Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Fast food |
Founded | 1923 |
Founder | James Papadakis Tom Papadakis |
Headquarters | , |
Number of locations | 5 |
Key people | Darrin Straughan (President) |
Products | Hot dogs (Coney Island hot dogs), Hamburgers, French fries, Milkshakes, Soft drinks |
Website | www |
James Coney Island, Inc. is a chain of fast food restaurants that specializes in Coney Island hot dogs. It has its headquarters, the James Coney Island Support Center, located in Suite 700 in the 11111 Katy Freeway building in Houston. [1]
The company was founded in 1923 by two Greek immigrant brothers, James and Tom Papadakis; [2] the former being the company's namesake. [3] [4] The original James Coney Island restaurant was one of the first major hot dog vendors in Houston.
The business was family-owned and operated from its inception until 1990, when the failure of the family's auto dealerships led to the restaurants being acquired out of bankruptcy court by Ghulam Bombaywala, Irvin Kaplan, Donald Bonham, Edwin Freedman, and Max Levit and Milton Levit. [5] [6]
The location in Downtown Houston opened in 1923. In 2010, the chain announced that the location was closing after a dispute with the landlord of 815 Dallas, the building housing the location. [7] The chain previously had a location in Downtown at 1011 Walker, [8] which served as the number one location of the chain. The 1011 Walker location opened in 1923; previously the restaurant was located in a smaller facility on Rusk Street. The chain's number two location opened in the Town & Country Mall area in 1968, and permanently closed its doors in 2020. In 1993, the 1011 Walker location closed after the restaurant management discovered that the building was being condemned by the city, in favor of building a high rise on the property. [9] As of February 2021, the chain had 17 locations. [10]
In August 2021, the 4320 W Sam Houston Pkwy and Clay location closed after operating since 2008.[ citation needed ] In March 2022 the location in Meadows Place closed after operating there for over 25 years. In July 2022, the company closed the long standing South Shepherd location.
The Coney I-Lander restaurants are a regional chain based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Their signature dish is a small slow-grilled hot dog topped with chili, onions, and mustard, sitting in a steamed bun. The restaurants also serve small tamales, and spaghetti topped with the same chili used on the coneys. The name of the restaurant is derived from Coney Island, the early-1900s amusement park and vacation destination in New York City.
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.
Landry's, Inc., is a privately held American multi-brand dining, hospitality, entertainment, and gaming corporation headquartered in Houston, Texas. Landry's, Inc., owns and operates more than 600 restaurants, hotels, casinos, and entertainment destinations in 35 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. The company also owns and operates numerous international locations. The company is owned by President & CEO Tilman Fertitta.
A Coney Island is a type of restaurant that is popular in the northern United States, particularly in Michigan, named after the Coney Island hot dog.
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.
Nathan's Famous, Inc. is an American company that operates a chain of fast-food restaurants specializing in hot dogs. The original Nathan's restaurant stands at the corner of Surf and Stillwell Avenues in the Coney Island neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. The company's headquarters are at One Jericho Plaza in Jericho, part of Oyster Bay, New York.
A hot dog stand is a business that sells hot dogs, usually from an external counter. Hot dog stands can be located on a public thoroughfare, near a sports stadium, in a shopping mall, or at a fair. They are often found on the streets of major American cities. According to one report, some hot dog stands are paying up to $80,000 in rent for prime locations in Manhattan.
Different areas of the world have local variations on the hot dog, in the type of meat used, the condiments added, and its means of preparation.
Coney Island Colorado in Bailey, Colorado, is a 1950s diner shaped like a giant hot dog, with toppings. The building has been called "the best example of roadside architecture in the state".
Bealls was a Texan chain of department stores, owned by Stage Stores Inc. and headquartered in Houston, Texas. The store specialized in retailing desirable brand name apparel, accessories, cosmetics, footwear, and housewares.
Big Daddy's Restaurants was a chain of restaurants founded in 1964 on Coney Island Avenue in the Sheepshead Bay section of Brooklyn serving a myriad of food types ranging from European to Asian inspired dishes. In an article dated April 8, 1990 in the Miami Herald, Napp was looking to make a comeback with the Big Daddy's name by opening a location on Washington Avenue in Miami Beach. Napp died in November 1990, theoretically ending chances of revival.
RioStar Corporation was an American restaurant holding corporation controlled by Ninfa Laurenzo and her family. The company controlled the Ninfa's, Bambolino's, and Atchafalaya River Cafe brands. In March 1990, RioStar had 22 employees working in its corporate office. When RioStar was in existence, its corporate headquarters were in the East End of Houston, Texas.
National Coney Island is a Coney Island-style restaurant based in Michigan that specializes in Greek-American cuisine. It is a corporation that has more than 20 National Coney Island locations in the Metro Detroit area.
Frenchy's Chicken is a restaurant chain in Houston, Texas, selling Louisiana Creole cuisine. It was established in 1969 by Percy "Frenchy" Creuzot Jr.
Ghulam Mohammed "Bombay" Bombaywala is a Pakistani-American restaurateur in Houston. In 1999, Magaret L. Briggs of the Houston Press wrote that Bombaywala was "well-known" and "perhaps most famous for sharing his rags-to-riches tale with Oprah's audience". In 2006 Edward Hegstrom of the Houston Chronicle wrote "Bombaywala's rise to success is practically legend in Houston."
Charles Feltman (1841–1910) was a German-American restaurateur. He is one of several claimed inventors of the hot dog. In 1871, Feltman began building his restaurant complex. It achieved its heyday in the 1920s, serving nearly 5,250,000 people a year, being a large restaurant complex with several restaurants, two bars, a beer garden, a famous carousel, and other attractions, and offering many types of food beyond hot dogs.
Nick's Famous Coney Island is a dive bar and restaurant in Portland, Oregon, United States.
Irvin Deutser Kaplan was an American businessman who was the majority owner of the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association and the Houston Aeros of the World Hockey Association.
Wiener King is a hot-dog company that currently operates one restaurant located in Mansfield, Ohio. Wiener King was formerly a franchise, but has since closed all but one of their restaurants. The chain was founded in 1970 by Ronald W. Howard, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Wiener King was once one of the fastest growing restaurants in the United States. It was well known for its advertising and publicity. In 1975, Wiener King was sued by another chain with a similar name.