Hungry Jack’s Ringwood: Officeworks to replace shut down Heatherdale Rd restaurant

A retail giant will soon be greeting visitors on Ringwood’s front door step, as fast food lovers continue to lament the loss of a longstanding Hungry Jack’s restaurant.

The abandoned Hungry Jacks restaurant on the corner of Maroondah Hwy and Heatherdale Rd, Ringwood. Picture: Kiel Egging.

UPDATE: A retail giant will replace an abandoned longstanding fast food restaurant on Ringwood’s front door step.

Hungry Jack’s closed its Ringwood restaurant on the corner of Maroondah Highway and Heatherdale Rd after its lease expired.

Its closure comes not long after Croydon’s Hungry Jack’s restaurant, next to the Croydon Hotel on Maroondah Hwy, also shut down.

Hungry Jack’s had operated at the prime corner site for decades, which was a Wendy’s restaurant in the early 80s.

But its fast food roots are a thing of the past, with Maroondah Council confirming rumours Officeworks will build a new Ringwood store.

Mayor Kylie Spears said on Thursday the council issued a planning permit to Officeworks in July 2020 to develop and use the land, which covers 3 Heatherdale Rd and 2A Maroondah Hwy.

It is unclear what the plans are for Officeworks’ existing Ringwood store on the corner of Maroondah Hwy and Pratt St.

Members of the Ringwood and District Historical Society Facebook page shared their thoughts on Hungry Jack’s closure.

Laura Rankin wrote: “Oh no. I went there heaps as a kid for parties and celebrating sporting wins,” while Gill Marsden wrote: “Wow, end of an era …”.

Fleur Smolenaers disagreed, saying the restaurant was “filthy at the best of times”, and Mitch Baldry described it as “an absolute dump towards the end”.

The restaurant was abandoned when Leader visited on January 31, with coffee cups, ironically from rivals McDonalds, visible on a table inside along with electrical cords hanging from the walls.

Signage was in place directing diners to Hungry Jack’s’ closest restaurant on Mt Dandenong Rd in Ringwood North, which is also home to a Shell service station.

A Hungry Jacks spokesperson said the restaurant closed “late last year” due to the lease expiry.
The fast food chain did not say if there were any plans to build another restaurant elsewhere in Maroondah.

“All employees were offered jobs at nearby restaurants and deliveries were redirected,” the spokesperson said.

“Hungry Jack’s continues to serve local residents from the Mt Dandenong Road restaurant.”

The closure is another blow for fast food lovers in the outer east, after rivals McDonalds recently closed its longstanding outlet at the Westfield Knox food court.

Pancake Parlour’s restaurant at Glen Waverley’s Century City Walk also has an uncertain future, with the restaurant temporarily closed since Melbourne’s lockdown.

Officeworks has been contacted for comment.