Talk:Big Boy Restaurants

Move to Big Boy?

As the article mentions, the Big Boy name, while starting at Bob's, became familiar to most Americans through the many franchises (JB's, Shoney's, Elias', Frisch's, ...). Indeed, current chain has more in common with Elias' than Bob's. Should we move the page to just plain Big Boy? -- Kaszeta 16:13, 20 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Yes, after I added all the names I could google, it is clear that Bob's Big Boy is inadequate. MPS 16:19, 20 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Done. It is now Big Boy (Restaurant). I'll do some copy editing to the page as well. -- Kaszeta 16:24, 20 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Since when is Shoney's a Big Boy franchise? In the area where I grew up, we had both Shoney's and Big Boy. Not only was there no apparent affiliation between the two, but they were completely different in restaurant type. 66.126.191.98 20:56, 19 January 2006 (UTC)

66 223.123.31.146 (talk) 22:34, 29 June 2023 (UTC)

Concerning Popular Culture..... in the first (original) Terminator Movie, the opening scene takes place at a Big Boy Restaurant (presumably the Burbank location?), as the Sarah Connor character is a waitress there. BIG franky

What to work on

I don't think I can devote sufficient time to his article to bring it up to speed. Perhaps it should be listed on collaboration of the week? Regardless, perhaps we should brainstorm what it needs to be finished:MPS 16:41, 20 Jun 2005 (UTC)

comic books, big boy club, ingredients in the signature big boy sandwich, more on the history and current state of franchising

There needs to be a mention of Restaurant Enterprises Group Inc. who bought the California locations from Marriott in 1991 and effectively dismantled the chain in California by converting almost all remaining locations into Carrows or Coco's. I did not want to edit the article myself, I'll leave that to you wiki pros. Here's a link to an article about the REGI takeover: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3190/is_n5_v25/ai_10349537/

location today

is there any big boy restaurant still open anywhere today? where?

-- Reply: Yes, in Arizona, California, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, North Carolina and North Dakota. (See official website) DUden (talk) 09:49, 16 May 2008 (UTC)DUden

-- Reply: Arizona does not have Big Boys. as seen here. They do, however, have JB's as seen here However, I see no indication that JB's is affiliated with Big Boys... 70.190.81.117 (talk) 03:08, 18 December 2009 (UTC)

Don't forget Frisch's

Frisch's Big Boy should have its own section too. They're still around too. They also have their official web site. Research stuff on google to find Frisch's stuff.

Other Franchises

Removed MI and TN and added WV and PA in Frisch's info. section. Frisch's has never had a location in MI or TN. Elias Brothers had MI sewed up as tight as a drum for years, and Shoney's, not Frisch's was the franchisor for TN.71.244.163.156 07:35, 19 March 2006 (UTC)

More Other Franchises

Mady's was not a franchisee so I moved it out of the list but retained it at the bottom with additional info. I tweaked my own copy re Elbys slightly.

I revised copy in the leading paragraphs to better clarify the issue of named franchisees vs franchisees. Because a unit has a sign with Big Boy without any name preceding it does not mean it isn't owned by a franchisee. For example, in Bismarck, ND McDowell's Big Boy is (now) signed and advertised simply as Big Boy. I believe a few other previously named franchisees now operate sans their name, either simply as Big Boy or Bob's Big Boy. These are the choices BBI allows.

Does Big Boy of Florida belong in the franchisee list? The list is of "named" franchisees—their names added to Big Boy. This regional identity is part of the lore of Big Boy. Besides there have been and are countless franchisees who operated as Frisch's Big Boy or Shoney's Big Boy etc.

I have produced logos in .svg format for 19 of the historic franchisees which I hope to post soon. I still need logos for Becker's, Kebo's, Ken's, McDowell's, Ted's, (Mark's, if distinct from Marc's) and anything else not mentioned. If anyone has examples of these please speak up!

May revise the special sause / tarter sauce comment, discovering that Manners used yet another distinct sauce. Re bleu cheese dressing, Elby's simply added crumpled bleu cheese to a 50/50 mix of commercial bleu cheese dressiong and french dressing as I recall. Box73 (talk) 22:26, 8 February 2012 (UTC)

Construction

There has never been any reference to using "sea salt" in the consturcion of an Elias Brothers Big Boy.71.244.163.156 07:35, 19 March 2006 (UTC)

New Frisch's Section Added

I dropped the Frisch's burger recipe due to the recent addition of the Frisch's article. I've also dropped the Frisch's commerical article due to the same reasons also. Spongefan 2:04, 18 June 2006 (UTC)

Discussion to the merger of the Frisch's articles to Big Boy

The Frisch's article is too big and long to merge with the the Big Boy article. Besides, Frisch's has its own history which is way different from Big Boy's even though they are the same in ways. If someone could add a couple of pictures and little more to the Firsch's article is greatly appreciated. Spongefan 14:55, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

• I agree. Frisch's should stay separate, just like Eat 'n Park. The chains have separate histories. --Captadam 13:13, 24 July 2006 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:Bobs-big-boy-34.4.jpg

Image:Bobs-big-boy-34.4.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in Wikipedia articles constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images uploaded after 4 May, 2006, and lacking such an explanation will be deleted one week after they have been uploaded, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.BetacommandBot 03:16, 1 June 2007 (UTC)

Two parodies missing

I believe there are two things that should be added to the Trivia section:

• "The Fat Friar" as seen in Shrek 2

and *"Big Pete's House of Munch" on Family Guy episode No Meals on Wheels

Florida Franchise Information

There is currently a Florida Exclusive Franchise that is not indicated. Currently 2 stores exist East of Orlando and one is under construction in Winter Haven. I will try to find time to locate the references in the news and on www.bigboyflorida.com and add this info when I have a chance. --Tralfaz (Ralraz, yech) 13:10, 5 July 2007 (UTC)

I have added the Big Boy of Florida franchise information along with the reference to the article from which I obtained this information. I am wondering if it is OK that I made the name in the list a link to the company website? --Tralfaz (Ralraz, yech) 17:04, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

Cut Trivia

Removed for obvious reasons:

• On May 14, 2007 in Gahanna, Ohio the local Big Boy statue was found stolen and placed on top of the local high school as a prank by juniors at the high school. Though initially believed to be a senior prank, no actual seniors were involved.

SteveCoppock 20:01, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

WP:FOOD Tagging

This article talk page was automatically added with {{WikiProject Food and drink}} banner as it falls under Category:Restaurants or one of its subcategories. If you find this addition an error, Kindly undo the changes and update the inappropriate categories if needed. You can find the related request for tagging here -- TinucherianBot (talk) 07:53, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

Photo caption

Why doesn't the photo caption which I added to the infobox show up? What am I doing wrong? In confusion, I am GeorgeLouis (talk) 04:47, 26 November 2008 (UTC)

The caption provided for the Logo you replaced also did not appear. I not familiar enough with the image process to suggest why. It seems to me that an InfoBox like that is just the place where a Logo ought to be presented. That seems to be done with other company's Logos. Why is the Big Boy Logo not appropriate here? Pzavon (talk) 02:27, 28 November 2008 (UTC)

Merging (again)

I see someone has suggested merging the article on Bob's Big Boy Restaurant (Burbank, California) into the article on Bob's Big Boy, but there is not such article. The merge proposal is pointing to the general article on the Big Boy Restaurant chain (this article). If there were an article on Bob's Big Boy, I would think merging the article on the Burbank Restaurant would be a good idea. I think merging all the material on the Burbank locaiton with the general article on the Big Boy chain would be inappropriate. A reference and wikilink to the article on the Burbank restaurant might be a good thing, however. Pzavon (talk) 03:37, 12 February 2009 (UTC)

Interesting. I see your point. Can you add an appropriate link to that article so people interested in Bob's Big Boy can find it? ChildofMidnight (talk) 03:57, 12 February 2009 (UTC)

It looks like someone did that, in the Notable Locations section, some while ago. I've just modified it to avoid a redirect. And I've removed the merge proposal template. Pzavon (talk) 01:13, 13 February 2009 (UTC)

I'm going to move the other article to Bob's Big Boy and merge some of the information there. I'm including a link to this article at the top of the page. ChildofMidnight (talk) 03:47, 13 February 2009 (UTC)

On second thought this entire article should be moved there. Big Boy is another the new name of the more well known chain. ChildofMidnight (talk) 03:48, 13 February 2009 (UTC)

I don't understand your last sentence, but if you are suggesting that everything in the article on Big Boy (Restaurant) should be moved to an article on Bob's Big Boy, or that the article on the Burbank Restaurant whould be completely moved into the Big Boy (Restaurant) article, I have to disagree with you and oppose such a move. Pzavon (talk) 01:24, 14 February 2009 (UTC)

I don't understand me half the time either. It's been a while, but I think the basic issue is we have Bob's Big Boy, a notable restaurant chain that deserves an article. And then we have Big Boy, a restaurant conglomerate that now includes Bob's Big Boy. To treat them as one and the same is confusing and doing a disservice to our readers. It's like mergin Chrysler into Fiat once it's bought out and acting like it's one and the same thing. It's just weird. They should link back and forth and be treated discretely. ChildofMidnight (talk) 01:58, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

Verification for franchises

I put in a citation needed tag, as none of the affiliated franchise names have any evidence backing them up, and I've already found several errors. 70.190.81.117 (talk) 03:26, 18 December 2009 (UTC)

I added a citation for Shoney's. I will probably add citations for Elby's and Eat'n Park at some point. I wrote much of the text for several of the franchisees some years ago. Alas some information is from personal knowledge, some derived from images of items offered for sale on eBay such as menus and some from undocumented conversations—e.g., Elby's being originally subfranchised through Shoney's is from a phone conversation with Chris Hansen at some time in the late 90s.

While I agree with you re citations, when you find errors, consider that Big Boys previously operated in more states than they do presently. Franchisees and territories are largely historic. 69.204.27.45 (talk) 11:03, 29 October 2011 (UTC)

Big Boy started WITHOUT Arnold Peterson

"Big Boy was started as Bob's Pantry in 1936 by Bob Wian, in partnership with Arnold Peterson."

This should be revised because it conveys that Peterson was a founding partner, which isn't true. Peterson ate at Bob's Pantry in 1939, was so impressed that he then partnered with Wian to build a new unit in Burbank. Peterson was then a force in the development of Big Boy and I don't discount his importance.

Should this be: "Big Boy was started as Bob's Pantry in 1936 by Bob Wian, in later partnership with Arnold Peterson." or "... by Bob Wian, who soon partnered with Arnold Peterson." or should Peterson be moved and detailed further into the article?

see: http://articles.glendalenewspress.com/2008-01-19/entertainment/gnp-bigboy19_1_ron-peterson-statue-marriott-corp

Box73 (talk) 05:43, 2 April 2013 (UTC)

References

Headquarters, sans current: eliminating or creating confusion?

I agree that saying current headquarters is somewhat superfluos and eliminating current sounds better. And I agree the HQ has been there since the chain was purchased by Elias Brothers in 1987. However is this article about Big Boy Restaurants generally or Big Boy Restaurants International, LLC specifically? I am cautious because readers tend to identify the article with Big Boy generally and then make false inferences. As an example, a newspaper article reporting the death of one of the Elias Brothers falsely reported how the Elias Brothers founded the Big Boy chain.

Many readers reference this article wondering about historic issues such as the historic Big Boy franchise in their area. This article should be about Big Boy generally and not BBRI specifically.

By your logic, if "current headquarters" should be "headquarters", then why not "Big Boy Restaurants International LLC is a restaurant chain ..." changed to, "Big Boy Restaurants is a restaurant chain ..."?

Box73 (talk) 18:01, 24 September 2013 (UTC)

"Franchisee" is not a spelling error

User 204.185.64.130 made a spelling correction to "Thus Frisch's is no longer a franchisee" changing franchisee to franchise. But franchisee is not a misspelling of franchise but an intentional choice of words.

Now I suppose one may correctly say either franchise or franchisee. Franchisee is the one granted a franchise. However in common use "franchise" has also become synonymous with "brand". Saying that Frisch's is not a franchise implies that Frisch's is not a real Big Boy Restaurant. Instead saying franchisee stays closer to the idea of the franchisor-franchisee relationship, which is what changed.

Thanks to all for correcting my typos and grammar. This is not one of them and I elect to revert the edit. Box73 (talk) 07:42, 6 May 2015 (UTC)

Frisch's belongs at the beginning of the article

Frisch's should be noted at the beginning of the Big Boy Restaurants article. This is because Frisch's is Big Boy and there is no relationship now between Big Boy Restaurants International and Frisch's.

Since 2001, Frisch's exclusively owns the Big Boy trademark in Indiana and Kentucky, and most of Ohio and Tennessee. It is a co-registrant of the name and marks with the USPTO. It also has used distinct Big Boy designs since 1951. Frisch's is no longer a franchisee, licensee of or subordinate to Big Boy Restaurants International. At the Big Boy Restaurants International site, the search will not display Frisch's stores, nor at Frisch's site, will you find BBRI stores. Yes, Frisch's is listed in the regional franchise section as is its licensee Azar's (and past licensee Manners). (It was once a franchisee.) But so is Elias Brothers, Bob's and McDowell's, which are Big Boy Restaurants International.

This article has to represent all of Big Boy not just Big Boy Restaurants International. In my opinion the interest in Big Boy is mostly nostalgic about the glory days and what franchise operated where one lived. Blogs, comments or discussion pages frequently copy the section about regional franchisees. Meanwhile BBRI hasn't been able to grow the chain but is slowly losing units. But I am straying from the topic.

You are right that Frisch's is mentioned below in the article as are many regional franchisees that are gone. Frisch's also has its own Wikipedia article. Nonetheless when a person looks for Big Boy (Restaurants) and we identify current owners it is truthful and appropriate to include Frisch's. I cite USPTO documents as evidence.

I am udoing the deletion by IPAddressConflict but welcome a dialog about this unique issue.

Box73 (talk) 11:13, 9 June 2015 (UTC)

Then it can be mentioned on the Big Boy article. Frankly, why should Frisch get higher standing than any of the other licensees? Because it's no longer affiliated? As it's written, it's clearly advertising for Frisch's. It can, and should be mentioned on the Big Boy page, maybe with an indicator that it has the right to use it. But this is the Big Boy Restaurants page, and I do not believe that it is the best location for it. Frankly, that section needs to be cleaned up anyway. --ip.address.conflict (talk) 23:35, 9 June 2015 (UTC)

OK, then why should Big Boy Restaurants International get higher standing than other licensees?

You say, But Big Boy Restaurants International is not a licensee!

Well Frisch's is not a licensee either! There are now TWO Big Boy Restaurants: Frisch's and Big Boy Restaurants International. Both are OWNERS of the name and trademark. Frisch's does not pay money to BBRI, nor need approval of BBRI in any way. It is not subordinate. Frisch's is not a licensee. As such the text in the lead section about Frisch's is not advertising but a statement of fact. Remember, Frisch's is not a licensee. It is one of two independent owners.

I'm not a shill for Frisch's, I'm an advocate for accuracy and clarity. This is the (overall) Big Boy Restaurants page and must mention both in the lead paragraph. Then this article can be attributed to BBRI and the Frisch's article attributed to Frisch's. We should prevent others from assuming your misunderstanding that Frisch's is simply a licensee or franchisee. We must represent Frisch's as a coequal owner right up front. It's not a cheap ploy. If we apply your reasoning we should then also move Big Boy Restaurants International to being a note in the Elias Brothers section, else it is just advertising/spam for BBRI.

You are confusing Big Boy Restaurants with Big Boy Restaurants International. Since 2001 BBRI is not the exclusive owner of Big Boy, BBRI and Frisch's are BOTH distinct owners of Big Boy.

Just remember, Frisch's is not a licensee.

Constructive clean up is always welcome, but as you are new to this article—and perhaps the topic—please talk about non-minor edits. —Box73 (talk) 11:19, 10 June 2015 (UTC)

References

Footnote

Footnote 60 is a dead link — Preceding unsigned comment added by 172.56.5.5 (talk) 15:04, 13 June 2015 (UTC)

Frisch's tarter sauce : synonymous, drive for miles, and "so Cincinnati"

The tarter sauce dressing has become so synonymous with Frisch's that people will drive for miles to have a hamburger with tarter sauce on it and is sold in jars at the restaurants. It has been reported as "so Cincinnati!"

I appreciate your contribution to this article and assume it is in good faith. However, I removed this text because it is promotional and trivial to the Big Boy restaurants article. First, Frisch's has its own section in the franchise section; moreover the article is about Big Boy restaurants generally and Frisch's has its own article. More importantly, that people will drive for miles is promotional and unsupported. How do we know people will drive for miles? How do we know tarter sauce is synonymous with Frisch's? Why is Krystal Boyle's personally selected "so Cincinnati" items on her Pinterest page significant to an encyclopedia? Is any of this significant? (BTW Big Boy (International) also sells jars of tarter sauce, Big Boy and Slim Jim sauces.)

If we can't agree, I'd be agreeable to inviting dispute resolution. — Box73 (talk) 10:36, 18 May 2016 (UTC)

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Bob's name use / geography

The article reads:

Currently, "Bob's" is again used only in Southern California, and no others under the domain of Big Boy Restaurants International are permitted to use franchise names for public identity.

This prompted the following citation needed with reasoning:

Although this may have been true 30 years ago, there is nothing currently on the company's website that would imply that there is a current geographic restriction on the use of the Bob's name or if a new California location were to open if it would be allowed to use the Bob's brand

Big Boy Restaurants International owns the Bob's name and I agree that there is no geographical restriction (distinct from BBRI's exclusivity agreement with Frisch's). However the text does not say there is a geographical restriction on the name, but simply that it is only currently used in Southern California, Wian's early turf. A separate point is that other than Bob's, no name is used (i.e., allowed) with Big Boy. (When Liggett bought Big Boy, the Elias Bros. name disappeared.)

The Big Boy Franchise Agreement deals with non BBRI-owned franchise names as co-branding, which is prohibited.

I edited the article text to reduce the unintended implication you raise. -- βox73 (৳alk) 22:57, 3 September 2017 (UTC)

References

Who is the current CEO for BBRI?

A new IP editor recently changed the name of the current CEO from Keith E. Sirois to David B. Crawford with this edit of 16:00, 23 January 2018. Unfortuately, this change fails WP:VERIFY because I'm unable to locate a citation that would support this claim. Until BBRI issues a press release, should this unsupported change be reverted? --50.195.200.161 (talk) 03:49, 26 January 2018 (UTC)

@50.195.200.161: I can't find anything at The Detroit Free Press, Crains, or Bloomberg – places you'd expect such an announcement. But on his LinkedIn page, Crawford lists himself as CEO effective January 2018 and interim CEO from November. That's not reliable yet it is plausible. Big Boy continues to sink on Sirois' watch and the Burgers and Shakes operation apparently hasn't hooked any franchisees. And this is about the same amount of time Liggett gave Tony Michaels. If the CEO change happened, making this announcement doesn't bolster confidence in BBRI. Anyway, we could revert it now or perhaps give it until Monday or Tuesday. — βox73 (৳alk) 14:21, 27 January 2018 (UTC)

@Box73: I agree that your observations are most likely correct, but there is still nothing official beyond self-published info; not a good sign for the company. If someone has too much time on their hands, that person should contact the company and suggest that they should issue a press release about their change in management and their optimism in their company's future. Sirois claimed on his LinkedIn page that he had "retired". It is plausible that Crawford could have made the Wikipedia edit himself.

Tony Michaels is a different case since he was a holdover from Elias and he may have contributed in some of the bad decisions that might have led to Elias downfall. Michaels appeared to have been making more decisions for Elias Bros. while the brothers aged and later died. Sirois was hired from the outside. (These items needs to be eventually added to the main article.)

There is no need to rush to revert, but it needs to be done eventually. Liggett might be preparing for his eventual retirement since he has been a member of the Michigan bar since 1969 (unable to include blacklisted link to www.lawyers.com/grosse-pointe-shores/michigan/robert-g-liggett-jr-739260-a/ ) and had recently sold a newspaper. When that happens, the company's days might be numbered since I was unable to find a new franchisee being mentioned during the past 5-6 years of news and many current franchisees have been choosing not to renew their franchise contracts. -- 50.195.200.161 (talk) 22:22, 27 January 2018 (UTC)

@50.195.200.161: I totally agree that this change must be supported or reverted. And yes, Crawford or someone close to him may have made the change. I didn't think to look at Sirois' LinkedIn page, but he is 65, so retirement is quite possible. Interestingly, Crawford was promoted from the same position Michaels was.

Tony Michaels was only CEO in the final year of Elias Bros.[1] Michaels' comment that his departure "wasn't close to mutual" and the mentioned lack of store growth make me compare him and Sirois, who seems to have even a poorer record with Big Boy.[2] He didn't reproduce his performance from Checker's/Rally's.

Liggett may have passed the bar but he has never practiced law. He isn't found in Michigan's database either. I wasn't aware that he sold the newspaper.

Exactly, no franchise agreements are being signed, and most existing franchisees not signing are continuing in business without Big Boy. One said – and remember your search of 5-6 years – "[The owners] ... felt that it was the right time to move on when 'six or seven years' prior, the company told its franchisees to undertake a complete renovation if they wanted a new contract ... adding that most of the franchises appear to be making the same decision."[3] (IMO Hashim Aziz will eventually take BBRI at a discount and reunite the chain.) — βox73 (৳alk) 02:36, 29 January 2018 (UTC)

@Box73: Thanks for the heads up on the extremely recent (Valentine's Day eve) Crain's Detroit article. There might be still hope for the struggling company that may yet survive considering that the company's previous "press release" is at least 2-3 years old. The lack of recent press release is sometimes a sign that company might be circling the drain and that the corporate staff might be quietly circulating their resumes among potential new employers.

For Liggett to become a (non-practicing) member of the Michigan bar in 1969, Liggett would probably need to be born during the late 1940s and would thus be in his early 70s. Although he might have another productive 15 years ahead of him, he could decide it time to start unloading some of his non-core holdings, especially if the holdings are potentially money losing.

Who was CEO of Elias Bros. before Tony Michaels? Louis Elias, the last chairman of Elias Bros., who became chairman upon the death of his brother Fred in 1993?

If you add in the list of Marriott's Big Boy division presidents after Wian until the sale of the Big Boy and the master franchise to Elias in 1987, you could have the history of the corporate leadership (i.e., CEO and/or COO) from Wian to Crawford for Big Boy which could explain how the companies change over the years and how the brand(s) grew and shrank. -- 50.195.200.161 (talk) 03:35, 17 February 2018 (UTC)

Big Boy Japan relationship with BBRI

After Elias Bros. filed for bankruptcy, did Big Boy Japan, or its then parent Daiei, purchased the Japanese rights to the Big Boy brand? Many Japanese companies have done this in the past when the U.S. franchisor becomes insolvent since the US Bankruptcy courts would accept almost any offer that would satisfy creditors. -- 50.195.200.161 (talk) 03:39, 27 January 2018 (UTC)

I've wondered about that too; I certainly have that impression but I can't find sources, pro or con. (Did they do that with Victoria Station?) — βox73 (৳alk) 14:49, 27 January 2018 (UTC)

It is hard to say what had happened with Victoria Station since the ancient newspaper articles appear to imply liquidation without explicitly mentioning it. And outright liquidation might be different since franchise agreements might be treated null and void outside the U.S.

Since there is nothing on the English language websites that mentions Big Boy Japan's (or its current parent Zensho) business relationship with BBRI, it might not hurt making e-mail contact with BBJ and/or Zensho for clarification and also ask for possible links to Japanese language web publications that can be used as a citation. Have you read the Google Translation of the Japanese Wiki Big Boy Restaurants article? I get the impression they may not be paying a franchise fee. If the appropriate refs can be found and translated, it might be interesting to translated the Japanese wiki article and have it publish on English Wikipedia as article about Big Boy Japan. (It appears that the Japanese mascot is named Bobby and has 2 sisters.) -- 50.195.200.161 (talk) 23:04, 27 January 2018 (UTC)

@50.195.200.161: I considered doing the same thing and just about mentioned it in my response. (Some editors see this as OR which it isn't if they provide accessible, reliable sources.) Some material seems added to the Japanese Wikipedia article since I last saw it. I found reading the Google translation of Big Boy Japan website illuminating too. BBJ distinguishes "Big Boy" stores from "Big Boy Dining" stores but many of the same items are served at their Victoria Station stores, and they share a common website: www.bigboyjapan.co.jp. This strongly suggests to me that they own the rights. Yet in the press BBRI frequently mentions Japanese Big Boys in the number of stores.

The Japanese menu is distinct, lacking the Big Boy, Slim Jim, Brawny Lad, and all the other American items. BBJ most likely didn't start this way and I wonder if they didn't buy the rights when they changed the menu, and this happened long before the Elias bankruptcy. The Thai Big Boy quickly floundered using the American menu (and other American practices – the Thai employees wanted to go on break and eat lunch at the same time). I keep meaning to add this Thai matter.

My friend, your contributions are very constructive. Get a Wikipedia account! — βox73 (৳alk) 00:48, 29 January 2018 (UTC)

What's the difference between Bob's Big Boys in So. Cal. and Big Boy restaurants in Michigan, if anything beyond the lack of the word Bob in the Michigan chain?

When you visit the Big Boy webpage and look at the locations page, you see both tMichigan locations and So. Cal. locations listed, implying they are the same or at least closely related. While the Michigan locations omit the word Bob's from the chain's name, it's not clear they are distinctly different restaurants from the So. Cal Bob's Big Boys, sort of like the difference between Hardee's and Carl's Jr. restaurants which started as separate restaurants but have largely merged save for the name differences and some menu differences. What this article really needs is some explanation of the differences between Bob's Big Boy restaurants in So-Cal and Big Boy restaurants in Michigan. The Big Boy websites lists then as being part of the same chain just a slight name difference in the So. Cal locations. While I get the impression that the Big Boy Michigan locations are owned by separate people from the So. Cal. Bob's Big Boys, It's not clear there are really distinct differences between the two, as they are all franchise restaurants that serve similar menus. We need to clarify the relationship between the two restaurant chains in this article. Were they Big Boy Michigan restaurants once Bob's Big Boys and are they currently serving the same sport of menu or are their key differences that makes them more of a name only relationship these days? --Notcharliechaplin (talk) 01:39, 20 May 2018 (UTC)--

Specialty Products Division: Salad Dressings and Sauces

@Nixols: Thank you for contributing content about the division producing Bob's Big Boy condiments. I knew that Wian's wife June created the recipe for the seasoning salt but wasn't aware of the (changing) ownership/history of the company actually making the food stuffs. Very interesting!

Because of the ballooning size of the Big Boy Restaurants article, and the association of the dressings etc. with Bob's Big Boy, my feeling is that the content as written is best placed with Bob's Big Boy (where it already also exists). The seasoning salt was widely sold by different Big Boy franchisees but I don't believe the other products were well known, if sold, by brick and mortar grocers outside of the general territories of Bob's and Elias Brothers. Frisch's Big Boy actually sells its own dressings and sauces in grocery stores proximate to its territory.

Having said that, I think the content is a valuable addition to the Bob's Big Boy article and should be elevated to a subsection of History. There is additional material that can be added such as about the frozen shrimp that Wian packaged and sold in grocery stores under the Bob's name.

This can then be mentioned and wikilinked from the Big Boy Restaurants article. (And this ballooning talk page would benefit from archiving.) — βox73 (৳alk) 00:11, 17 October 2020 (UTC)

Split Big Boy Japan to separate article?

No. IMO there is too little information available about Big Boy Japan to support its own article. (Look at the scant Wikipedia article for Zensho Holdings, the parent company. This is very different from Frisch's.) There is the possibility of obtaining material published in reliable sources, from the company itself. This would not be original research but NPOV would be a potential issue. Although the Big Boy Restaurants article is ballooning out, and although Big Boy Japan is independent of Big Boy Restaurant Group, currently Big Boy Japan is best served here. — βox73 (৳alk) 03:45, 15 July 2021 (UTC)

Wonky infobox

The infobox formatting is messed up, but I don't know what work is being done now, so will leave it be, other than this note. Thanks.--Surv1v4l1st ^{╠Talk║Contribs╣} 20:19, 30 May 2022 (UTC)

Thank you for your feedback and your kind consideration.

By "wonkiness" you probably refer to the infobox name. Because Big Boy is now regionally divided into two unrelated companies (and previously many co-branded franchises) but this article necessarily, largely treats Big Boy as a single entity (and the trademark being co-registered) it seemed less confusing to repeat the more generic "Big Boy Restaurants" along with the legal name of the greater entity, previously "Big Boy Restaurants International, Inc." and now "Big Boy Restaurant Group, Inc.".

Beyond this, how is the infobox wonky? And how do we get this article upgraded from a beginning article? It has been extensively researched, cited and illustrated, and deserves an appropriate grade.

Again, thanks — βox73 (৳alk) 06:31, 14 June 2022 (UTC)

The named franchisees section

I love how on the section about named franchisees you can press one of the franchisee names to skip to that section! Xboxsponge15 (talk) 16:33, 14 July 2022 (UTC)

Also Big Boy jr.

Throughout the 70's till the end of the 80's there was a Big Boy jr. Inside the Montclair Plaza in CA. The Big Boy statute was not standing but sitting on his side. 107.19.32.164 (talk) 00:20, 17 August 2023 (UTC)