Johnny Rockets closes long-standing Roosevelt Field location
A burger at Johnny Rockets inside Roosevelt Field. Credit: Newsday/Alejandra Villa Loarca
After serving up cheeseburgers and strawberry shakes for at least a generation, Johnny Rockets at Roosevelt Field in Garden City has closed; its red-and-white leather swivel chairs roped off and empty.
The location in Roosevelt Field’s Dining District stopped operations over the summer, said Kim Murphy, a spokesperson for mall owner Simon Property Group.
Pinned above Johnny Rocket’s stainless-steel counter is a giant banner that reads “More dining on its way.” Murphy did not say what would replace Johnny Rockets.
After decades of operating in the Roosevelt Field mall in Garden City, Johnny Rockets has closed. Credit: Newsday/Corin Hirsch
The 1950s-themed Johnny Rockets had operated at Roosevelt Field since 1993 and the reigning days of the giant second-floor zeppelin, spilling doo-wop and happy vibes from its busy lunch counter.
Thirty years on, the shift at Roosevelt Field seems geared more toward finer dining: In recent months, a suave Japanese sushi-izakaya place called Nomiya joined higher-end spots such as Osteria Morini, Havana Central, True Food Kitchen and Small Batch that cluster on the west side of the mall.
Another Johnny Rockets closed in Hicksville in 2014, and a location at the Tanger Outlets in Deer Park also shuttered, in 2020. (It was replaced by the weekend pop-up My Cookie Dealer).
The last remaining Johnny Rockets on Long Island remains at Splish Splash Water Park in Calverton, and will reopen next summer, according to a spokesperson for the park.
The California-based Johnny Rockets chain, founded in 1986, has been changing hands for the last few years. In 2013, Sun Capital Partners purchased the brand from RedZone Capital; two years ago, Johnny Rockets was purchased by FAT Brands for $25 million, a deal that was widely reported in the business press. FAT Brands also owns Hurricane Grill & Wings, Elevation Burger, Fatburger and a few other chains; numerous calls to the company were not answered.
Besides Calverton, the nearest places to get an offseason Johnny Rockets fix are Hoboken, New Jersey and the Palisades Center in West Nyack.
