Griff's Hamburgers - The Director’s Cut - Denver, Colorado
Re-writing this story has been on my to-do list ever since…
Griff’s Hamburgers - The Director’s Cut
That logo rools with so many o’s…
******
Sunday, August 20, 2017.
Two excavators have been parked at the exit of Griff’s drive thru. Demolition is imminent. They showed up less than three weeks after what I wrote about Griff’s went online. Kicking myself for jumping the gun, posting a regrettable effort on a significant story. At that point, Four Baggers was only 11 days old. It was also the 11th story I wrote for it, and was absolutely rushed. This story is the 330th to appear on Four Baggers, meaning I didn’t keep up that pace.
Problem being, back then, I wanted to push stories out quickly, instead of putting in the effort to tell a better story. Also, I hadn’t figured out how I wanted to present these stories. What should be included? Locations I have a connection with should be given closer attention. I never even looked back on my hand written Griff’s notes from over the years. Which is what I should have done, instead of rushing to write the whole thing in an afternoon. (Much like the early days of Wasted Quarter…) Writing will always be an evolving process, but I’m able to do a better job of documenting the sad end of Griff’s, by waiting until today.
At least it has an end now!
We’ll start this off with a round of pictures I took on Sunday, February 23, 2014.
I’d driven up to take that week’s photos of the Gates Rubber Company Demolition (That week was Part 11, of the Gates Demolition Diary. I need to write a new one soon.), and told Laura that I’d bring Griff’s home, after I took my pictures. This would be her first introduction to Griff’s.
Griff's Hamburgers (or Griff's Burger Bar) is a regional chain of small fast food restaurants. Founded in March, 1960, by Harold J. Griffith, in Wichita, Kansas. His Griff's restaurants were typically built near freeway exits, in larger towns located along the route. They had semi-nationwide locations at one point in the 1960’s and 70’s, but were mainly concentrated in the south.
Today, there are three Griff's Hamburgers locations in Louisiana, and eight in Texas.
The last Griff’s in (Albuquerque) New Mexico closed on July 6th, 2023. Ownership pulled the plug because of crime and a rising homeless population around the restaurant. Declining to invest in an upgraded building, because the neighborhood was no longer worth it.
The building was demolished less than a week after the restaurant closed, to keep people from destroying the place on their own.
Eleven years after the Denver Griff’s closed, Yelp still has their review page up. And thank you for that! Now I can steal some photos! Which can sprinkle in a few happy images of tasty Griff’s food, amongst all the sad and depressing images of the place you used to get that tasty food from, falling into beautiful urban decay. And I firmly believe that my site is a better home for Griff’s photos than Yelp. People who like Griff’s deserve to see them.
And who’s going to look up restaurant reviews for a restaurant that closed 11 years ago?
Well… Besides me…
The signature feature of Griff's restaurants was the A-Frame building design. Starting in 1960 with the first Griff’s in Wichita, Kansas, they all had that same look. Though some (like this one in Denver) had a larger indoor seating area, they all featured outdoor patio seating, and a drive through window. No playgrounds or ball pits, nothing fancy. Plain and simple without a gimmick. However, I don’t know if the Denver Griff’s originally had this dining area, or if it was added later.
Original Griff’s Restaurants were actually prefabricated models from Valentine Diner’s mail order catalog. Also based out of Wichita, Kansas, they provided kits for many restaurants along the new Interstate Highway System and smaller highways, like the famous Route 66. Some of Valentine Diner’s pop-up diners are still standing today. A handful are still actual functioning restaurants.
Just Right Motors, at 3625 S Broadway in Englewood, used to a be a Griff's back in the late 1960's. It closed in the mid 1970’s, becoming a used car lot. This store had a much smaller dining area, than Denver’s Griff’s, a few miles north.
Let's check out the drive thru menu before heading inside... Only six combo meals? You don't need more! It's burgers! Oh, and use extreme caution... Griff's drive thru is a dangerous area! Probably just the surrounding neighborhood...
Here's the full drive thru menu, with a print out of their new hours taped to it. Not the thing easiest to read from your car. Basically, they open every morning at 9am, and stay open until 10pm. On Sunday’s, employees get to sleep in, as the store doesn’t open until 10am. If they closed that early (10:00pm) in 1998, I never would have tried this place...
Shout-out to fellow Pizza Taxi driver, Dwayne, who introduced me to how Griff’s unique nutritional wonderment fit in with an evening of drinking cheap beer!
Behind Griff’s A-Frame. With an external walk-in cooler outside the back door. Looking at the cramped set-up, it’s not surprising that several original Griff’s were demolished and rebuild as a more traditional fast food restaurant. Something this small works for the 1960’s, but 50 years later, it’s beyond obsolete.
The front counter inside. I accidentally had the flash on when I took this picture, and the cord got in the way. I should have taken another, but didn't. Either way, as you can see from the cashier station, this place couldn't get more basic.
Griff's had a nice patio for outdoor eating, in front of the building. Though it was way too cold to eat outside on this February morning. I wouldn’t want to share my food with sidewalk passers-by either. Those hard plastic umbrellas are nice and tacky, and very 1960’s. They were removed when Griff’s closed, while the picnic tables remained bolted in place. Wonder where they went and what they were used for.
The Giant Double Cheeseburger combo was my go to order, unless I was feeling a mood for the ultra greasy Triple Cheeseburger.
What a co-worker once compared to eating an entire meatloaf.
Gary?
******
The reason why this Griff’s re-write came about now, was just a few blocks north of the restaurant.
A few months ago, I wrote about the demolition of Kmart, at Broadway Marketplace. Broadway Marketplace sits at the corner of Broadway and Alameda, which was a frequently used intersection because of the one-way streets in the area. Needing Broadway to drive home, I became very familiar with the sites in this area. When I was putting that story together, naturally I Googled the neighborhood, to see what changed since we moved out of Colorado, in 2018.
Renewing my interest in the immediate area, and scratching the always present itch of homesickness…
Griff’s would always catch my eye, as I drove south on Broadway. Over its last couple years, that would be watching it decay on my left, as I passed through the 700 South block, just before Interstate 25 crosses over. Griff’s was still open for this picture, on May 19, 2015. Should have stopped in, but I didn’t this morning.
Just a couple hundred feet south of Griff’s, is the messy Broadway, Ohio Avenue and Interstate 25 junction. Always a disaster with the high volume Broadway traffic meeting the Ohio cross traffic, both trying to access the south and northbound Interstate ramps, from an obsolete, confined area. This blurry picture was taken in the early morning of September 24, 2017. Taken while driving south on Broadway, early in the morning. I’m continuing south of Broadway, so that’s not too difficult. But if you wanted to go north on 25, you had to make a left turn before the bridge, to make the on ramp hidden behind some old houses. To go south on 25, you’d have to wait in additional turn lanes that backed up at rush hour. Or nearly every other hour…
Looking at recent Googlesmobile drive-bys, this entire area is getting (or has gotten) a much needed revamp.
One of the casualties in this necessary re-construction, was Hurricane Drain. A pretty basic single level commercial building, at 800 South Broadway, with a distinct fence in front. Built of rocks, with large wagon wheels wedged between them. Just because it looked so cool, I tried to take a better picture of them, each time I drove through the area. This was taken September 12, 2015.
My last photo of Hurricane Drain was taken on May 13, 2018. Based on the large, Broadway facing window, being covered by sheets of plywood, I’d assumed the building was vacant. However, Googles shows the full wall window was closed off with smaller windows, after I left Colorado. Four years later, the building was demolished to allow for widening of Broadway, and the crossover to Lincoln Street.
Because why not, here’s a shot of a snowy Hurricane Drain, taken from the south, on April 30, 2017. These three photos pretty much sum up all I have to say about the Hurricane Drain building. Not like it was ever going to warrant its own story, though I did think it was a cool structure.
As this May 2025, Googlesmobile Drive-By shows, the whole interchange looks as drastically different as it could, given constraints. Hurricane Drain is long gone, wagon wheels with it. Ohio Avenue is still needed for northbound access, so that hasn’t really changed much. But the massive improvement comes for southbound freeway traffic, now exiting to right off Broadway. Crossing under the freeway, then rising to freeway level, crossing above Broadway, and merging onto I-25. Next to the southbound RTD Light Rail tracks.
Of course this image is already 17 months old, and I don’t live nearby anymore, so I’m going by assumptions of what I see. Someone tell the Googles to drive through here again, I need to see the finished product.
******
When I started this re-write, it was looking for interesting images of the Denver Griff’s, that would enhance my existing pile of material. Fingers crossed for something of historic value. Which didn’t really happen. But I found other interesting vintage Griff’s images, that I feel no shame in borrowing, because they’re awesome.
Like this 1963 newspaper ad for the Grand Opening of a new Griff’s, on Glenstone Avenue, in Springfield, Missouri. Wish the resolution was higher so the menu at the bottom was clearer, but their closing pitch can be read! “Hey, Dad! You’ll be amazed at how inexpensively you can feed the whole family! No tipping!”
On a completely unrelated note, don’t you find the recent scary crash of McDonald’s stock quite satisfying? That’s what you get for sheer price gouging greed, when your business model used to be that of Griff’s. When you price families out of your cheap food, eventually it’s going to hurt your overall business. Perhaps losing nearly a third of the value of their shares might teach their POS CEO exactly what McDonald’s role in today’s economy really is. I’m sure the Board wants answers as to where his direction is leading the company…
Anyways… Of course, after finding something like this vintage advertisement, the natural next question would be… What’s there now?
Oh there’s definitely some Griff’s in that building!
Will’s Chophouse (Steaks - Seafood - Cocktails) operates here today, but the building itself is up for sale (only $980,000 to own a piece of Griff’s history!). Our friends at Loop.net provide the important piece of information. This was built in 1963. No idea when Griff’s left here, but it had to be decades ago. Loop also tells me the building was renovated in 2025. From photos uploaded to the Googles, the interior is stunning, given what is was.
While I knew nothing about when the Griff’s in Springfield, Missouri, closed, I knew when the Denver restaurant did…
In July, 2015, Griff's announced they would be closing their final two Colorado locations (second one being in Arvada). Vice President of Griff’s, Harvey Fattig, made a statement on the closure, and had someone tape it to the front entrance door. While it sucks, I understand the logic in closing the two Colorado Griff’s. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to operate two restaurants so far away from headquarters in Dallas, Texas. The chain is just too small for that distance to work out today. Same thought applied to not rebuilding in Albuquerque. Though both stores closed for entirely different reasons.
Sunday, August 23, 2015.
Griff’s Denver closed a few days before I showed up for pictures. Pretty sure it was still open the previous Thursday, so the office got our final Griff’s night in, before it was all over. Pretty sure we did, my notes don’t cover anything. But it was a Thursday night tradition.
Knowing Griff’s had closed, I wanted to get a round of pictures to preserve it before too much change took place on the property. When I got off work that Sunday morning, it was at the top of my list for pictures I wanted to take before going home.
Starting with the last window on the right side, let’s all look at the seating area!
Back half of the dining room. Restroom entrance doors would be on the right side of this picture. As I’d mentioned, fellow Brother-In-Pizza, Dwayne introduced me to Griff’s while we were out drinking in 1998. I don’t know if it’s the same physical table, on the left of this picture, but this is where we chose to sit. Should have taken a better picture of that table. Just as I should have taken better overall pictures through these dirty windows.
Here is the front part of the dining room... Taken through the window to the right of the entrance, and just above the “CLOSED” sign, leaning against it. Too blurry for any details, but you get the idea.
Yelp reviewer supplied photo of Griff’s front counter, taken July 18, 2014. This would be just to the left of the entrance door. Rows of self-service ketchup bottles sit next to napkin dispensers. Yelp had numerous reviews complaining about Griff’s using Hunts ketchup, instead of Heinz. But that never bothered me. The lunchroom at my current job stocks Hunts ketchup packets instead of Heinz, and I honestly can’t tell the difference.
The only thing you have to remember is: “The BEST DEAL is a COMBO MEAL!”
Unless you’re bringing your order home. Or aren’t that wild about the fries, and have your own beverage supply in the fridge. Then use that savings on a second cheeseburger. After all, that’s what you came here for…
Back to my blurry pictures!
Looking across the dining room to the restrooms, bringing up the rear.
Continuing on to looking inside the main entrance doors. The final clean-up and clearing out was underway, but hadn’t barely affected the front counter. The menu is intact and still half lit. Some of the homemade signs have been removed from the wall, but most are still there. Teasing me…
“I can see my Griff’s Double Cheeseburgers… I just can’t HAAAAAAAVE them…”
That made someone laugh, who has never eaten at Grif’s.
Looking across the front lobby. Assorted stuff and garbage is starting to migrate toward the exits.
A glimpse of my old car can be seen through the side door.
View through the drive up window, towards the cashier area.
That coffee maker is REALLY tall!
Inside the drive up window, around from where the outgoing food door sits. Looks like the drive thru window area has been mostly cleared out already. Shelves and napkin holders are empty, but drink cup lids are still stocked above fountain nozzles. Door exiting to the lobby, propped open against the fountain. Griff’s served Coke products!
Combo meals are still being promoted next to the main drive thru menu board.
That means, by law, they have to honor it. And I want a Double Cheeseburger!
Sure miss 2015 prices… And 1998 prices…
While the main drive thru menu board has already been stripped of its menu.
Which, also by law, cancels out the previous menu board.
Walking around the drive thru, I took a closer look at the “Extreme Caution Dangerous Area” sign. It was attached to a pole, with a security camera above it. But what’s going on between them?
ENHANCE!!!
Strange, there’s about an 18 inch tall strip of sharp, half-inch spikes, wrapping around the pole. So the “Dangerous Area” is actually in reference to those spikes? Did they lose too many security cameras to pole-climbing theft, that these extreme measures were necessary? I don’t know… Seems really weird to have this.
One more shot of the north facing Griff’s sign before setting out on my merry way… Never tried the Cheesy Chicken BLT sandwich before, but it sounds really good. You’ve got chicken (likely a breaded breast patty), cheese, bacon, lettuce and tomato. Can’t wrong with that combination. Just hold the mayo for me. Griff’s did like to slather the mayo on every sandwich they sold…
******
While doing my patented half-assed research, I discovered that Griff’s Hamburgers appeared in four separate Zippy the Pinhead comic strips, over the years. Zippy artist Bill Griffith, shares a last name with the Griff’s founder, but I couldn’t find anything saying they were related. Nothing about Calvin Griffith either.
Zippy the Pinhead first played off this shared name, in a 2004 strip:
Never tried the Griff’s “Steak” sandwich either. Just didn’t look quite right to me.
Used to enjoy Zippy the Pinhead comics in the Rocky Mountain News, back in the Kenyon days (1996-2003). Although, I’ll admit not getting some of them. I’d assume the punchline was an inside joke to certain members of his audience. Which is a style I love… And use…
Makes me reflect on how I absolutely miss reading newspapers every day. Yeah, the internet, and anything I want to find out, is right there in my pocket. I get it… Not the same thing… Newspapers were a morning cigarette tradition between 1997 and 2003. Not everything obviously, but it gave you a good idea of what was going on, in a convenient format. I blame the lack of daily newspaper for not following baseball as close as I used to. At least on a game by game basis.
Newspapers today are shells of themselves and not worth buying.
And that’s just sad.
******
Saturday, September 12, 2015.
Three weeks later, I gave the Griff’s parking lot a quick drive thru.
All Griff's markings were removed from the property, except for “Hamburgers" on top of the sign. It stayed until the end. As the abandoned restaurant underneath it continued to decay, there was always a reminder of what it used to be. The un-removed patio tables frozen in time, are a nice touch as well.
The drive thru menu board has already been tagged. Along with the exterior walk-in cooler.
That didn’t take long…
North side of the Griff’s building. With the trademark A-frame and lobby extensions. Seems like it would be incredibly cramped to work inside. It’s no wonder that Griff’s management were rebuilding their restaurants closer to Dallas, Texas, headquarters. If you’re going to invest in nearby locations, updating the buildings is the way to go.
The Denver, Colorado, Griff’s Hamburgers was built in 1966. Yeah, an obsolete deign that was impractical for today, but it had character. In a world of boxey, glassy, panelly, cubey architecture, seeing a property that looked like Griff’s, on the southbound drive down Broadway, was an oasis.
An early morning drive-by shot of Griff’s, taken November 15, 2015.
When my first Griff’s story was posted, I erroneously wrote that a temporary security fence was placed around the property, shortly after it closed. This photo obviously proves me wrong. Again, had I looked through my notes from that time, I would have corrected those simple errors in memory. I’d blame Nature’s Kiss, a few miles further south on Broadway, but I know better.
Thanks for the Griff’s French Fry bag, Yelp!
Wasn’t a big fan of Griff’s fries. Which are basically your typical skinny cut potatoes, that all fast for restaurants served. By the time you get them home or back to work, tend to cool down into a cold and flaccid texture, devoid of flavor without an unhealthy amount of salt. Fries cut that small cool off very quickly, but I’d imagine if they were hot and crisp, direct from the deep fryer, they’d be pretty good.
Some people really liked them, according to Yelp and internet lore. But I’d say more people were less favorable towards Griff’s French Fries, overall. At least the percentage of those that had a strong enough opinion to write about it online…
******
When I wrote the first Griff’s story, it was just about the building alone. I hadn’t even considered something that I’d eventually start doing a whole lot of. Adding related outside material. Stuff like Yelp images, newspaper ads and Zippy the Pinhead comics. Or covering related locations, associated with the main subject matter. In the case of Griff’s, some of the other buildings nearby, that I associate with driving through that part of Broadway.
If I’m making a left turn onto Broadway, from Center Avenue (the 600 block), the Denver Design District will be in front of me. All I know about the place it sells stuff for rich people’s homes. Furniture, kitchen appliences, flooring, stuff like that. The building being somewhat interesting, as it’s on the earliest side of the current boxey, glassy, panelly, cubey architecture trend.
Do want to make note of that big yellow thing you can see behind it. Regret never driving over for some pictures of it, but it’s one of Denver’s more signature sculptures. You can see it from the raised I-25 bridge, but don’t look at it too long or you’ll destroy your (and several other people’s) car. Some call it the stack of French Fries, but you’d have to be super, mega autistic to stack your French Fries in that manner.
Either way, Denver’s Articulated Wall, for a large city landmark sculpture, beats the ever-loving crap out of Minneapolis’ “Spoon Bridge”.
I hate the Spoon Bridge SO MUCH!!!
While you’re waiting for the light to turn at that same intersection, the building directly to your left would be an old Denver Fire Station. Built in 1892, and used as a fire station until 1974. Chances are some of the firefighters occasionally walked down to Griff’s for a tasty cheeseburger, while waiting for a fire to break out. In this 2015 photo, the renovated (don’t know when) fire station was being used by Commerce Kitchen, a marketing firm.
Today it’s a dispensary, because Denver.
The paint job on Gold Star Radiator (696 South Broadway) always caught my eye. The stars and the implied Denver Bronco colors stood out, while driving south. According to the Googles, the Gold Star Radiator building dates back to 1910.
Across the street is Toyexus. Griff’s next door neighbor is a mechanic, specializing in these specific car breeds. They should have tried to incorporate more of their specialty, into their name. Next time I drive down South Broadway, I want to see a sign for: “Acurtoybarudaionxus”.
Winning you the game of Honkass Scrabble on a single turn, but the set up is key.
Griff’s sat on the east side of Broadway, in the middle of the 700 South block. Directly across the street, on the west side of Broadway, were these three buildings. All three were active in 2018, when I last came through. So it was kind of sad to see them all boarded up and fenced off in July 2022. Then completely removed from the Earth, a year later. The smaller structure in the middle and to the right of it was Performance Radiator. They moved from here in early 2021, opening a new shop on South Rosemary Street.
The larger warehouse type building on the left was being used by a Fresenius Dialysis clinic, in 2017. They cleared out of the place by 2020. Not sure what else it was used for, before and after.
On September 24, 2017, I was walking around the block as the Griff’s building had just been demolished. Taking additional photos of the surrounding businesses. The attempt at making a cactus-shaped sign pole was something I wanted record of. Also found amusing how they used an “X” message board letter, as a back slash, with some poor modification. Too bad some local ruffians still felt the need to tag the base of the fake cactus pole.
So disrespectful…
Front of the Fresenius Dialysis clinic, in September 2017. Their sign took second billing to the giant “WAREHOUSE FOR RENT” sign above it, at least five times larger. My assumption being the clinic didn’t use much of the building, so the were still looking to rent a big chunk of the vacant warehouse.
July, 2022, Googles Drive-By. The building’s last days. Surrounded by a temporary fence, tagging covered up by mismatched paint, windows boarded up. The “WAREHOUSE FOR RENT” sign has ripped and fallen off, revealing “CARPET FIRST” underneath. So I guess I know a little more of building’s history. It was a carpet store, before servicing kidneys. And probably more, in between.
A sign hung in the parking lot warning people to not park their cars in the lot, in order to use the RTD Light Rail. Main parking for which was on both sides of, and underneath the freeway overpass. Ironically, after the three buildings were demolished, the entire area was paved over for additional RTD Light Rail parking. After a temporary usage for construction staging, while the Boadway / Ohio / I-25 interchange was being redone.
******
As I mentioned earlier, I was way off in my first story on when the temporary fence went up around Griff’s. It was definitely after January 24, 2016…
This would be my last photo of Griff’s without the fence. Still kicking myself today for this low-light drive-by shot, instead off pulling into the still accessible parking lot for my last window shots. I still wish I knew what happened to the interior after being closed for five months. None of the windows had been covered, so everyone still had easy access. But tagging was still at a minimum. The roof had some fresh marks and less fresh mis-colored cover-ups, but none of the windows had been smashed in. I’m certain people had gone inside, because there’s always a way…
According to my notes, the temporary fence went up around Griff’s in early February, 2016. I noted my disgust with myself for missing my opportunity a few weeks earlier. That fence added a sense of impending doom to Griff’s. As long as the building was still somewhat decent looking, they could always come back!
“Sorry Denver, we were just kidding! We only took a vacation, have some Double Cheeseburgers!”
Now with the fence surrounding the building and parking lot, the countdown to demolition was on. Thought it was funny they secured the property, but still didn’t cover the windows with plywood. They’re practically begging to be shattered, and the local taggers already are having a field day with this place. I noted that as sad as it was, it would also be perversely fun watching this place get devoured by urban decay…
Sadly, it was…
You know, that drawing of Uncle Sam really reminds me of an Uncle Sam drawing my friend Freelance did for one of his old comic book series. I’m thinking, the “It’s War!” mini-series? Could be the Nature’s Kiss talking, but every time I see this ad, I picture a Griff’s/Staplegenius promotional crossover…
The kids meal toys alone, would be the collectible of legends!
Because Griff’s had been pretty much closed off, I was reduced to giving it a subliminal nod, every time I drove by. I stopped taking pictures of because it was usually tricky with traffic or low-light at the times of day I passed. But it was decaying. Several waves of heavy graffiti would cover the walls and windows, then get scraped off or covered up, over the next year. But most of that got ignored, as I only took a couple pictures of Griff’s in 2016.
By 2017, I decided to put in a little effort again…
Sunday, January 22, 2017.
Driving north on Broadway, in the middle of the re-route to Lincoln St. I wanted a picture of the strange vacant triangle-shaped lot, just north of the bypass. Always loved the ratty barbed wire topped chain link fence, with various piles of garbage and weeds kept in by it. Just a quick drive by camera click, the quality not being my top concern. Even though I hadn’t yet started this blog, I needed pictures like this one. This picture is never going to be the story, but it will enhance a story.
ENHANCE!!!
Through multiple layers of chain link fence, beyond the alley, is the back corner of Griff’s. Rotting away through a second winter of neglect. That reminded me, I needed to pay attention to Griff’s before it disappeared for good. Much of the A-Frame roof has been covered in white paint, so you can’t see the artwork of those that dared to climb the steep angle, for their craft.
The picture I took of Griff’s on my return drive south, had a conveniently placed moving car blocking what could have been a decent shot. Hope getting on I-25 was worth it, you A-hole!
April 30, 2017. A light snowstorm dusted Denver.
It would melt in a few hours, as most spring snowstorms did, but I loved the accenting effect on the abandoned Griff’s.
Made me think of dessert!
Griff’s wall hanging dessert menu, courtesy of a Yelp review from November 17, 2012. This would have been in the front lobby, with the kitchen entrance on the right. Opposite side of this door was seen earlier in my drive thru window picture. It was next to the Coke fountain.
I never tried any of Griff’s Ice Cream options, but Laura really liked the Strawberry Shortcake.
******
Sunday, May 7, 2017.
A week after taking the snow picture, I decided it was time to park the car and walk around the fenced-in Griff’s. They would be the last pictures I took of Griff’s, before writing the first story in July.
Leaning against the temporary fence, the place isn’t looking all that bad. Again, none of the windows are smashed in, and the latest round of paint has been scraped off. Despite being doomed, some care is being taken to not let the place fall completely apart.
Patio tables are looking a little rough, though still in perfectly workable condition. They do need those cool red umbrellas above them. If you look really close, you can see a lower case cursive “s”, in the black rocks on the corner of the building. Years ago, a metal Griff’s logo was bolted to the wall here. The “s” was all that remained when the building was torn down.
ENHANCE!!!
In all the pictures I took of Griff’s, the only one that really shows this sign was used at the beginning of this story. That picture from December, 2013, shows the sign. But even then, the “I” was missing. Since the wall has no “I”, I cropped in the pay phone. Just because US West hadn’t been a thing for at least 15 years before I took the photo.
Griff’s stand-up pay phone was still there for a while after it closed. Finally removed at some point in 2016. The pole it was attached to, stayed behind. Collecting a nice amount of graffiti.
The building has had several fresh coats of paint applied to it over the last two years. Obviously, it's going to be a magnet for taggers to leave their mark. The property managers will wage a never ending battle to keep foreign paint off the structure. Not long before I took these pictures, the entire front wall and windows were covered in black and silver paint (matching what you see on the left side of the building). Some poor schlub had to scrape the paint off the windows, knowing that it's going to need to be done again very soon. On a building that will never see re-use.
Either they hadn’t gotten to this north side window yet, or the artist had already returned…
That cheerful patio is a lot sadder now.
The drive up window, almost two years after closing. Honestly doesn’t look that bad. Seems to have been kept free of most of the spray paint, and you can even almost see inside. Wish I could’ve seen inside. Really wanted to know how trashed the interior was after this much time had passed.
The back of the Griff’s. I am shocked at how intact and not destroyed the back of the building is. No one has even dumped a mattress or couch behind here. Not that I know of anyway. It probably happened. It usually does. Does look like the electricity to the building has been cut, despite all the overhead wires still hanging in. Definitely another sign that Griff’s is not long for this world.
Drive thru menu board has all its glass intact!
I would have not put money on that happening…
One of the “Extreme Caution Dangerous Area” signs have been removed. Along with the security camera. However, those spike strips are still attached to the pole. Hope no one was harmed when the camera was taken down… Or the one sign…. Still don’t understand those spike strips.
A September 2014 Yelp review shines on the Griff’s fountain drinks. Yes, they served Coke products, as any good burger chain should, but where Griff’s stood above was their use of crushed ice. (And a lot of it!) When we ordered dinner from Griff’s at work, the crushed ice filled cup would provide a nice dessert of “chewing water”, after the last of the Coke went up the straw.
Brought back memories of the crushed ice in the 99 Spllihp fountains, that sustained late night caffeine binges through the mid 1990’s.
******
Since I’ve covered the buildings to the north and west of Griff’s, may as well look at what was immediately south of it.
From my December, 2013, walk from Gates Rubber Company (which was Part 4 of the Gates Rubber Company Demolition Diary), up to Griff’s for pictures. From left to right: Gold Star Radiator, Toyexus, Griff’s, a vacant building, and the Yoga Center of Denver.
The “Kawai Time” clock, in front of the Yoga Center, in September 2017.
Around 2015, the vacant building was filled by Botica Del Sol. Just another fancy name for: "You buy your weed here!" They didn’t last here for too long.
The Yoga Center of Denver has been here for a while. Then there’s the vacant building next door. I’ll come back to this later, because after all that Yoga, I need a good, cheap, milkshake!
Took a bit of effort, but I figured out this very old Griffs advertisement was for the store in Tulsa, Oklahoma. What was even more fascinating were the results in playing the “is it still there?” game…
Wow, one of the original Griff’s is indeed still standing today, in Tulsa. Stopped selling cheap, greasy burgers in the late 1970’s. It’s now part of an automotive repair business, but that was definitely a Griff’s! The fact it’s sitting amongst auto repair garages, trying to fit in, but standing out so drastically. Almost like it was moved here intentionally. Knowing what it was 50 years ago is almost hilarious.
******
Sunday, August 20, 2017.
Three weeks after I posted my first Denver Griff’s story, I knew I’d made a big mistake…
A new banner has been affixed to the temporary fence surrounding Griff’s.
And two new large visitors have moved in behind that temporary fence surrounding Griff’s.
Now I definitely had to park the car and walk around the place again. Given these two new developments, Griff’s might not be here the next time I drive by.
Jeez… Don’t jump the curb there… And watch out for the picnic tables!
Just block off the drive thru while you’re at it!
Someone decided that as a sort of last rites, a good idea would be to throw paperback pamphlets of the New Testament, over the temporary fence at the restaurant. At least someone was thinking of Griff’s salvation…
The front windows of Griff’s have once again been painted over by the same crew of taggers.
I’ll give them this, they are a lot more talented than Flar and Dert…
Looks like that lower case “s” is going down with the ship.
I really wonder what happened to the G, R, I, and the two F’s…
On October 20, 2014, some Yelp reviewer decided to photograph his (or hers) Griff’s lunch, outside on one of the patio tables. Appreciate the care taken in the presentation. I’m sure it was very important to you that your sunglasses are given a prominent placement in the overall composition.
Because style’s what’s important here!
I can almost taste that burger…
Here’s a copy of the menu (dated January 2012) that burger was ordered from
(In the broader sense of the term.)
For a few years, a 9pm Griff's run was a weekly Thursday night tradition, at my job. Anywhere from 2-7 people placing an order that night. When asked at the window, the Griff’s worker gave us a printed take-out menu. Now we wouldn't have to spend way too long figuring out what burger dressings and side items they had, as we were getting our order together each week.
After Griff’s closed in 2015, I decided that menu needed to be a part of the Archives. So it was separated from its take-out menu brothers, like Jimano’s Pizzeria, Mama Mia’s, Twin Eagle, 4 G’s, Rebellion Pizza, Lenny’s Subs, Joyce’s Famous Pizza and Long John Silver’s in our department “food options” envelope. This story wasn’t planned when I grabbed it, but it’s a good thing I did, just in case…
******
Saturday, September 2, 2017.
Once again, noting changes at the site, I decided to do a walk around Griff’s again this morning…
Hmmm… Excavators are gone… Maybe they were just kidding about the demolition? Similar to how Griff’s was just kidding about their closing the store, and are really just taking a long vacation. Boy will they have a lot of work to do when they get back… For one thing, the silver bubble letters are back. Smeared all across the front windows. Which still aren’t broken at all.
Actually, I’m the one kidding about this. The excavators had moved to the south side of the building. Positioning themselves to move in for the kill. Which would take place over the next couple of weeks.
Back of the pay phone stand has seen a sharp increase in new artwork, since my last visit.
With one particular sticker standing out…
ENHANCE!!!
Dotty computer printed, but filled with the enthusiasm of a close group of friends.
How trashed is it, behind those doors?
Something odd is in the months leading up to Griff’s demolition, I didn’t see any of the typical asbestos removal going on. Usually, before a building goes down, you see plastic up over windows and a door boarded up, with ventilation holes punched in. As far as I know, none of that took place at Griff’s. They just knocked it over one day. Doubt it would have taken much longer…
Found it hilarious that the “Neighborhood Watch” flyer was taped to the drive thru window upside-down. It’s been that way since it was first posted. Wondered if it had a secret meaning, since it was intentionally done that way. Perhaps Toyexus said they were keeping a close eye on the place, while ignoring outbreaks of the silver plague attacking the windows?
Either way, Griff’s is closed, and will be demolished very soon.
Hats off to Tyco for doing a good job of not letting the place get gutted by vandals.
A little dignity on the way out, is a nice end.
December 15, 2009, Yelp review photo of the booths and tables inside Griff’s. No expense was spared on interior design! And that’s what made this place and the food awesome. It was basic, simple, cheap and good.
Goodbye, Denver Griff’s.
******
Sunday, September 24, 2017.
Obviously I was here for pictures of whatever’s left of Griff’s, but I also walked down to the end of the block for pictures of the vacant building next to the Yoga Center of Denver.
My patented half-assed research couldn’t find anything out about the place, other than it was built in 1910. I did find hints that it had fairly recent useage for a rage room, but nothing solid to write about. (We lost big time on “Break Stuff”, now didn’t we, Doktor…)
In 2017, the entrance looked like this. Doesn’t exactly imply much business is going on there. More recent Googlesmobile Drive By’s show these doors are covered by plywood. The trees in front of the building have also been cut down to allow for widening of Broadway.
Windows were uncovered in 2017, but are fairly high up. All of them had similar tagging on the glass. I raised my camera up and took blind pictures through each of them, but most were unusable or showed nothing.
One of the windows showed this interesting purple room. A counter with contains painted on, along with the words: “Lost and Found, A Sanctuary For All.”
Deep.
South of the building was a triangle shaped parking lot, fit in with the northbound Broadway bypass to Lincoln St. Not to mention the similar triangle-shaped lot directly across the alley from this. There were a few cars parked against the white-painted wall today, so I didn’t bother with trying to take an unobstructed picture of a long white wall. Really wasn’t interesting enough to care about.
A few months before moving back to Minnesota, that white wall was painted with a mural running the length and height of the building. That looked really cool, and gave you something interesting to see while make the Broadway/Lincoln switchover. Looking at the various Googles pictures since I left Denver, the mural has changed a few times, but reflecting life in Denver.
But like everything these days, it doesn’t take long for a good idea to spoil. Not even four years in this case… I get the idea of local football pride for a mural, but when 1/7 of that mural is advertisement for Budweiser, you lost a lot of points. Now I find no issue with taggers painting over any of the mural. This is no longer art, it’s a sponsored advertisement. The damn Bud Light logo would have been the first thing I painted over, if I were to do that sort of thing.
Not sure why there’s a big section of plywood against the building. I wondered if it was covering a massive hole, but found no evidence of that on the Googles. The addition of a broken couch is a nice touch, as well.
Speaking of advertisements…
Advertisement for Griff’s Sioux Falls, South Dakota, location. Unfortunately, Griff’s flopped in their expansion this far north. They opened the restaurant in January 1966, but had closed by mid 1970.
“Where friends meet to eat and eat and eat for less!”
May want to workshop that slogan a little bit longer…
After Griff’s bombed, a Mexican restaurant opened inside the building, in January 1972. This wasn’t successful either, and closed after about a year. Couldn’t find any date of when, but the Sioux Falls Griff’s was demolished decades ago. A shiny new(er) Burger King sits on the former Griff’s property, today. Burger King isn’t bad, and has put in commendable effort to improve their product over the last couple years.
However, it’s no Griff’s…
Griff’s Hamburgers role in the fast food landscape, reminds me a whole lot of Burger Time. Their first drive-thru only restaurant opened in Fargo, North Dakota, in 1987. They quickly grew to around 15 stores around Minnesota, North and South Dakota. The one in my hometown opened in 1988 and closed in 1997. During their limited run, Burger Time developed a small and loyal following in the area. (Similar to Griff’s in the south.)
Burger Time, Coon Rapids, Minnesota (photo from January 2000).
The former Coon Rapids Burger Time building is still standing today, but has become a tragically sad, neglected and fascinating museum of urban decay. Of course I wrote a story about the Coon Rapids Burger Time (and the Burger Time franchise), a few years ago. Earlier this year, that story was followed up with a story about Burger Time’s failed return to the (far) northern Twin Cities suburbs. Opening a restaurant in Ham Lake, that didn’t stay open for even six months.
Burger Time still operates six restaurants today, but only two in Minnesota. Staying comfortable in smaller towns in the sparsely populated tri-state region, while hinting at future possible expansion. (Similar to Griff’s!) They do still have an open Burger Time drive thru, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Which is one of their longest running stores.
An observant Yelp reviewer took this great photo of Griff’s “Add Cheese…” banner. Which hung from the support beam, between the cash registers and coffee pots and napkin dispensers. First off, the item: “Pile of Cheddar” just amuses me. Which would be enough, except for that typo at the bottom… It wasn’t fixed, but crossed out with a Sharpie.
Classic.
In the summer of 1999, I had a job where I cut vinyl letters on a plotter, and attached them to vinyl advertising banners. Fixing this spelling mistake wouldn’t have been too big of a deal. Scrape off the “We service great” letters, and cut a new “We serve great” set, re-center and apply. No one would ever know it was changed.
That’s about all I remember from my three month stint working with those horrible Christians at Amar-A-Ngis, in Lakewood.
Hope someone saved that banner.
******
Since my last visit to Griff’s, this happened…
That’s not the Denver Griff's being quickly removed from standing, but the old restaurant in Irving, Texas. However, unlike Denver, the old Irving Texas location was rebuilt as a modern Griff’s restaurant. With a kitchen large enough to actually work inside!
Not the same happy ending in Denver…
This is what I saw when I drove by to park and walk, on Sunday September 24, 2017.
Komatsu excavator finished off the building, leaving only the drive through exit light pole standing.
A small painted tile survived the demolition unscathed.
Now I want to know its origin story, and where it ended up next.
Hopefully saved somewhere, and not just landfill fodder.
Appears the Komatsu was still chewing on some pavement when the day was called the night before.
Demolition remains have been sorted into piles, and are almost all cleared away.
This would have likely been chunks of curbing that wrapped around the building.
All that’s left of the Griff’s building.
Various pieces of twisted scrap metal, waiting for the next truck out of here.
Several cylinder shaped chunks of concrete sit along the pile. Previously anchoring the exterior lights around the property, parking lots and building. They look like they were buried pretty deep in the soil, and have to be fairly heavy. Close to 75 pounds, I’d bet!
From across the street, in front of Performance Radiator.
When buildings are torn down around Denver, they typically leave the parking lots and floors stuck to the ground, to prevent erosion. Not the case here, as the Griff’s property was scraped to the topsoil. Meaning someone intends to build something here, rather quickly.
Won’t be this…
Griff’s patio tables, from a May 2015, Yelp review.
Is that someone digging through the trash, under the sign?
How would Bill Griffith feel?
Zippy the Pinhead - 2007
This was my favorite of the four Griff’s themed Zippy strips.
******
While I’m still in the area, there’s another nearby now-gone retail building I feel deserves a mention…
Coloradoland Tire, formerly at 887 South Broadway. Wedged between the Interstate 25 and RTD Light Rail bridges, at the base of the freeway exit ramp. I took this picture walking down Broadway, on December 15, 2013. Love this picture because of the mostly intact Gates Rubber Company standing behind it.
You know a whole lot of Griff’s was consumed inside that factory, over the years…
Found conflicting reports on the property used by Coloradoland Tire. I read the site dates back to the 1920’s, when it was part of the South Broadway Lumber Yard. Which would be sold off years later, likely when I-25 plowed through south Denver. This corner of the lumber yard property would be converted to an automotive repair garage. Also found stories saying the address of Coloradoland Tire was first used by the Gates Rubber Company, as a retail tire and rubber shop. Before expansion to the massive campus Gates grew into, from 1910-1990, just south and west of this spot.
Was always on my radar because of its location, and likely ties to everything around it, that was a story. Plus, every so often, the Coloradoland Tire employees would put funny messages on their reader board!
Such as this one, from August, 2015:
Or this classic from January 2016…
Some others caught by Googles over the years:
“Don’t be like Brady, check your air pressure.” - September 2015
“Got 99 problems? Your car should not be 1 of them” - October 2016
“Now hiring new customers. Apply within” - September 2017
And…
“Relocating. Last day 10 19.” - November 2018
Coloradoland Tire ceased operations here, on October 19, 2018. They relocated somewhere, but with so many Coloradoland Tire locations around the Denver metro area, I couldn’t tell which one. This a Google photo from about a month after it closed. Not long after closing, the building was demolished. Unlike Griff’s, the floor and parking lot were not scraped up and cleared out. Staying in place util mid-2024, when the property was dug up during Broadway re-construction.
Pretty sure its future use will be absorbed into the RTD Park & Ride lot.
I sure wouldn’t want try and establish a business at that location.
******
There are still 11 Griff’s Hamburgers open in 2026, in Texas and Louisiana, today. About half of which have been rebuilt in a modern style, some remain open in the original prefabricated models from Valentine Diner’s mail order catalog.
You can download their current take-out menu from their website.
Griff’s Take-Out Menu, August, 2026.
Varies a bit from my 2012 model. But the prices are still favorable when held against their peers.
Construction at the Denver Griff’s property began shortly after the last remains were removed. Between October and November, 2017, a foundation was dug out and poured. In December, above-ground work began. This picture was taken December 25th, 2017. During my annual Colorado X-Mess morning photo tour tradition.
Miss doing those…
January 28, 2018. I didn’t put in the effort to look it up, but I assumed this was going to become an apartment building. Because Denver in 2018…
April 8, 2018. Yeah, that looks apartmenty.
April 29, 2018. Still looks apartmenty, to me.
May 19, 2018. The last photo I took of the Denver Griff’s property, before moving to Minnesota.
I was still betting on apartments, though I didn’t understand why they’d leave a big cut-out section in the middle. Unfortunately, I wasn’t sticking around to find out… Good thing I wasn’t waiting for Gates redevelopment either. That property still looks the same today, as it did when I left.
They’re promising massive apartment clusters by 2035 though!
And will life then, really be any better than it was in 1960?
These Griff’s Grand Openings were all for restaurants around Fort Worth, Texas. This would have been from the initial wave of Texas Griff’s, in 1960. Three of the mentioned locations (4224 E. Lancaster, 5525 E. Belknap, and 5350 River Oaks Blvd.) are still open today. Griff’s on Belknap and River Oaks Blvd. have been rebuilt as modern restaurants, while the Lancaster building is still the 1960 original Valentine Diner model. Griff’s on Camp Bowie Blvd. closed many years ago, and is now a Wendy’s.
What else do we have here?
“Griffy” the Handpuppet. Known to ALL from ROMPER ROOM. Now available at all 4 locations.
Apparently there was a promotion between Griff’s and the children’s television show, Romper Room. And puppets were involved… I need to know more! Guess it was more a local sponsorship deal, with nothing officially licensed under Romper Room. However, Griff’s initially DID sell puppets of their weird mascot, Griffy.
OH MY GOD!!! I WANT THAT PUPPET SO F-ING BAD!!!
Because I can’t finish this story without knowing what the ultimate end for Griff’s property was, let me fire up the Googles, on more time…
Sub-Zero, Wolf & Cove by Roth Living.
An upscale kitchen appliance store.
All of their products are made in America, so that’s something.
Needs a cool logo/mascot though…
I did save my last Griff’s Bag.
Shockingly grease free, considering what was once inside it.
You know, it would be great if this sack was full again...
******
My first Griff’s story led to a self-imposed “Griff’s Rule”. Meaning that I won’t write a story about a well known (to me) property, until its fate is known. Many buildings are likely to be cleared within several years of their last use, so you just sit on them. A story really isn’t complete if the building is still much as you last saw it. Needs to be gone or renovated for a new tenant.
An amendment to this rule comes if it’s not someplace I’m likely going to see either often or again.
Regardless, my first Griff’s story has bothered me for over 9 years now.
So I finally made it right!
Wish I could celebrate with a Giant Double Cheeseburger Combo…
Or TWO!!!
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