Beefsteak Charlie’s
Beefsteak Charlie's flourished in the 70s in NYC and had 68 locations in 1984, but changing tastes led to bankruptcy in 1989.
In 1910, Charles W. Chessar, a New York City restaurateur, opened a restaurant. He would name his restaurant after a nickname that was given to a local newspaper sports editor, Beefsteak Charlie. In 1922, a steak that covered the plate would cost you fifty cents, and you didn’t need to worry about making a mess. It was the type of place with a sawdust-covered floor and racetrack pictures on the walls.
Here is an article from September 1933 that paints a wonderful picture of the restaurant.
As you can read in this article, a fire had recently damaged the place, including all those remarkable racetrack photos. This wouldn’t spell the end of this storied eater. It would reopen.
Chessar would operate his restaurant into the 1930s, when he would sell it to another restaurateur named, William Shoshnick. The popularity of Beefsteak Charlie’s only grew under the careful guidance of Shoshnick. It would peak in the early Sixties and allow Shoshnick to sell it and retire to Arizona.
During this time, Beefsteak Charlies was the hip place to be, especially among jazz musicians. According to Timme Rosenkrantz , in his book, Harlem Jazz Adventures: A European Baron’s Memoir, 1934-1969,
Beefsteak Charlie’s, which offered a free beer for every two ordered, served as a jazzman’s booking office, club, and even hotel, at least until four in the morning. Owner and bartenders had all been involved in music in one way or another, and most of the patrons were musicians.
Beefsteak Charlie’s would merely be a well thought of footnote if it wasn’t for Larry Ellman. Ellman ran a restaurant chain called Steak & Brew that filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in 1975. During this time, he decided to start to rename locations as Beefsteak Charlie’s.
The newly renamed chained filed a trademark on the “Beefsteak Charlie’s” name in March 1976. Since no previous trademark existed on the original restaurant’s name, the chain and its namesake are not legally connected in any way.
Here you can see one of their launch ads from 1975. Already, everything that made Beefsteak Charlie’s so great was already in place. The all you can drink, the low prices and the amazing salad bar are all mentioned. Plus, you get an early version cartoon version of the Beefsteak Charlie character.
Early locations included Lawrence, Huntington, Merrick, and Brooklyn.
The restaurants took off immediately. It emphasized an all-you-can-eat philosophy. For a flat rate, you could partake of their epic salad bar and drink as much beer win or sangria as you wanted. A very popular item on that salad bar, especially with my family, were giant bowls of unlimited pre-peeled shrimp. The feast didn’t stop there, they would also offer special nights of other unlimited eating opportunities.
They would also have various forms of entertainment depending on the location. This included comedy, live music, and even audience participation talent shows. Once you sat down at a Beefsteak Charlie’s they wanted to keep you there as long as they could, and they often succeeded.
One key to their success was a well-done advertising campaign that featured actor Tom Lacy, dressed in early 20th-century garb, as Beefsteak Charlie. Joined later by his young enterprising nephew, Beefsteak Chuck, the ads hearkened back to the original restaurant. They also emphasized the amazing deal you were going to get when you took a seat at Beefsteak Charlie’s.
“I’ll feed you like there’s no tomorrow.”
Beefsteak Charlie
By 1984, the popularity of the chain had peaked with 68 locations. This high-point didn’t last, by 1987 they had gone through an acquisition and a merger. Down to just 48 locations, they were losing money every year. By 1989, they were down to 35 locations, and they filed for bankruptcy.
After 1990, the chain would linger but was on life-support. One by one the final locations would close and by the mid-2000s all remnants of the original chain were gone. The trademark was re-registered in 2001 by a new entity, but locations that opened from that registration all appear to be gone now.
“You’re gonna get spoiled.”
Beefsteak Charlie
Beefsteak Charlie’s was a fun place to eat. It attempted to win people over by giving them what they wanted, lots of food and drink at a reasonable price. For a while they succeeded, but with all the competition, it couldn’t last. Nowadays, we are only left with the memories of plates full of shrimp, constantly filled pitchers of sangria, and a remarkable well-done ad campaign.