to do white castle years ago in Cincinnati and was glad to see them in Dayton till I had one. lunch meat is thicker than their burgerBy T-Bonious Funk
June 4, 2009 5:42 PM | Link to this
I also am sorry for the loss of jobs, but like a lot of folks, I am not surprised to hear that a Sonic has closed already. THE FOOD SUCKS!!! All the hype we heard from those who loved it, and the funny commercials lead up to a big old let-down. Nastiest. Onion Rings. Ever.By Ted
June 4, 2009 5:39 PM | Link to this
To Doc…White Castle???? Mmmm crappy grey mystery meat. I prefer real hamburger on my hamberger.By Ted
June 4, 2009 5:28 PM | Link to this
Sonic sucks…others don’tBy BigJack
June 4, 2009 5:27 PM | Link to this
I love me some Sonic!!! Glad to read that it wasn’t the Col. Glenn, Kettering or HH locations, cuz those are the ones I go to. As fast food goes you can’t beat it. I go to Sonic fairly often and have yet to experience the problems others have mentions. I hate onions of any kind, so I can’t speak to the ring issue, but their shakes, slushies, burgers, etc are da bomb!!By Notshocked
June 4, 2009 5:09 PM | Link to this
Can’t say I’m surprised. I’d go there in the afternoon for the “Happy Hour” and wait forever being the only customer. Then my freeze would be all surripie. It sucked compaired to Troy and the othersBy William
June 4, 2009 4:50 PM | Link to this
You know, there are a few of us out here who like Sonic….By Scooby does not
June 4, 2009 4:50 PM | Link to this
So…who’s going to forward all these negative comments to the Sonic franchise people in BG, Kentucky? They probably have no idea…By michael
June 4, 2009 4:45 PM | Link to this
I was not impressed after all of the good things I had heard about sonic! I thought the onion rings haa been dipped in sugar, i could not eat them and the food was not “tops”By The Dust
June 4, 2009 4:37 PM | Link to this
Close them all and save your money. More unemployment coming to a neighbor near you.By oreo25
June 4, 2009 4:37 PM | Link to this
White Castle? Yuck!! Tastes how wet cat food smells… I’d take sonic over that slop any day!By mtgolflady
June 4, 2009 4:31 PM | Link to this
We used to love Sonic for a chili cheese dog and pink lemonade when we were in college at EKU in the early 80’s. I was excited to finally have them in Dayton. Boy was I in for a shock. Same experience of getting an incorrect order and the food was horrible. A smear of chili and a light sprinkle of cheese on the dog, and the same mess on the tator tots even though I didn’t order the tots that way. Charged me almost $2.00 extra for the tot mess and haven’t been back since. Bring back the old Sonic chili cheese dog!By Scott
June 4, 2009 4:15 PM | Link to this
Doesn’t surprise me. I think the food tastes like it came from a carnival. Don’t care for it at all in Kettering either.By susan
June 4, 2009 4:14 PM | Link to this
Big surprise, there was never anyone there!By Unsure
June 4, 2009 4:14 PM | Link to this
When I tried the onion rings I thought the same thing, ‘what do they fry these in?’ Kind of tastes like they add sugar to the batter. YUCK!!!!!By Scooby does not
June 4, 2009 4:11 PM | Link to this
No surprise that the one in Piqua closed. Went there one time back in March. Sorry for those who lost jobs…but, wow.By LB
June 4, 2009 4:06 PM | Link to this
I’m in agreement with priorsonicfan… Had my very first Sonic burger in the winter at the Col. Glenn location. I had to give my order 4 times and it still wasn’t correct when I got it. Then I was turned off at the taste of the fries and onion rings. What do they use for cooking oil? Whatever it is makes the fries/onion rings taste like donuts. If I want donuts, I’ll stop at the bakery. Never again for me.By Doc
June 4, 2009 4:01 PM | Link to this
Huh. Your dog buried it, ‘eh? Mine wolfs ‘em down almost as fast as me. But I feel you. I’d rather eat ka-ka than eat a sonic burger. :)By Michael
June 4, 2009 3:58 PM | Link to this
They have one opening in Huber, thanks for the tipBy cb
June 4, 2009 3:56 PM | Link to this
good riddence. sonic is overpriced and not very good. i won’t ever go to one again.By Nursecilla
June 4, 2009 3:53 PM | Link to this
There are way too many Sonics and they DO NOT have good food. We have tried 4 different ones and have never had anything that was even close to being good. I am sure more will close because when I pass by them, they are never busy. Just becuase they are cheap to build, doesn’t mean they should build them everywhere. Give me Taco Bell anyday. good.By priorsonicfan
June 4, 2009 3:51 PM | Link to this
I fell in love with Sonic when I went out west years ago, so I was thrilled when they made their way to the Dayton area. That quickly ended when I visited the Sonic on Colonel Glenn. I’ve gone three times and each time was a disaster. Last time I had to give my order three times and it still came out incorrectly. It was cold which only enhanced the horrible flavor of whatever they are frying the tots in. It took forever and the staff that I dealt with seemed incompetent. If they don’t get their act together, I could see them closing as well. I certainly won’t be going back again and wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.By LW
June 4, 2009 3:46 PM | Link to this
The one on Wilmington looks pretty busy when I go by there. I stopped in once and they had to have people directing traffic. Happy hour and your drinks are half price. White Castle.. I gave my dog one of those once. He buried it.By Doc
June 4, 2009 3:40 PM | Link to this
Good. Maybe they’ll close the one on Wilmington Dr. in Kettering and BRING BACK White Castle… (I know; wishful thinking)