Restaurant chain
Cheeburger Cheeburger is a 1950s-style fast casual restaurant chain specializing in cheeseburgers, french fries, onion rings, and milkshakes. The chain is headquartered in Fort Myers, Florida.[1] As of 2023, Cheeburger Cheeburger has three locations across the United States and one location in Saudi Arabia.[2]
History
Bruce Zicari opened the first Cheeburger Cheeburger in Sanibel, Florida, in 1986. The restaurant was named after John Belushi's pronunciation of cheeseburger as "cheeburger" on a Saturday Night Live sketch at the fictitious Olympia Café.[3]
The first international location opened in Kuwait but has since closed.
In November 2017, Cheeburger Cheeburger was acquired by Premier Restaurant Group.[4]
In 2022, the original Cheeburger Cheeburger restaurant located on Sanibel Island was severely damaged by Hurricane Ian.[5]
Several locations have closed in recent years. The chain has one location each at airports in Orlando, Florida and Richmond, Virginia. The original Sanibel Island location and the Riyadh location are the only free-standing restaurants still in business.[6]
Legal matters
When Cheeburger Cheeburger opened a restaurant in Glenview, Illinois, they were sued by Billy Goat Tavern, which had served as the inspiration for the original Olympia Cafe Saturday Night Live parody. An out-of-court settlement was reached wherein the restaurant changed the name of the Glenview location to simply Cheeburger and agreed not to open another restaurant within 125 miles (200 km) of downtown Chicago.[7][8]
