Roy's and L&L Hawaiian Barbecue have once again appeared among the Top 400 Chain Restaurants list compiled annually by Restaurants & Institutions magazine.

It ranks systemwide food-and-beverage sales and the strength of brands, not companies, according to an explanation of the publication's methodology.

Roy's dipped to 230 from last year's ranking of 214—it had been No. 201 on the 2006 list with 34 locations.

R&I listed Roy's as having 26 units in 2008, though the restaurant's Web site says there are 27. The location in Scottsdale, Ariz., a big restaurant city, recently closed, leaving Roy's restaurants in Phoenix and Chandler, Ariz.

Roy's sales slumped nearly 24 percent year over year, according to the magazine's estimates. Not all companies disclose sales figures to the magazine.

L&L's ranking also dipped a bit this year, to 283 from 263. The latter figure was the highest it has been on the R&I list.

Last year's list credited L&L with having 180 units in 2007, but this year's list cited 177 units in 2008. L&L reported an 11.1 percent dip in 2008 sales compared with 2007 results.

In fact, sales were down at 56 of the restaurant chains, flat at 244 but up at 100 chains including perennial chart-topper McDonald's.

None of the top 15 restaurant chains, which retained their rankings from last year, saw sales drops, though some of their sales were flat. Of the top 15 chains, the three that saw double-digit percent sales increases were McDonald's, 11.2 percent; Burger King, 12.1 percent; and Subway, 14.2 percent

The magazine lists the home base of Roy's as Tampa, Fla., which is headquarters of the joint venture between Roy Yamaguchi Enterprises and OSI Restaurant Partners LLC. OSI owns and operates other restaurant concepts, including Outback Steakhouse, whereas Yamaguchi is president of Hawaiian Pacific Restaurant Group Inc. He established the original Roy's in Hawaii Kai and planted the seeds for the national chain.

L&L Hawaiian Barbecue, of course, is the mainland name for L&L Drive-Inn, founded in Honolulu in 1976.

Mauna Loa mac nuts losing online venue

Mauna Loa macadamia nut treats will no longer be available online through the Hershey's Gifts Web site after the end of this month.

A clearance sale is under way as Pennyslvania-based Hershey Co. has decided to “;exit the online retail business,”; according to spokesman Kirk Saville.

“;The present business model is not sustainable, and the Hershey Co. will continue to evaluate all operations in e-commerce, including strategic partnerships and licensing agreements,”; he told “;TheBuzz.”;

Saville would not discuss potential impact to the Mauna Loa brand, which Hershey bought in late 2004.

A recent perusal of the Hershey Gifts site revealed a 25 percent-off sale on 22 mac nut-related items ranging from familiar boxes of chocolate-covered nuts starting at $9.95 to chock-full-o'-nuts gift baskets at $34.95 and six-packs of salted, coated or otherwise glazed mac nuts for $35.95—not including shipping.

Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin. Reach her by e-mail at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).