Frisch's facts for kids
Logo as of April 2025
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Trade name
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Frisch's Big Boy |
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| Private | |
| Traded as | FRS (1960-2015) |
| Industry | Restaurant, Casual dining, Drive-thru |
| Fate | Acquired by senior management |
| Founded | 1939 |
| Founder | David Frisch |
| Defunct | 2024 (Frisch’s Restaurants Inc.) |
| Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia, with offices in Cincinnati, Ohio. |
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Number of locations
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31 (2025) |
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Area served
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Ohio Kentucky Indiana Tennessee (No locations) |
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Key people
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| Products |
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| Brands | Big Boy (Kentucky, Indiana, and most of Ohio and Tennessee) |
| Revenue |
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Number of employees
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6955 (2017) |
| Parent | NRD Capital Management (2015-2024) |
Frisch's Big Boy is a well-known restaurant chain. It is famous for its Big Boy hamburgers. The company's main offices are in Atlanta, Georgia, and Cincinnati, Ohio. For many years, Frisch's was a partner with the national Big Boy brand. However, since 2001, Frisch's has owned the Big Boy name in Indiana, Kentucky, and most of Ohio and Tennessee. This means they operate separately from the main Big Boy Restaurant Group. As of March 2025, Frisch's has 31 locations. These restaurants are found in Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio. You can find them in cities like Cincinnati, Dayton, Columbus, Toledo, Lexington, and Louisville.
Frisch's is the oldest Big Boy restaurant operator that is still around. It is also the smallest, though it used to be the largest. The very first Big Boy restaurant was Bob's Big Boy in California. The newest Frisch's restaurant opened in 2023 at the Northern Kentucky International Airport. In 2015, Frisch's sold many of its restaurant buildings but continued to rent them. In 2024, the company faced challenges and had to close many locations. The leadership of Frisch's stayed in the Frisch family until 2015. Then, a company called NRD Capital bought it. In November 2024, a group of senior managers bought the remaining restaurants and the brand rights.
What Frisch's Offers
The Famous Big Boy Hamburger
The Big Boy hamburger at Frisch's is a bit different from other Big Boy restaurants. The original Big Boy hamburger used mayonnaise and a red relish. But Frisch's changed this. They use tartar sauce and add dill pickles to their Big Boy burger. They also put the ingredients in a different order. Using tartar sauce made it simpler and faster to make the burgers. Later, other Big Boy restaurants started using a similar idea. They used a sauce like thousand island dressing on their Big Boy hamburgers.
Big Boy's Look and Slogans
In the past, the Frisch's Big Boy character looked different. He was thinner, had blond hair, and wore striped pants. In the late 1960s, the character was updated. He got brown hair and checkered pants, like the original Bob's Big Boy. Most Frisch's restaurants today still have statues of this updated character. In 2016 and 2017, a new design for the statue was introduced.
Frisch's used many slogans over the years. Some popular ones included:
- "Frisch's Has So Much More" (1970s)
- "Gotta be Frisch's Big Boy! Oh what a value!" (early 1980s)
- "What's Your Favorite Thing?"® (1998-2016)
- "Home of Burgers, Breakfast, & Big Boy." (2019-2023)
- "Legends Can’t Be Imitated" (2025-present)
A classic jingle from the 1960s went like this:
Stop and enjoy a big Big Boy,
a double-deck hamburger treat,
A national favorite, coast to coast,
So stop and enjoy a big Big Boy.
Frisch's and the Cincinnati Reds
Frisch's has had a long partnership with the Cincinnati Reds baseball team. From 1983 to 1998, Frisch's was a part owner of the team. This included when the Reds won the 1990 World Series.
Two Frisch's Big Boy food stands opened in 2013 at Cincinnati's Great American Ball Park. A Big Boy statue wearing a Reds uniform is near one of the stands. In 2017, a new Frisch's statue, also in a Reds uniform, was added there.
How Frisch's Started
Before the Big Boy Name
The story of Frisch's began in 1905. Samuel Frisch opened the Frisch Cafe in Cincinnati, Ohio. His son, David Frisch, later took over. In 1932, Dave Frisch opened his own Frisch's Café. It was very successful. In 1939, he opened the Mainliner restaurant in Fairfax, Ohio. This was Cincinnati's first year-round drive-in restaurant. It was named after airplanes that flew into a nearby airport. By 1944, a second Frisch's restaurant opened.
Becoming a Big Boy Restaurant
After World War II, Dave Frisch visited a Big Boy restaurant in California. He was very impressed by the double-deck Big Boy hamburger. He liked that two thinner patties cooked faster than one thick one.
The owner of Big Boy, Bob Wian, wanted to protect his brand. He offered Dave Frisch a special deal. Frisch could use the Big Boy name for only $1 a year in four states. These states were Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and Florida. Dave Frisch accepted this offer. He became the very first Big Boy partner.
Because he was the first, Dave Frisch had some special freedoms. His Big Boy hamburger was a little different. He also created his own Big Boy character. This character was thinner, had reddish or blond hair, and wore striped overalls. Most Frisch's Big Boy restaurants still have statues of this design. However, they are usually repainted with brown hair and checkered overalls now. In 2017, a new statue was introduced that looks more like the original West Coast Big Boy.
Dave Frisch started selling Big Boy hamburgers in 1946. In 1947, the first Frisch's Big Boy Drive-In restaurant opened in Cincinnati.
A revamped statue with a West Coast style will gradually replace existing models.
Growing the Business (1949-1991)
David Frisch opened more Big Boy Drive-In Restaurants in 1949. By 1954, Frisch's had 20 locations in the Cincinnati area. They also started allowing other businesses to open Big Boy restaurants under their name. By 1961, Frisch's and its partners had over 150 drive-ins.
Frisch's also started selling its famous tartar sauce in grocery stores in 1960. A company called Food Specialties Co has been making this secret recipe sauce for Frisch's since 1946.
David Frisch passed away in 1970. His son-in-law, Jack C. Maier, took over. Later, Jack's son, Craig F. Maier, became the president and CEO in 1989.
In 1983, Frisch's added drive-thru service to many of its restaurants. They also added soup and salad bars.
Frisch's Influence on Other Restaurants
Frisch's had an impact on other restaurant chains. For example, the founder of Eat'n Park Restaurants was inspired by Frisch's drive-in in 1948. He then opened his own Big Boy restaurant. Also, Alex Schoenbaum, who started Shoney's, became good friends with Dave Frisch. Frisch encouraged him to open Big Boy restaurants in West Virginia.
Frisch's also created popular sandwiches like the "Brawny Lad" and "Swiss Miss." These sandwiches are served on rye buns. Many other Big Boy restaurants added these to their menus too. Frisch's also started calling a meal with a sandwich, fries, and salad a "platter," which other Big Boy chains then adopted.
Changes and New Ownership (2000-2024)
Separating from Big Boy Restaurants
In 2000, Frisch's had the chance to buy the national Big Boy chain. However, they decided not to. Instead, another company bought the national chain. In 2001, Frisch's made a deal with the new Big Boy owners. Frisch's sold its rights in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. In return, Frisch's gained permanent ownership of the Big Boy name in its main areas: Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. This agreement helped Frisch's continue to operate its Big Boy restaurants without issues.
Frisch's was known for its "cherry" and "vanilla" Coke. But in 2013, they switched to Pepsi products. Customers were not happy about this change. In 2018, Frisch's brought Coca-Cola back to its restaurants.
New Owners and Challenges
On August 24, 2015, Frisch's was sold to a company called NRD Partners. This company focuses on restaurant businesses. The sale meant that the Frisch family no longer owned the restaurant chain. Craig Maier and Karen Maier, grandchildren of the founder, retired from the company. However, they still operate some Frisch's restaurants as partners.
NRD Partners had plans to grow Frisch's. They wanted to open more restaurants in Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio. They also hoped to expand into Tennessee.
In March 2017, Frisch's showed off a new Big Boy statue. This new statue looks more like the original West Coast Big Boy. It has black hair and holds the Big Boy hamburger. However, it wears striped overalls, like the old East Coast Big Boy. The first new statue, wearing a Cincinnati Reds uniform, was placed at the Great American Ball Park. Frisch's plans to replace older statues at its restaurants with these new ones.
Frisch's returned to downtown Cincinnati in June 2018, opening a restaurant in the Carew Tower. However, it closed in 2020.
Restaurant Closures (2023-2024)
Frisch's faced difficulties, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, the company began closing many stores. This was due to economic challenges and rising costs. To try and save the company, Frisch's started changing some of its company-owned stores into partner-owned stores.
In April 2024, several Frisch's locations closed. By April 8, 2024, the managing partner of NRD Capital said that these closures were due to rent agreements ending and financial losses.
By November 2024, many more Frisch's locations in Ohio and Kentucky closed. This happened because the company was unable to pay rent to its landlords. The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that several Kentucky locations were ordered to close. The original Frisch's Mainliner restaurant, which opened in 1939, also faced closure. By the end of these closures, Frisch's had lost over 60 locations. The number of restaurants dropped from 95 to 31 in just four months.
See also
- List of hamburger restaurants
- List of casual dining restaurant chains
- List of franchises
