Six Flags has closed Johnny Rockets, will demolish building

By Zander Frost, Chronicle Staff Writer

Six Flags has closed its Johnny Rockets restaurant and will demolish the building attached to its Great Escape Lodge on Route 9 in Queensbury.

“Given the age and space capabilities of the building and our exciting plans for the future, we have decided to design a new space that better aligns with our property makeup,” Great Escape Communications Manager Taylor Myers told The Chronicle Tuesday.

Six Flags will announce its plans for the new space “within the next couple of months,” Myers said.

“We hope to complete demolition by the end of Q1 in 2024,” Myers added.

The Johnny Rockets restaurant has been closed since September 2023.

“While evaluating our property for future plans and renovations, we decided to transition the dining option into the hotel in September 2023 and offered the same great Johnny Rockets menu to hotel guests through December,” Myers said.

“As we prepare for an exciting 2024, we look forward to providing more details in the near future,” said Myers.

Six Flags brought Johnny Rockets, a national diner chain, to this location in 2008, replacing Trapper’s Adirondack Grille.

The classic original log building housed the upscale Alfonso’s Restaurant in the mid-20th century.

In 1969 it was purchased by Carl R. Desantis, who turned it into The Red Coach Grill, a higher end chain of Howard Johnson’s, which the DeSantis family also operated locally.

Eventually they turned it into the independent Coachman. After that closed, its long-time manager Jack Gates opened Jack’s American Bistro, which the family still operates on Route 9 in Queensbury.