in the 70s, Food of the Seventies

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Commentor Name:	B.R.
Comments left:	When I was a kid in the early 70s the nearest town with a big name burger restaurant was Rantoul (home of now-defunct Chanute AFB). But then the "big guys" like McDonald's and Burger King were only in the Champaign-Urbana area. So Rantoul had Burger Chef (and another forgotten gem, Top Boy just about across the street). I was a fan of Burger Chef not only for their menu but also for their innovations. They invented the "chain broiler" Burger King still uses. And a synchronized "bun toaster" that ran over the top of the broiler and dropped a perfectly toasted bun off the end the same ytime the finished patty came off. They had like a "multi-condiment squirt gun" at their prep station to speed things up. The food was always top-notch. Loved Super Shefs and Big Shefs. Other ideas/innovations: they started the movie tie-in deal (remember the Star Wars tumblers in '77?). And one more I remember. In the early-to-mid '70s "Burger Chef & Jeff" started appearing in commercials talking about a sandwich for kids that came with a prize in the box, the Funburger. ("with a surprise of a prize inside" - I can still hear Paul Winchell..as "BC"... saying it). It morphed into the full tray offering known as the "Funmeal". Now what huge chain do we know of who stole that idea (by merely swapping the prefix "happy" for "fun") and made billions with it? Burger Chef didn't deserve the fate it had. Being nearly ran into the ground by General Mill's mismanagement. And then being bought by Hardee's, a chain that was suffering a severe identity-crisis at the time. They got rid of their "charco-broiling" and switched to frying like McDonald's (blecch!) Then they played "identity theft" with rival chains. Sold roast beef trying to be Arby's. Sold fried chicken trying to KFC. Anything but make a good hamburger. This was the world Hardee's brought Burger Chef into. Serving bland on a Hexagonal patty. Sometimes wish Hardees would have gone under and Burger Chef had survived.
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