6 Things Ohioans Miss About Frisch’s Big Boy as Locations Keep Closing

In 2011, Frisch’s sold 85,000 whole pumpkin pies in the 16 weeks they were in season.

With Thanksgiving coming, that’s one more thing Ohioans miss as locations close.

Here’s what Ohioans miss about Frisch’s Big Boy as locations keep closing.

1. Tartar Sauce on the Big Boy

Frisch’s Big Boy serves its signature burger with tartar sauce.

Frisch’s opened its first Big Boy restaurant in Cincinnati in 1947.

The story goes that waitress Gert Davis didn’t know what sauce the new burger needed.

The restaurant already served tartar sauce with its fish entrees, so that’s what went on the burger.

The Michigan-based company that reopened former Frisch’s locations as Dolly’s said white sauce is the right sauce for burgers in Cincinnati.

If you grew up on the white stuff, that can be a hard habit to break.

2. Hot Fudge Cake

Frisch’s Hot Fudge Cake debuted in restaurants in 1970.

A 2011 profile of the chain’s desserts called it a top seller year-round.

You aren’t the only one who plans a stop around the cake.

A couple visiting from Indiana said they look forward to Big Boys and hot fudge cake.

3. Breakfast Bar

Frisch’s announced in July 2023 that it was bringing back its weekday breakfast bar at multiple locations, Monday through Friday until 11 a.m.

Weekend breakfast bars ran until 1 p.m. on Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday.

The bar was set to include bacon, sausage, biscuits and spicy spuds for $8.99.

The bar had been a staple at Frisch’s for decades.

Frisch’s vice president of marketing said the bar was part of a plan to bring value to guests in a challenging economy.

One customer praised the salad and breakfast bars when asked about the closures.

You can see why regulars would miss it.

4. Pumpkin Pie

Frisch’s sold 85,000 whole pumpkin pies in the 16 weeks the pie was in season, according to a 2011 report.

Nearly half of them went out the door in the two weeks leading up to Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin was Frisch’s No. 1 selling dessert while it was available.

Diners and carry-out customers bought another 840,000 slices individually.

In October 2022, Frisch’s marked National Pumpkin Day with a month of pie deals, and the company called its pumpkin pie scratch-made.

In November 2025, Frisch’s ran a three-day pie pop-up sale across the Miami Valley, from Nov. 24 to 26.

Pre-orders were open.

A whole pie was an 8-inch round that retailed for just under $9.

Your Thanksgiving table may have included one of those pies.

5. Fairfax Mainliner

The Frisch’s Mainliner in Fairfax had operated for 80 years, Fox 19 reported.

The company says it was Cincinnati’s first year-round drive-in.

The restaurant was named for the first tri-motor passenger plane that operated from Lunken Airport.

Before drive-through windows, Frisch’s had a carhop service.

The first Frisch’s drive-thru opened in Hartwell, Ohio, in 1983.

You could pull in any month of the year.

The Mainliner closed its doors for the last time in December 2024.

Many heartbroken customers came to say goodbye that Sunday.

6. Neighborhood Gathering Spot

Frisch’s customers told the Dayton Daily News that the closures are a loss to the community.

One regular said he eats at his Frisch’s seven days a week.

He sits in the same place every day.

He gets to know the waitresses and the other regulars, and it becomes a social visit.

The closures also mean the loss of a central gathering place.

At the Mainliner, a couple said the restaurant had a loyal group of waitresses, waiters and managers.

You may have a regular table, too.

Many fellow diners likely miss the people there as well.

Where the Count Stands

Frisch’s Big Boy is smaller than it used to be.

Each count below measures something different, so you can’t compare them directly.

In April 2024, its website listed about 80 restaurants in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.

By Dec. 17, 2024, a Cincinnati TV station had counted 57 restaurants closed on property owned by one landlord.

That count covers only that landlord’s properties.

By October 2024, that landlord had filed eviction cases for more than 20 southwest Ohio locations.

By October 2025, 19 restaurants were still open in Ohio, out of 31 across Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.

Six Dolly’s restaurants, run by a different Big Boy company, closed on Oct. 23, 2025.

Frisch’s still had 31 locally owned and operated locations by July 2026.

A Remodeled Frisch’s in Fort Wright

Frisch’s announced in June 2026 that its Fort Wright, Kentucky, restaurant on Orphanage Road was being remodeled.

A Lexington-based developer had bought the restaurant.

Renderings showed blues and reds, a large counter seating area and booths along the front windows.

On July 2, Frisch’s said it was making final preparations before opening.

The company said it would share the official opening date as soon as it was announced.