![]() | |
Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Greasy spoon |
Founded | 1923 in Joplin, Missouri |
Headquarters | |
Area served | Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma |
Key people | Fred Herring, Founder; William "Red" Wilcoxson, Founder; Larry Wilcoxson, second generation owner; David Schaefer, current owner |
Products | Chili, Spaghetti Red, Tamales |
Website | https://www.fredandredschili.com |
Fred and Red's is a historic greasy spoon diner in Joplin, Missouri. The restaurant was started in 1923 and moved to its current location in 1943. The original arrangement and features have remained relatively unchanged through two generations of family ownership. The diner had been for sale for several years, but with no suitable offer, it closed on March 16, 2012 and the owner (Larry Wilcoxson) retired. [1] Wilcoxson died in 2016, and the business was purchased from his heirs by David Schaefer, with plans to reopen the business in October 2016, [2] but modernizing the building to get it current to department of health codes delayed the reopening until November 23, 2016.
Fred Herring started a chili counter on Joplin's Main Street just 3 blocks south of what would become Route 66. The eatery catered to local blue-collar workers such as the area miners and in 1943 was moved seven blocks south to its current location, which happened to be across the street from the grocery store that supplied the meat for Herring's chili. According to a 1951 Joplin City Directory, the restaurant was known as Fred and Grover's. The butcher at the grocery store was William "Red" Wilcoxson, who bought half of Fred's business in 1956 to become his partner.
In 1973 Herring retired, turning his responsibilities over to Red's son and final owner Larry Wilcoxson, who worked at the restaurant from age 11. In 1975 Herring died, and Red Wilcoxson retired, and Larry ran the business himself until it closed, March 16, 2012. The Southwest Missouri eatery was a local landmark. [3]
Schaefer, himself a long-time fan of the restaurant, reopened the store on November 23, 2016, and while keeping most of the business practices the same (including keeping prices the same from the day they closed in 2012), did modernize and update many items, detailed below in the "notable facts" below.
Fred and Red's was famous for their award-winning [4] chili, tamales, and Spaghetti Red. They also served coneys, chili burgers, hamburgers, frito pie, and home-made fruit pies. [3] Red Wilcoxson died in 2005, causing his son Larry to consider selling the business [3] where he had worked since age 11, but with no suitable buyer being found, Wilcoxson decided to retire and discontinue the business. This decision was announced by his daughter on the Facebook fan page called "We Love Fred and Red's" [5] on March 5, 2012.
With the announcement of the upcoming closing, demand grew dramatically, often greater than supply available. After two stressful weeks of working extra hours to keep up, Larry Wilcoxson decided to close sooner than the planned mid-April date previously communicated. The business closed its doors on March 16, 2012, around 5 PM. Wilcoxson was given the last serving of spaghetti red.
The restaurant has a distinctive "U-shaped" counter, 22 barstools, and a central serving area. One of the restaurant's unique features was a home-made tamale press created from scrap Ford Model T car parts and used to manually make 5400 tamales every week. The Health Department would not certify the tamale press for the 2016 reopening, so the tamales are now made by hand.
A local fan of the restaurant, Dan Daugherty, composed a poem in tribute to Fred and Red's, and for many years it was printed on the back of each guest check. A framed copy of the tribute is posted on the restaurant's wall.
The diner had no drive-thru window, no published phone number, and a smallish parking lot, but did a brisk carry-out business. There were frequently long lines waiting for one of the 22 barstools at the counter. Schaefer plans to add a drive through in the future, but it was not ready for the 2016 reopening.
Chili con carne or Carne con chile, also spelled chilli con carne or chile con carne and shortened to chili or chilli, is a spicy stew of Mexican origin containing chili peppers, meat, tomatoes, and often pinto beans or kidney beans. Other seasonings may include garlic, onions, and cumin.
Salsa encompasses a variety of sauces used as condiments for tacos and other Mexican and Mexican-American foods, and as dips for tortilla chips. They may be raw or cooked, and are generally served at room temperature.
Diners Club International (DCI), founded as Diners Club, is a charge card company owned by Discover Financial Services. Formed in 1950 by Frank X. McNamara, Ralph Schneider (1909–1964), Matty Simmons, and Alfred S. Bloomingdale, it was the first independent payment card company in the world, successfully establishing the financial card service of issuing travel and entertainment (T&E) credit cards as a viable business. Diners Club International and its franchises serve individuals from around the world with operations in 59 countries.
Alice is an American sitcom television series that aired on CBS from August 31, 1976, to March 19, 1985. The series is based on the 1974 film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. The show stars Linda Lavin in the title role, a widow who moves with her young son to start life over again, and finds a job working at a roadside diner in Phoenix, Arizona. Most of the episodes revolve around events at Mel's Diner, where Alice is employed.
The Varsity is a restaurant chain in Atlanta, Georgia. The main branch of the chain was the largest drive-in fast food restaurant in the world, taking up two city blocks and accommodating up to 800 diners. The main location ended car-side service in 2020. There are now six other branches across metropolitan Atlanta.
The Red Barn restaurant was a fast-food restaurant chain founded in 1961 in Springfield, Ohio, by Don Six, Martin Levine, and Jim Kirst. In 1963, the small chain was purchased by Richard O. Kearns, operated as Red Barn System, with the offices moving briefly to Dayton, Ohio and in August 1964 to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. During the late 1960s United Servomation, also called Servomation, bought the Red Barn chain. In 1978 United Servomation merged with the City Investing Company's GDV division which also owned the Motel 6 motel chain. Only interested in real estate, construction, and financial services the new owners ceased advertising for the chain along with allowing the franchise leases to expire with the last of the leases expiring around 1988. At its peak, Red Barn had 300–400 restaurants in 19 states, as well as outlets in southern Ontario, elsewhere in Canada, and Australia.
Skyline Chili is a chain of Cincinnati-style chili restaurants based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1949 by Greek immigrant Nicholas Lambrinides, Skyline Chili is named for the view of Cincinnati's skyline that Lambrinides could see from the first restaurant, opened in the section of town now known as Price Hill. It is also the "official chili" of many local professional sports teams and venues, including the Cincinnati Bengals, Cincinnati Reds, Cincinnati Cyclones, Columbus Blue Jackets and the Kings Island theme park, and also sponsors the Crosstown Shootout, an annual men's college basketball rivalry game between the city's two NCAA Division I teams, Cincinnati and Xavier.
The Fred Harvey Company was the owner of the Harvey House chain of restaurants, hotels and other hospitality industry businesses alongside railroads in the Western United States. It was founded in 1876 by Fred Harvey to cater to the growing number of train passengers.
Westquay is a shopping centre in Southampton, England. It has an area of 95,600 m2 (1,029,000 sq ft) of retail and leisure space and contains around 130 shops, including major retailers such as John Lewis and Partners, Marks and Spencer, Zara, Schuh, Waterstone's, Hollister Co., Apple, and others.
A Coney Island hot dog, Coney dog, or Coney is a hot dog in a bun topped with a savory meat sauce and sometimes other toppings. It is often offered as part of a menu of classic American diner dishes and often at Coney Island restaurants. It is largely a phenomenon related to immigration from Greece and the region of Macedonia to the United States in the early 20th century.
Chasen's was a famous restaurant frequented by film stars, entertainers, politicians, and other dignitaries in West Hollywood, California, located at 9039 Beverly Boulevard on the border of Beverly Hills. It opened for business in 1936 and was the site of the Academy Awards party for many years. It was also famous for its chili. Elizabeth Taylor had several orders of Chasen's chili flown to the set of Cleopatra in 1963 while filming in Rome, and to Oroville, California during the filming of The Klansman in 1974.
Gold Star Chili is a restaurant chain based in Cincinnati, Ohio, that sells Cincinnati chili. The original restaurant was established in the Cincinnati neighborhood of Mt. Washington in 1965 by four Daoud brothers, immigrants from Jordan. Gold Star Chili was the "Official Chili" of the Cincinnati Bengals until April 19, 2023.
Discover Financial Services is an American financial services company that owns and operates Discover Bank, an online bank that offers checking and savings accounts, personal loans, home equity loans, student loans and credit cards. It also owns and operates the Discover and Pulse networks, and owns Diners Club International. Discover Card is the third largest credit card brand in the United States, when measured by cards in force, with nearly 50 million cardholders. Discover is currently headquartered in the Chicago suburb of Riverwoods, Illinois.
Ellen's Stardust Diner is a retro 1950s theme restaurant located at 1650 Broadway on the southeast corner of 51st Street in Theater District, Manhattan, New York City. The diner is regarded as one of the best theme restaurants in New York owing to its singing waitstaff. The diner also contains retro-themed memorabilia such as photos of many past Miss Subways on the walls, an indoor train, a 1956 Predicta television, and a “drive-in theater” screen that showcases performances of the 1950s. It is popular among children and adults.
The cuisine of Veracruz is the regional cooking of Veracruz, a Mexican state along the Gulf of Mexico. Its cooking is characterized by three main influences—indigenous, Spanish, and Afro-Cuban—per its history, which included the arrival of the Spanish and of enslaved people from Africa and the Caribbean. These influences have contributed many ingredients to the cooking including native vanilla, corn and seafood, along with rice, spices and tubers. How much the three mix depending on the area of the state, with some areas more heavily favoring one or another. The state has worked to promote its cuisine both in Mexico and abroad as part of its tourism industry.
Esparza's Tex Mex Cafe, or simply Esparza's, was a Tex-Mex restaurant in Portland, Oregon, in the United States. Opened by Martha and Joe Esparza in 1990, the restaurant operated for more than 24 years before closing in January 2014. Its unusual menu included buffalo tostadas, ground ostrich and nopalitos, several varieties of tongue, beef brisket, and more traditional options such as enchiladas, quesadillas, tacos and tamales. Esparza's was one of Portland's most popular restaurants during the 1990s and was named "Restaurant of the Year" by The Oregonian in 1992.
Three Rivers Mall is an enclosed shopping mall located in Kelso, Washington that opened in 1987, on the site of a former golf course adjacent to Interstate 5. Previously owned by General Growth Properties, the mall was one of 30 malls that was spun off into Rouse Properties in 2012. Rouse was acquired by Brookfield Properties Retail Group in 2016. In July 2019, Brookfield sold the mall to Arizona-based Three Rivers Village, LLC.
Chili mac is a dish prepared using chili con carne and macaroni as primary ingredients, which is often topped or intermingled with cheese. Some versions are made using prepared or homemade macaroni and cheese. It is a common dish in the cuisine of the Midwestern United States, and is also popular in other areas of the United States.
Ziosk is an American table ordering tablet for casual dining restaurants developed by Dallas based TableTop Media. The device consists of a 7-inch tablet running Android and a credit card reader. Certain models also include a receipt printer and near field communication (NFC). As of July 2016, there are 170,000 Ziosk tablets at restaurants in the United States, including Chili's, Friendly's, Olive Garden, Red Robin, and Outback Steakhouse franchisee Cerca Trova. The company employs around 110 active employees.
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the United States restaurant industry via government closures, resulting in layoffs of workers and loss of income for restaurants and owners and threatening the survival of independent restaurants as a category. Within a week after the first closures, industry groups representing independent restaurateurs were asking for immediate relief measures from local, state, and federal governments, saying that as many as 75 percent of independent restaurants could not survive closures of more than a few weeks. By late July, nearly 16,000 restaurants had permanently closed.