H.A. Winston & Co.

Last updated
H.A. Winston & Co.
Industry Restaurant
Founded1972
FounderAllen, Herb and Joseph Spivak
Defunct1992
Area served
 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

H.A. Winston & Co., a.k.a. Winstons was a chain of restaurants centered in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area in the 1970s and 1980s. The chain shut its last restaurant on July 14, 1992.

Contents

History

The first H.A. Winston & Co. restaurant opened in 1972 at Front and Chestnut Streets in Philadelphia. Initially, the restaurant was considered a singles bar that incidentally purveyed hamburgers and onion soup, [1] but the chain soon grew popular as a casual dining establishment [2] with restaurants in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and Virginia.

Company

The chain was owned by the Spivak brothers. The "H" in "H.A. Winston & Co." represents co-owner Herb Spivak, and the "A" for Allen Spivak; the story behind the name missing the third brother and co-owner Joseph “Jerry” Spivak is not documented. The brothers were also founders and principals [3] of the Philadelphia-based concert promoter and power-house firm Electric Factory Concerts. Spencer Zahn designed their logo, as well as the burger advertisement shown below.

Products and services

Promotional poster for HAW GourmetBerger Gourmet Burger Poster.jpg
Promotional poster for HAW GourmetBerger

Gourmet Burgers

Quickly, H.A. Winston & Co. became famous for its 7- and 10-ounce hamburgers, collectively referred to as "GourmetBerger" whose numerous options for topping were referred to and ordered by either its topping number or name.

Toppings:

  1. Winston- sauteed onions, peppers & mushrooms
  2. American-American cheese, bacon, lettuce & tomato
  3. Italian-mozzarella & marinara sauce
  4. Society Hill- blue cheese & chives
  5. Mexican-chili & chopped onions
  6. Russian-sour cream & caviar

See also

References

  1. ↑ Taste the past: The recipe for H.A. Winston's onion soup; February 6, 2014; http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/the-insider/Taste-the-past-HA-Winstons-onion-soup-recipe.html
  2. ↑ H.A. Winston Closes Last Of 22 Restaurants It Was A Favorite Of Singles In The '70s. The Founder Said, "I Really Don't Know Why, But It Worked.";
  3. ↑ Former Tower Theater owner Herb Spivak to mark his 50th anniversary as a concert promoter; http://www.delconewsnetwork.com/articles/2014/08/23/life/doc53f282f245ce6977420207.txt Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine
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