Claim Jumper Founder to Bid on Bankrupt Claim Jumper Chain

​Sometime soon, officials with Claim Jumper--that chain of Western-themed restaurants that I went to exactly once in my life, and I can't even remember what I ate except it wasn't memorable, hence the inexact memory--will announce the best bid that they will accept for the bankrupt chain.

Not expected to win, but submitting an offer nevertheless is one of the people who actually founded Claim Jumper: Craig Nickoloff.
Nation's Restaurant News has the scoop and also disclosed that Nickoloff has twice tried to buy back the chain he and his father founded in Los Alamitos in 1977 but was rebuffed by the corporation who owns it. Nickoloff is also crying foul about the lack of transparency in the bidding process.

For a good background on the local history of the chain, click here. Interesting note: Nickoloff's son runs Nick's Laguna and Nick's San Clemente, while a daughter runs a San Clemente sandwich shop.