When One Door Closes Another Opens — And So It Goes
My journey to Substack
About 30 years ago, in the hillside community above Los Angeles, someone had the bright idea to open a 1950s-style diner that served nothing but hot dogs, hamburgers, French fries, milkshakes, and everything else you’d expect to see on a menu printed in 1958.
The place was called Fender Benders and with it came a great stylized logo of two classic cars getting into a fender bender. There were jukebox stations at every table, Elvis and the Drifters playing 24/7, and the place was packed every time we went there.
The food was great, the service fun and witty and everyone was having a good time.
So, they decided to do what so many successful places tend to do, they started changing things. Since the first store did so well, they opened a second.
They added items to the menu. They raised the prices and reduced the portions. The fun and lighthearted atmosphere slowly began to fade as the stress of running two stores changed the way the owners approached the business.
After a couple of years or so, they sold the place while things were still pretty good. Unfortunately, the new owners had no idea what the 1950s meant as far as food and fun and, well you can guess the rest.
