Frisch’s Big Boy Restaurant and Museum in Cincinnati

After visiting Frisch’s Big Boy a few times, I was saddened and excited to hear about a historical museum. Why saddened? I just missed seeing it, which means I need to plan another road trip to drop in for a visit.

I grew up eating at Bob’s Big Boy out of Glendale, California. It was a must-stop Whenever my family visited my grandmother and aunt.

The last time I ate there in the late 1990s, I was sorely disappointed. The real problem is that the nostalgia for such a place can sometimes overwhelm that.

In 2011, my wife Marcela and I stopped at a Big Boy in Sanford, Florida. Unfortunately, the food left a lot to be desired.

Eating at Frisch’s in Lexington and Cincinnati

Frisch's Big Boy Building in Kentucky
Frisch’s Big Boy Building in Lexington, Kentucky

A few years back, I visited Frisch’s Big Boy in Lexington, Kentucky. A few days later, on the same trip, I ate at another in Cincinnati, Ohio. This time, everything was excellent, as I had hoped.

Oh, and I know you’re thinking about the tartar sauce on the Super Big Boy. I’m ecstatic to say it worked when I was 100% sure it wouldn’t!

Frisch's Big Boy Drive-thru Sign
Frisch’s Big Boy Drive-thru Sign
Welcome To Frisch's Big Boy
Welcome To Frisch’s Big Boy
Frisch's Big Boy Dessert Case
Dessert Case
Frisch's Big Boy Tomato Ketchup Bottle
Ketchup Bottle
Frisch's Big Boy Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes
Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes
Frisch's Big Boy Patty Melt
Patty Melt
Frisch's Big Boy Super Big Boy with Tartar Sauce
Super Big Boy with Tartar Sauce
Frisch's Big Boy Apple Pie
Apple Pie
Frisch's Big Boy Cherry Pie
Cherry Pie

Frisch’s Big Boy Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio

Frisch's Big Boy Museum Coming Soon Sign

I owned a bunch of Big Boy memorabilia that made up part of my Burger Museum collection. So, the possibility of seeing obscure artifacts at Frisch’s Big Boy Museum excites me.

Read the full press release about the Big Boy Museum opening below.

Frisch's Big Boy Collectibles
Frisch’s Big Boy Collectibles

Big Boy is getting a museum in Ohio: The Cincinnati-based Frisch’s Big Boy double-decker burger restaurant chain on Wednesday will unveil the museum to a gathering of employees and retirees at the chain’s original Mainliner restaurant.

The Mainliner opened in 1939 in Fairfax, just east of Cincinnati. The museum named “A Tale of Frisch’s Big Boy” will be free for patrons of the restaurant to visit. It’s scheduled to open Friday to the public.

Frisch’s is urging patrons to loan their Big Boy memorabilia for short-term displays. Atlanta-based private equity firm NRD Capital bought the chain from its family ownership in 2015.

Long an iconic Cincinnati brand, Frisch’s has the Big Boy trademark in the region and there are a total of 121 restaurants in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky.

Big Boy Museum Full Press Release

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