Beloved Midwest Chain Frisch's Big Boy Faces Evictions From at Least 20 Locations

Remember Big Boy? The diner-style restaurant with its iconic boy-holding-a-hamburger statues used to dot the country. The name of the restaurant actually comes from its popular Big Boy cheeseburger, a double-pattied creation with a third bun in the middle, which was the inspiration for McDonald’s Big Mac.

There are some Big Boy restaurants left in the U.S., though much fewer than there used to be. One chain in particular, Frisch’s Big Boy, seems like it’s in serious financial trouble. Many Midwestern locations were just evicted from their buildings, and more are on the way. Here’s what’s happening.

The history of Big Boy restaurants is long and a bit complicated. Bob Wian opened his first hamburger stand in California in 1936. When he named his unique and popular cheeseburger the Big Boy, the name of the restaurant became Bob’s Big Boy. In the 1940s, he licensed other operators across the country to use the Big Boy name with their own name instead of “Bob’s”. That’s how we got Frisch’s Big Boy, the main operator of Big Boy restaurants in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

While at one point Frisch’s Big Boy had 200 locations in the Midwest, it currently has 78 total. In 2015, the chain was bought by NRD Partners, a private equity group that also owns Ruby Tuesday. NNN Reit Inc., a real estate investment trust, owns the buildings that Frisch’s Big Boy operates in.

At least 20 locations of Frisch’s Big Boy are behind on their rent, according to legal proceedings brought about by the chain’s landlord, NNN Reit Inc. That’s more than a quarter of the chain’s locations that are facing eviction or have been evicted already. Records show that the landlord claims the chain owes $4.5 million in rent.

Two other locations in Lebanon, Ohio and Franklin, Ohio, have already closed. Earlier this week, 8 locations of Frisch’s Big Boy in Ohio were given eviction notices:

• 4765 Montgomery Road in Norwood
• 9070 Plainfield Road in Blue Ash
• 9830 Colerain Ave. in Colerain Township
• 4227 Bridgetown Road in Cheviot
• 12150 Mason Montgomery in Symmes Township
• 5202 Delhi Ave. in Delhi Township
• 1283 SR-28 in Loveland
• 551 W. Plane Road in Bethel

Yes, it seems like more Big Boy locations will be closing soon. There are eviction hearings scheduled for at least four other Frisch’s Big Boy locations next week. Since the landlord claims that 20 locations are behind on rent, we can probably assume that all 20 will be closed after eviction notices are filed in court.

Because Big Boy operates as multiple companies across the U.S., these evictions are only affecting Frisch’s Big Boy, which has locations in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. If a Big Boy location near you doesn’t say “Frisch’s” on the sign, it should not be affected.

Frisch's Big Boy isn't alone. Restaurant chains across the country are closing locations, including Red Lobster, TGI Fridays, and Denny's. The upheaval of the pandemic, rising costs, changing consumer behaviors, and other factors have led many once-booming chains to seek bankruptcy protection and shutter locations. The good news for fans is that some of those chains are attempting to make a comeback after bankruptcy. Maybe Frisch's Big Boy will do the same.