Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

Last updated

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers
Company type Private
IndustryRestaurants
Genre fast-casual
Founded2002;22 years ago (2002)
Founders
  • Bill Simon
  • Randy Simon
  • Scott Redler
  • Freddy Simon
Headquarters260 N. Rock Road
Wichita, Kansas
United States
Number of locations
450 (2021)
Area served
35 states (January 2022) [1]
Key people
Chris Dull, CEO, President [2] & Co-Founder
Scott Redler, COO & Co-Founder
Freddy Simon, Co-Founder
ProductsSteakburgers, hot dogs, french fries, frozen custard, milkshakes, soft drinks
RevenueIncrease2.svg US$ 534 million (December 2019)
OwnerThompson Street Capital Partners
Number of employees
9,751 (2021)
Website freddys.com

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, or simply Freddy's, is an American fast-casual restaurant chain based in Wichita, Kansas. [3] Its menu includes steakburgers, Vienna Beef hot dogs, and chicken sandwiches. The company also provides frozen custard and specialty sundaes [4] [5] [6]

Contents

History

Freddy's was founded by co-founders Fredrick "Freddy" L. Simon, Bill Simon, Randy Simon, and restaurateur Scott Redler. [7]

Freddy was a World War II Veteran who lived in Wichita, Kansas. He joined the U.S. Army infantry in 1943 and was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division. He was awarded the Purple Heart due sustained injuries, as well as a Bronze Star for Valor. [8]

Freddy worked for the same company in the hospitality industry for 55 years, building connections with many restauranteurs. He was a friend and trusted business partner to a restaurant in 2002 called Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers.

The restaurant started out as a family owned burger joint in Wichita. Freddy's gained a large fanbase within its first year of opening, which helped to open more locations in 2004. The food was based off meals that Freddy had served his own family, and was considered an 'All American' meal. The setting of the restaurant is fast-casual dining in the late 1940s and early 1950s and evokes "a post-war era of optimism, pride, and values focusing on unity and quality family time". [9]

On December 17, 2016, Bill Simon, cofounder and son of Freddy Simon died at the age of 61. Freddy died at the age of 95 on October 25, 2020.

Locations

The company, founded in Wichita in 2002, opened its first location on August 26 of that year near the intersection of 21st Street and Tyler Road. This location is still open today.

In April 2011, the company opened its 50th store in Victorville, California, and in October 2013, its 100th store in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

Its 150th location opened in April 2015 in Loveland, Colorado, and nearly three years later its 300th location in Indianapolis, Indiana in March 2018.

The state with the most Freddy's locations to date is Texas, with 73 restaurants. [10]

In 2022 it was announced that Freddy's would be expanding their locations to nine provinces in Canada. [11]

As of October 30, 2023, Freddy's has more than 493 locations across 37 states and 375 cities. In 2023, Freddy's opened 62 new locations, a record for the company, including its first restaurant within a Major League Baseball stadium at the St. Louis Cardinals' Busch Stadium. [12]

News

In March 2021, private equity firm Thompson Street Capital Partner purchased Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers for an undisclosed amount.

In May 2021, Freddy's hired Chris Dull as CEO to take over the top post from co-founder Randy Simon. [13]

In August 2022, Freddy's hired Brian Wise as COO to take over the operations post from co-founder Scott Redler. [14]

In November 2022, the company signed a master franchise and development agreement that will allow the brand to enter the Canadian market. The chain plans to expand across nine Canadian provinces, excluding Quebec.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pizza Hut</span> American multinational restaurant chain

Pizza Hut, LLC is an American multinational pizza restaurant chain and international franchise founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas by Dan and Frank Carney. The chain, headquartered in Plano, Texas, operates 19,866 restaurants worldwide as of 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamburger</span> Food consisting of a beef patty between rounded buns

A hamburger, or better known as a burger, is a food consisting of fillings—usually a patty of ground meat, typically beef—placed inside a sliced bun or bread roll. Hamburgers are often served with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, bacon, or chilis; condiments such as ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, relish, or a "special sauce", often a variation of Thousand Island dressing; and are frequently placed on sesame seed buns. A hamburger patty topped with cheese is called a cheeseburger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frozen custard</span> Frozen dessert

Frozen custard is a frozen dessert that is a type of ice cream that is made with egg yolks in addition to cream and sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and an additional flavoring such as cocoa, vanilla, or fruit such as strawberries or peaches. It is usually kept at a warmer temperature compared to ice cream, and typically has a denser consistency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Castle (restaurant)</span> American fast food restaurant chain

White Castle is an American regional hamburger restaurant chain with 345 locations across 13 states, with its greatest presence in the Midwest and New York metropolitan area. Founded on September 13, 1921, in Wichita, Kansas, it has been generally credited as the world's first fast-food hamburger chain. It is known for its small, square hamburgers referred to as "sliders". The burgers were initially priced at five cents until 1929 and remained at 10 cents until 1949. In the 1940s, White Castle periodically ran promotional ads in local newspapers which contained coupons offering five burgers for ten cents, takeout only. In 2014, Time named the White Castle slider "The Most Influential Burger of All Time".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steak 'n Shake</span> American restaurant chain

Steak 'n Shake Operations, Inc. is an American casual restaurant chain concentrated primarily in the Midwestern United States with locations also in the South, Mid-Atlantic, Western United States, Europe, and the Middle East. The company is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Biglari Holdings. As of 2018, 628 Steak 'n Shake restaurants were in operation; of those 414 were corporate-owned, and 214 franchised. The company has since attempted to convert to a fully franchised model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culver's</span> Restaurant chain in the United States

Culver Franchising System, LLC, doing business as Culver's, is an American fast-casual restaurant chain. The company was founded in 1984 by George, Ruth, Craig, and Lea Culver. The first location opened in Sauk City, Wisconsin, on July 18, 1984, under the name "Culver's Frozen Custard and ButterBurgers." The privately held company is headquartered in Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin. The chain operates primarily in the Midwestern United States, and has a total of 965 restaurants in 26 states as of April 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taco Tico</span> Chain of Tex-Mex cuisine fast-food restaurants

Taco Tico is a chain of Tex-Mex cuisine fast-food restaurants headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Firehouse Subs</span> US-based restaurant chain

Firehouse Restaurant Group, Inc., doing business as Firehouse Subs, is a Canadian-owned American fast casual restaurant chain based in Jacksonville, Florida that specializes in submarine sandwiches. It was founded in 1994 by former firefighter brothers Chris and Robin Sorensen. Since December 15, 2021, it has been a subsidiary of Restaurant Brands International, which also owns the chains Burger King, Popeyes, and Tim Hortons.

Freddy or Freddie may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rita's Italian Ice</span> American quick service dessert restaurant chain

Rita's Franchise Company, LLC, doing business as Rita's Italian Ice, is a privately owned and operated American quick service restaurant chain originating in the Philadelphia metropolitan area that expanded throughout and now operates primarily in the Mid-Atlantic United States. The chain is known for its Italian ice or "water ice" and frozen custard, but also offers multiple types of frozen treats and specialty creations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shake Shack</span> American fast casual burger restaurant

Shake Shack is an American fast casual restaurant chain based in New York City. It started out as a hot dog cart inside Madison Square Park in 2001, and its popularity steadily grew. In 2004, it received a permit to open a permanent kiosk within the park, expanding its menu from New York–style hot dogs to one with hamburgers, hot dogs, fries and its namesake milkshakes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Good Times Burgers & Frozen Custard</span> American fast-food restaurant chain

Good Times Burgers & Frozen Custard is a Golden, Colorado-based fast-food restaurant specializing in premium burgers and frozen custard. As of July 2023, the chain operates 31 locations, down from 38 in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fast casual restaurant</span> Type of restaurant

A fast casual restaurant, found primarily in the United States and Canada, does not offer full table service, but advertises higher quality food than fast food restaurants, with fewer frozen or processed ingredients. It is an intermediate concept between fast food and casual dining.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MOD Pizza</span> American fast-casual pizza chain

MOD Pizza is an American fast-casual pizza restaurant chain based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 2008, MOD has more than 560 locations as of December 2023 in the United States and two locations in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">German Doner Kebab</span> Fast casual kebab chain based in Glasgow

German Doner Kebab (GDK) is a fast casual kebab chain, specialising in German doner kebabs, owned by Hero Brands since 2017. Tracing its heritage to a restaurant in Berlin, Germany in 1989, the first site opened in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in 2013, the company was purchased with a majority share in 2017 by the Sarwar family and moved its headquarters to Glasgow, Scotland.

Hoovie's Garage is a YouTube channel featuring videos about cars and trucks. The videos are hosted by Tyler Hoover, who also presents "Car Issues" for Motor Trend on Demand.

References

  1. ↑ Star, Brad (August 10, 2021). "Freddy's Frozen Custard in Grand Chute has opening date". The Post-Crescent. Retrieved August 17, 2021. The Wichita, Kansas-based chain has over 380 locations across 32 states.
  2. ↑ Ewen, Beth; Kaiser, Tom; Michaels, Laura; Upton, Nicholas (December 27, 2018). "Fast & Serious: 11-20". Franchise Times . Retrieved May 30, 2019.
  3. ↑ Neil, Denise (September 1, 2017). "Freddy's at 15: Wichita-based chain worked because it didn't have to". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
  4. ↑ Start Your Own Restaurant and More: Pizzeria, Coffeehouse, Deli, Bakery, Catering Business. StartUp Series. Entrepreneur Press. 2016. p. 27. ISBN   978-1-61308-344-4 . Retrieved December 27, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Ready for Freddy's". Arktimes.com. July 20, 2017. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers opens". The Daily News. Jacksonville, NC. December 6, 2017. Archived from the original on August 27, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
  7. ↑ "Scott Redler". NRA. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Freddy's namesake, Freddy Simon, dies at age 95". www.fastcasual.com. October 27, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers". www.middlemarketcenter.org. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Number of Freddy's locations in the USA in 2023". ScrapeHero. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Freddy's heading to Canada". www.fastcasual.com. November 30, 2022. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers Exceeds Company Record, Opening 62 New Restaurants in 2023". www.pr.com. January 10, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  13. ↑ Lalley, Heather (May 6, 2021). "Freddy's Frozen Custard gets a new CEO in Chris Dull". Restaurant Business. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  14. ↑ Ruggless, Ron (August 29, 2022). "Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers names Brian Wise as operations chief". Nation's Restaurant News. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.