re: Fool On The Hill

[Rudy]

Sounds more like an anatomy-themed enterprise. All we have around here is Hooters.

 

[Brasil_Nut]

...sounds like a great place to take the kiddies when on vacation down the shore...

You'd be amazed how many folks bring the kids out to Hooters. Not so unusual...the "Hooters" being a reference to the eyes of an owl. Of course, the owners, being fun-loving, added the "suggestive" angle and it went from there. They are definitely known for their chicken wings, which are awesome. My favorite item on the menu? "Elegant Wings" That would be: "20 Hooters Chicken Wings and a bottle of Dom Perignon!"

Jon

 

[Brasil_Nut]

...My favorite item on the menu? "Elegant Wings" That would be: "20 Hooters Chicken Wings and a bottle of Dom Perignon!"

Jon

By the way...I've never purchased "Elegant Wings". But it sure sounds like fun! To be honest, Dom Perignon -- any champagne -- gives me one heck of a headache!

Jon

 

[Rudy]

I think up until his last day on earth, Dad was convinced Hooters was a strip bar. I've found the idea amusing, but haven't bothered to go into one. I guess chicken wings aren't high on my priority list.

 

[DAN BOLTON]

Ocean City,Md. has a restaurant called Big Peckers-with a Foghorn Leghorn rooster as their logo. I've never been there(though close during some summers by the Delaware shore)but their ratio of customers to t-shirts must be one to one-I see these everywhere. The same folks also own nearby joints titled Brass Balls Saloon and the Bad Ass Cafe-sounds like a great place to take the kiddies when on vacation down the shore. Mac

I read several years ago that somebody was starting a chain called PECKERS...it was the flip side of HOOTERS...don't know wht the waiters wore or wear, and probably won't be in a hurry to find out...it never caught on, though. I don't know if BIG PECKERS is a leftover from that venture or not...probably not...


Dan, remembering another "big"...BIG JOHNSON...racing team t-shirts that died a quick death, and you never saw them at the "big" tracks...

 

[DAN BOLTON]

I think up until his last day on earth, Dad was convinced Hooters was a strip bar. I've found the idea amusing, but haven't bothered to go into one. I guess chicken wings aren't high on my priority list.

I remember HOOTERS girls at a few racetracks when Alan Kulwicki was sponsored by them...they wore their outfits to the track...thick support hose, no "foundation garments", jogging shoes...and the girls I remember weren't really very pretty...it was kinda disappointing. I figured that if they had to dress like that to attract customers, then the wings probably weren't that good...at one track, it was unseasonably cold; and the girls had huge goosebumps... store managers kept asking them if they were warm enough...


Dan

 

[Brasil_Nut]

Hooter Girls are hired on personality more than looks. Of course, they're required to look good in the uniform and most of them do. In Oaklahoma City, they are quite wholesome -- not what you would expect the "typical" Hooter Girl to be. Now, Fort Lauderdale is another story...Whew!!! We're talking BEAUTIFUL!!!. Let me add that any Hooter Girl who was rude or stand-offish never lasted -- at least from what we saw in seven years as regulars in Orlando.

In the end, it's a matter of good food, great (laid back) atmosphere and good times. On average, your Hooter server plops herself down on a stool, takes your order on a napkin, drops by often to check on you, talks shop, sports, whatever. They go out of their way to make Hooters a nice experience.

When I worked for Disney World and lived in Kissimmee, a group of us would go to Hooters every Thursday night. The girls always greeted us by name. I was there for wings and a brew. ( I can't handle the REALLY hot wings. My buddy always ordered the hottest: "Three Mile Island" and covered 'em with hot sauce...whew!) Once we became regulars, the first pitcher of beer, as well as the first platter of wings, was always "on the girls." They knew what we wanted and brought 'em out. If anything, it was a familiar place. We were made to feel at home and always had a good time.

Bottom line...Hooters does have sensational food. The Girls are an added attraction, yes. But they aren't there to only draw in the men. Families and women are typical Hooter patrons as well.

Jon

...with mouth-watering memories, online...

 

[DAN BOLTON]

My experience with the chain was indirect, at best...and under unusual "above the call of duty" circumstances...and it was nearly 12 years ago, before the chain had a chance to establish itself. If the food is good, and the service matches it, and the waitresses remember your name, well, who needs Cheers?


Dan

 

[Rudy]

I like familiarity--walking in and the staff knows you, if not by name, then at least by sight. I've been into our local Don Pablo's so often, I'm surprised they don't dedicate part of the building to me.

Surprisingly there are no Hooters restaurants immediately around us...closest one is in Taylor (aka 'Taylortucky" by the rest of Detroit), with three others scattered in our northern suburbs.

http://www.hooters.com/company/about_hooters/

One surprising fact: Hooters does NOT serve liquor!

 

[Brasil_Nut]

That's true...they serve BEER!!! No BOOZE...just BEER...GULP!!!

Jon

...tipsy online...

 

[Mike Blakesley]

There are no Hooters in Montana.

No wait, there are no Hooters restaurants in Montana.

I've been to one in Florida. The food AND the service was excellent!

 

[Brasil_Nut]

There are no Hooters in Montana.

Gee, Mike...I'm awfully sorry.

No wait, there are no Hooters restaurants in Montana.:

Aha! Whew!! I was gonna say, seeing as there are no Hooters in Montana, I'll bet the Fool On The Hill cover is a welcome relief!

I've been to one in Florida. The food AND the service was excellent!

Where in Florida? The original Hooters is located just off the causeway in St. Pete (coming from Tampa). It has a wooden coffin on the patio...a holdover from the building's days as a funeral home!

There are a couple in the Tampa area. We had two (that I know of) in Orlando. Fort Lauderdale has one right on the beach. In Jacksonville, it's right downtown in a major shopping area with monorails zipping around overhead.

Funny thing is, when it comes to California, they're all down in Los Angeles. We don't have them in the Bay Area, which doesn't make a bit of sense! I've heard they're looking at Downtown San Jose (yeah!) and Fisherman's Wharf. I wish they'd hurry and settle on any location in the Bay Area!!

To keep this somewhat within the realm of the thread topic (Fool On The Hill), Hooters is known for autographed photos of well-known sports figures, celebrities and politicians posing with Hooter Girls. Fort Lauderdale has a photo of Sergio and Gracinha -- I spotted it right away!

Jon

...wondering just how many Hooters Sergio has encountered in the course of his world-wide travels...

 

[Brasil_Nut]

...If the food is good, and the service matches it, and the waitresses remember your name, well, who needs Cheers?

Hee-Hee-Hee!!! I'm wearing a Cheers t-shirt right now...I bought it on a Boston layover last year. I was terribly disappointed to discover that the real Cheers is nothing like the one portrayed on television. I don't mean to say that I expected Sam and Diane to greet us at the door. I mean that it's small, dingy, the food sucks and the employees are, well...less than cheerful!

It reminds me of the time I was walking around the Disney/MGM Studios after it had closed for the night. Another VIP Guide and myself took a stroll down "Residential Street". Among the facades are the Golden Girls and Empty Nest houses. We approached the Empty Nest house first. The other guide was walking ahead of me, toward the front door. As he turned the doorknob, a huge owl came flying out of the facade. Of course, we screamed and ran across the street -- right into the driveway of the Golden Girls house...

Imagine my shock and dismay upon opening the front door to discover nothing but a painters shack behind the facade...I was crushed! Such is (as Sergio would say) "Life In The Movies!"

Jon

 

[walterphil]

the beatles are my fave group
but i always thought their version of fool sucked

paul at his laziest
and that terrible last verse
"they don't like him..."

sergio's much better.

as far as most popular tho, c'mon!
i mean the beatles (mag mys tour) had to have sold a good
5 - 8 mil by now, right?
(i'm just guessing)

i bet sergios lp is nowhere near that.

wp

 

[Brasil_Nut]

the beatles are my fave group
but i always thought their version of fool sucked

I agree. The Beatle version of Fool On The Hill isn't my favorite. I think Sergio & Brasil '66 defined the song and made it their own. Most of the time, when I mention Fool On The Hill, people will say, "Oh! I love Sergio Mendes..." They automatically think of Sergio's version. This seems to be the general concensus.

as far as most popular tho, c'mon!
i mean the beatles (mag mys tour) had to have sold a good
5 - 8 mil by now, right?
(i'm just guessing)

We're talking about the single here, not the album. And, according to Whitburn, Sergio's Fool was the only version to chart (#5 Pop Charts and #6 on the Adult Contemporary Charts). It also out-sold the Beatle version clear across the board. Sure, the Beatles have sold 5-8 million albums by now, but when it comes to single sales of Fool On The Hill, Sergio has them beat hands down.

Jon

...who saw the sun going down, offline...