SALT LAKE CITY — The Training Table's original location in Utah has been closed for years, but Amber McBride still remembers ordering the Hawaiian burger and cheese fries like it was yesterday.
READ: Legendary hamburger chain set to open first-ever Utah locations
"The feeling of walking in and just the way the place made you feel was so different just a place where we knew we were safe to join as a family," McBride said. "I loved the phones for sure it just had this particular peeping kind of ring sound and when your order was ready it would buzz you."
McBride says she went to The Training Table with her family for 20 years, having nicknamed the restaurant "TT."
"We just would come here every Friday then would go swimming at my grandma's pool house in Murray," McBride recalled.
When the Utah restaurant chain closed its locations after nearly 40 years in 2016 following lawsuits filed among family members Amber was devastated.
"I cried actually," she said.
In October 2022 she and other Training Table fans got a glimpse of hope – the restaurant announced it would return with a "modern twist" including food trucks and full-scale restaurants.
"We were like 'oh that's going to be so great and bring our kids back and really show what we got to experience'," McBride said.
"I got really excited especially because they announced that they were going to sell the sauces too and the hickory sauce was amazing," said Training Table fan Ryan Thomas.
Thomas says he bought two packs of that amazing hickory sauce on The Training Table website.
"One of them came broken I immediately emailed them and they said that they would replace it," Thomas said.
It's now been almost two years and Ryan says he still hasn't received the replacement – others say they have received their orders.
The Training Table told Fox 13 News: "Currently, the sauce is out of stock. Those that pre-ordered sauce have received their order and any unfulfilled orders were refunded."
Thomas wasn't too concerned about the replacement, but whether or not the anticipated comeback is still happening.
"I was just wondering if something might have happened maybe financially or something that maybe it wasn't going to happen because there haven't been any updates on the website," Thomas said.
In a statement to FOX 13, The Training Table said: "The return of Training Table is still in progress! Keep an eye out for future announcements!" They did not share details as to what can be expected or when, but Thomas and McBride say they'll keep waiting for those cheese fries.
"I know they said they were going to have food trucks and physical locations I think that'd be awesome to see," Thomas said.
"I would just love to have a sit-down place with great food and just a fun interactive experience for family," McBride said.
