Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Restaurants |
Founded | March 1955 |
Founder | Tom Wahl |
Headquarters | Webster, New York |
Number of locations | 7 (2023) |
Key people | Bruce Hegedorn, John Gonzalez, Keith Herman |
Products | Hamburgers, sandwiches, french fries, root beer |
Website | www |
Tom Wahl's is a chain of fast-food restaurants based in the Rochester, New York area that currently has several restaurants around the Finger Lakes region. USA Today named it one of "51 great burger joints across the USA" in 2010. [1]
The restaurant specializes in "ground steak sandwiches" and its famous root beer and sells Abbott's Frozen Custard.
Tom Wahl, Sr. opened the first restaurant in Avon, New York in March 1955. [2]
The restaurant chain was sold in 1986 to Bill Gray's, Inc. [3] During this time the chain opened a variant of its traditional diner-style restaurant called Wahl Street in the village of Pittsford. Featuring a more upscale feel to dining, this concept lasted a few years before closing down, returning the chain solely to the diner-style feel. In 2011, an equity group that includes Mark Wahlberg, Donnie Wahlberg, and chef Paul Wahlberg licensed the name "Wahlburger" from Tom Wahl's for use in their own restaurant. [4] [5]
There are now seven restaurants:
The chain once had locations in the food courts at the Mall at Greece Ridge, the Marketplace Mall and Eastview Mall, but they are closed as of 2021.
Donald Edmond Wahlberg Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor, and producer. He is a founding member of the boy band New Kids on the Block. Outside music, he has had roles in the Saw films, Zookeeper (2011), Dreamcatcher (2003), The Sixth Sense (1999), Righteous Kill (2008), and Ransom (1996), as well as appearing in the World War II miniseries Band of Brothers as Carwood Lipton.
Nick Tahou Hots is a restaurant in Rochester, New York, best known for a dish called the Garbage Plate. The restaurant was founded in 1918 by Alex Tahou, the grandfather of the 21st-century owner, and named for Nick Tahou, the founder's son, who operated the establishment until his death in 1997. While there are other Upstate New York variants, Nick Tahou's is the originator of the trademarked Garbage Plate.
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 930 restaurants in 26 states as of October 2023.
Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, or simply Freddy's, is an American fast-casual restaurant chain based in Wichita, Kansas. Its menu includes steakburgers, Vienna Beef hot dogs, and chicken sandwiches. The company also provides frozen custard and specialty sundaes
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.
Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg, formerly known by his stage name Marky Mark, is an American actor. His work as a leading man spans the comedy, drama, and action genres. He has received multiple accolades, including a BAFTA Award, and nominations for two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, nine Primetime Emmy Awards, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Bill Gray's is a chain of restaurants based in Webster, New York that currently has 14 restaurants in the Rochester area in western New York, including seven tap room-style restaurants, and one tavern-style grill named Flaherty's. Ten of these locations also sell Abbott's Frozen Custard.
Abbott's Frozen Custard is a frozen custard franchise founded and based in Rochester, New York. The franchise has stores throughout New York state, and has expanded to other states including Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
Good Times Burgers & Frozen Custard is a Lakewood, 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.
Little Chef was a chain of restaurants in the United Kingdom, founded in 1958 by entrepreneur Sam Alper, who was inspired by American diners. The chain was famous for the "Olympic Breakfast" – its version of a full English – as well as its "Early Starter" and "Jubilee Pancakes". The restaurants were mostly located on the roadside near A roads, often paired with a Travelodge motel, a Burger King and a petrol station. The chain was also located along motorways in Moto Services, for a time.
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.
Wahlburgers, is a casual dining burger restaurant and bar chain. It is owned by chef Paul Wahlberg and his brothers, actors Donnie and Mark. As of March 2023, there are 90+ Wahlburgers locations in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The company previously had a restaurant in London. The company also operates a few food trucks in the US.
Paul Wahlberg is an American chef and reality television personality. With his brothers Mark and Donnie, he runs the burger restaurant and bar Wahlburgers and stars in the reality television show also titled Wahlburgers.
Wahlburgers is an American reality television series that aired from January 22, 2014 to July 31, 2019 on A&E. During its 10 seasons, Wahlburgers aired 95 episodes.
Wahl Street is an American television series created by Mark Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson, and Archie Gips that premiered on HBO Max on April 15, 2021. It follows the actor Mark Wahlberg's businesses and investments as well as provides a glimpse into the characters who make up Wahlberg's real-life Entourage. The series was renewed for a second season in August 2021, which premiered in October 2022.
James M. Wahlberg is an American film producer and screenwriter.
Tom Wahl's, which has federal trademark rights to the Wahlburger name, has signed a licensing agreement with the restaurant group that includes pop stars and actors Donnie and Mark Wahlberg and their chef-restaurateur brother, Paul. The agreement allows the Wahlbergs to name their soon-to-open burger eatery in Hingham, Mass., Wahlburgers Restaurant.
St. Croix said the restaurant's ownership approached Tom Wahl's, a chain of burger joints based in Rochester, N.Y., a few months ago after they discovered it sold a product called the "Wahlburger."