Hilltop Steak House facts for kids
 |
|
| Founded | 1961 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Frank Giuffrida |
| Defunct | 2013 |
|
Number of locations
|
5 (1992) 1 (2013) |
|
Area served
|
Massachusetts Connecticut New Hampshire |
The Hilltop Steak House was a very famous restaurant in Saugus, Massachusetts. It was located right on Route 1. Frank Giuffrida started it in 1961. For many years, from the 1970s to the 1990s, it was one of the busiest restaurants in the entire United States! The Hilltop Steak House finally closed its doors in 2013.
Contents
How Hilltop Steak House Started
In 1961, Frank Giuffrida, who was a butcher from Lawrence, Massachusetts, bought a small bar in Saugus. He spent $7,000 to turn it into a steakhouse with 125 seats. People loved it so much that it quickly needed to be bigger.
The restaurant expanded two more times, eventually holding up to 1,500 people! Frank also added a butcher shop where people could buy meat to take home.
What Made Hilltop Special?
The Hilltop was famous for its fun outdoor decorations. It had a huge, 68-foot-tall neon cactus sign and many plastic cows. Inside, the restaurant looked like an "old ranch." It had wooden Native American statues, stone fireplaces, buffalo heads, and old-fashioned lights.
The restaurant had five different dining rooms. Each room was named after a famous "Wild West" city, like Dodge City and Santa Fe. For a long time, the Hilltop did not take reservations, and you couldn't pay with a credit card!
How Successful Was Hilltop Steak House?
The Hilltop Steak House was incredibly popular. In 1977, it made $11 million in sales. This was probably the most money any restaurant in the world made at that time!
By 1985, it made $24.2 million and served 2.35 million people. It was known as the highest-earning restaurant in the U.S. for several years. In 1987, The New York Times called it "America's largest restaurant." It served almost 2.4 million customers each year.
Changes and New Locations
In 1988, Frank Giuffrida sold the company that ran the Hilltop Steak House. However, he still owned the land and the building. The new owners wanted to open more Hilltop restaurants across the country.
- In 1989, a second Hilltop opened in Nashua, New Hampshire.
- In 1990, another location opened in Braintree, Massachusetts.
- By 1992, a fourth Hilltop was open in Springfield, Massachusetts.
- A fifth location opened in Hartford, Connecticut in 1992.
However, these new locations didn't last very long. The Hartford restaurant closed after just over a year. The Springfield location closed by 1995. The Braintree location was sold in 2006.
What Was on the Menu?
When the Hilltop first opened, its menu was simple. It focused on beef and other meats, along with lobster pie, a few appetizers, desserts, and kids' meals. Most meals came with a potato or vegetable, rolls, butter, and a salad with oil and vinegar dressing.
By the 1980s, the menu grew to include more chicken and fish. The Hilltop was known for serving large amounts of good food at low prices.
The Famous Cactus Sign
In 1966, Frank Giuffrida hired a company to build a new sign for the restaurant. They thought about different Western designs, but finally decided on a giant cactus.
Building the sign was a big job! They had to dig a huge hole for its base. The sign itself was 67 feet tall and had 210 fluorescent light bulbs and almost half a mile of neon tubing. It took five days to put it all together.
Later Years and Closing
In 1994, a company called High Country Investors bought the Hilltop Steak House company.
There were some disagreements about how tips were handled at the restaurant, and a court case followed in 2006.
Frank Giuffrida, the founder, passed away in 2003. In 2004, High Country Investors bought the Hilltop property completely from the Giuffrida family.
Finally, in 2013, the Hilltop Steak House closed its doors for good. The property was sold, and many of its famous items, like the plastic cows, were sold at an auction. Three of the cow statues were moved to a shopping center in Lynnfield, Massachusetts.
In 2018, the land where the Hilltop Steak House once stood was redeveloped. It became a new neighborhood with apartments, restaurants, and shops. The famous cactus sign was kept and became part of the new project.
