I worked at a BC in Decatur, IN in the mid 70s with my best friend. Many fond memories there--like after hours when we were done closing, riding the bottom of bun carts around in the lobby. It later became a Hardee's, then closed a couple of years ago. Now stands vacant. Was ALWAYS better than McDonald's.
Posted by: Cathy | April 17, 2006 at 05:00 PM
1st Avenue at North Park
I am attaching a picture of the ad from one of the local yearbooks. It states that it was located at 1st Ave and North Park. Evansville was a hotbed of fast food activity with Burger Chef, Sandy's, Biff Burger and others in the late 1960's.
Posted by: Rich B | July 2, 2006 at 7:48 PM
Division Street
I recall as a child two different Burger Chef locations in Evansville. I know we had more, but because I was born in 1973 I only remember the two. They both became arcade style restaurants called "Billy the Kid". One was located on Division Street. That location was demolished in the 1980's to make room for the Lloyd Expressway.
Posted by: Heath Gross | April 26, 2007 at 04:17 PM
Washington Avenue
Became an arcade style restaurant called "Billy the Kid". It was located across from Bosse High School on Washington Avenue. That location was demolished and a Chiropractors office is now there. I wish I had pictures to contribute, but I recall the look of the building very well!
Posted by: Heath Gross | April 26, 2007 at 04:17 PM
Coldwater Road
Near the intersection of Coldwater and Coliseum Boulevard. It was basically in my backyard. I literally just went out my backdoor and there I was. I remember the funmeals because I was just a kid when Burger Chef was there. I don't remember exactly when it converted to Hardees, but it had to of been the early '80s.
Posted by: John Gilbert | October 26, 2006 at 11:31 PM
Ft. Wayne had two operating stores in 1965.
--R.T.
John Barney had 6 or 7. He had them in Crown Point, Chesterton, Huntington, Columbia City, Fort Wayne, and North Manchester.
Posted by: Jeff | May 20, 2008 at 03:03 PM
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John Barney had 6 or 7. He had them in Crown Point, Chesterton, Huntington, Columbia City, Fort Wayne, and North Manchester.
Posted by: Jeff | May 20, 2008 at 03:03 PM
1300 West 16th Street
This was the site of the very first Burger Chef! The original building is gone; Graybar Electric Company now operates on the site. Read more about this location at Pilgrimages.
--R.T.
3201 W 16th Street
Posted by: Robby | August 23, 2006 at 08:54 PM
1318 W. 18th Street
You can see a picture of this Burger Chef's opening day at Lost Indiana. This location is now a Hardee's.
--R.T.
6021 E 38th Street
Posted by: Robby | August 23, 2006 at 08:54 PM
6132 Allisonville Road
This store had a railroad-themed interior since the store was close to a set of tracks.
--R.T.
5725 Crawfordsville Road
This is the location at which the notorious Speedway Burger Chef Murders occurred back in 1978. The crime remains unsolved; and the site is now occupied by an appliance store. Pictures of this site can be found on Lost Indiana.
--R.T.
There was a Burger Chef in Speedway, where the infamous Burger Chef Murders rocked Indiana back in 1978. I remember it being all over the news as a small kid. I still own a red Burger Chef Frisbee...has to be from the 1970s. Fond memories of the Big Shef, Super Shef, Top Shef sandwiches. In 2002, Hardee's brought back the Big Shef, the double decker that preceeded McDonald's Big Mac, and it had the sauce similar to what I remember, but there will never be any way to duplicate the old days.
Posted by: Matt Hancock | July 31, 2006 at 05:28 PM
Growing up in Speedway In. I will never forget the Burger Chef murders that happened at the Crawfordsville Road location in Speedway. I was a classmate of one of the victims, (Mark Flemonds.) Mark was one of the first Black kids to go to Speedway High School. He was a great guy who got along with everybody. If I remember correctly he was not even supposed to work that night but was filling in for another of our classmates who wanted off that night. I remember when they found the bodies out in the country, 3 of them were face down in the dirt and were shot in the back of the head, Mark was found several hundred feet away, and it was determined he was able to run away from them, but ran straight into a tree. Mark was on the track team, and was a hell of a runner. It still brings chills to me when I think of Mark running through a pitch black woods and he is possibly thinking to himself that he has gotten away and he could survive this ordeal and then "Boom" he runs face into a tree, and the tree is what ultimately takes his life. The Murders have went unsolved, I don't think that location ever reopened as a Burger Chef, I remember that when it was a Hardees it never did much business at that location and then moved to a new location down the street.
Unfortunately those are my main Burger Chef memories, sorry they are not as nice as most of the others, I still have all of the original press clippings from it, My Mom Liked to save everything back then.
Posted by: Eric Cottongim | August 04, 2007 at 10:45 PM
3735 Martin Luther King Dr.
Read more about this site and see more pictures at Pilgrimages. Also, I think this may be the former 2735 Northwestern Avenue location (The street changed names in 1985.) Anyone know for sure?
--R.T.
Michigan Road
This is the store where Brett Kimberlan claimed to have sold nickle bags of pot to Dan Quayle. Read more here.
--R.T.
2735 Northwestern Avenue
Owned and operated by Herman Taylor, this location sponsored the Burger Chef Stars youth basketball team. The Indiana Historical Society has a picture, taken November 27, 1973, of the team posing at this location. You can see it here. Also, I think this may be the same as the 3735 Martin Luther King Dr. location. (The name switched from Northwestern to MLK in 1985.) Anyone know for sure?
--R.T
Pendleton Pike
The Burger Chef restaurant I knew best was near the southeast corner of Franklin Road and Pendleton Pike in Lawrence (Indianapolis). It was always a treat when my brother and I along with our 8 cousins (one family!) would all pile into my aunt's station wagon to go for hamburgers. A really special outing included a stop at the Towne Club bottling plant a block or so down the street. The outside of this particular Burger Chef restaurant had a black stone decorative wall base (pumice?) about 2 feet high around its foundation. These rocks were extremely sharp and I remember cutting my foot quite badly one day when I accidentally kicked the wall while barefoot.
Posted by: christopher bolander | December 19, 2006 at 08:28 AM
Shadeland & 10th Street
There was a Burger Chef at Shadeland and 10th street on the eastside. I remember my grandmother always taking us three boys there after swim lessons at the YMCA. Man was it good!!
Posted by: Jeff Kemp | April 22, 2007 at 10:21 AM
Sherman Drive
I rememer going to the one on Sherman Drive in Brightwood every Friday night to eat dinner when I was a kid it was the the best food around. I miss it.
Posted by: ron herring | July 03, 2008 at 01:02 PM
6 E. Washington
There are several great pictures of this site. Check out Lost Indiana for pictures taken in 1967 and 2002 (shortly before the building was demolished.) There's also a color photo of the store at Burger Chef Memories.
--R.T.
1708 E. Washington
Posted by: Robby | August 23, 2006 at 08:54 PM
8826 E. Washington
3127 W. Washington
Does anyone remember a Burger Chef manager in Indianapolis at the West Washington St. or Tibbs location? His name was Wes -something. It would have been around 1964. Thanks for any information.
Posted by: Dee | June 22, 2006 at 11:14 PM
I worked at the BC in Kendallville, Ind. for over a year ( '78 - '79).
Posted by: Dan Malone | August 27, 2006 at 09:18 PM
I also worked at the Kendallville Burger Chef in the early '80s while I was in high school. I worked through the transition to Odelle's but stopped working before it was converted to a Hardees. An interesting aspect of the building was that there was a real train caboose installed into the front of the building accessible from the inside. Kids would eat at benches that lined both sides of the caboose and look out the windows.
Posted by: Matt Marquand | July 08, 2007 at 11:24 AM
I remember Dan Malone at the Kendallville Burger Chef. I was hired by Danny and worked there as night manager for general manager Brian Nelson untill 82'. The K'ville store became an O'Dells restaurant after B.C., then was sold to Hardee's, before becomming an Arby's. Willam Odell made the Kendallville location a landmark when he installed a railroad caboose (childrens area) along U.S. 6 at the front of the restaurant. The K'ville store is now an Arby's and the caboose has found a new home along S.R. 3(South) beside a man made pond. Odell Ent's also built a beautiful store in Coldwater, MI that had a live tree in the middle of the restaurant. Names from the past include Dan Horvath, Kenny Wisnuski, Brian Cole, Chris Temple.
Posted by: Timothy Knox | March 09, 2008 at 01:23 AM
US 31 and Hoffer Street
I remember eating at Burger Chef located on the corner of U.S. 31 and Hoffer Street in Kokomo, Indiana as a kid in the '70s. I used to love to get the differnt frisbees they gave away, my favorite was glow-in-the-dark, and I still have a Burger Chef and Jeff Yo-Yo...
Posted by: robert danley | September 08, 2007 at 03:57 PM
It was converted into a Hardees in the '80s and now it's a Mikes Carwash....
Posted by: robert danley | September 08, 2007 at 04:00 PM
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