The closure of Ryan’s Steakhouse on Collins Road in Cedar Rapids in June was so abrupt that the employees weren’t notified. I was reminded that it was closed when I drove past it this week. And then it hit me: Every buffet restaurant my family frequented is gone.
- Old Country Buffet in Waterloo, which wasn’t around all that long, closed Feb. 9, 2006.
- Bonanza in Marshalltown closed in 2007. This was a favorite place to go after ISU football games, but this happened not too long before 1 PM kickoffs went extinct, so its effect wasn’t as noticeable.
- Bishop’s Buffet in Waterloo — the original of what became a chain — abruptly closed in 2007, reopened in 2009, and abruptly closed again in 2011, apparently for good.
- Bonanza in Cedar Falls closed in 2010, replaced by a Buffalo Wild Wings, and the Waterloo location followed in fall 2012, with demolition following soon after.
- Ryan’s in Clive and Old Country Buffet in Des Moines both closed abruptly — there’s that word again — on March 6, 2016. The parent company of both filed for bankruptcy.
- Then, finally, Ryan’s in Cedar Rapids, in June.
Does this mean something, big-picture-wise? I’m not sure. All of the above involve only three corporate parents, and in the case of the Waterloo and Cedar Falls Bonanzas the owners were looking to get out. I will miss the option of a buffet for special occasions, but Texas Roadhouse is a fine substitution.