Big Boy Restaurants

Big Boy Restaurant Group, LLC
Big Boy, Big Boy Restaurants
Company typePrivate
Industry
PredecessorsBig Boy Restaurants International, LLC
Bob's Pantry
Elias Brothers Restaurants, Inc.
Marriott Corporation
Robert C. Wian Enterprises
FoundedAugust 6, 1936 (1936-08-06) (as Bob's Pantry)
Glendale, California, US
FounderBob Wian
HeadquartersSouthfield, Michigan, US
Number of locations
55 (2026)
Area served
    • Michigan (46)
    • California (4; as Bob's Big Boy)
    • Wisconsin (1)
    • Ohio (2)
    • Nevada (1)
    • North Dakota (1)
    • Outside of US
    • Thailand
    • Independent
    • Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio (31; as Frisch's Big Boy)
    • Japan (as Big Boy Japan)
Key people
  • Tamer Afr (CEO, 2020–present)
  • David B. Crawford (CEO, 2018–2020)
  • Bruce Ferguson (CFO)
  • Robert Liggett Jr. (Chairman, 2000–2018)
Products
  • Big Boy hamburger
  • Brawny Lad sandwich
  • Hot fudge cake
  • Slim Jim sandwich
  • Strawberry pie
  • Fish and chips
Websitebigboy.com

Big Boy is an American casual dining restaurant chain headquartered in Southfield, Michigan; it is currently operated in most of the United States by Big Boy Restaurant Group, LLC. The Big Boy name, design aesthetic, and menu were previously licensed to a number of similarly-named regional franchisees. The parent franchisor company has changed over the system's lifetime: it was Bob's Big Boy from 1936 to 1967, then Marriott Corporation until 1987, then Elias Brothers' Big Boy until 2000. Since 2001, control of the trademark in the US has been split into two territories, between Big Boy Restaurants in most of the country, and Frisch's Big Boy as an independent entity in a few states in the Midwest.

As of May 2025, Big Boy Restaurant Group operates 55 total locations in the US: 51 Big Boy branded restaurants in Michigan, Nevada, North Dakota, and Ohio; 6 as Dolly's Burgers and Shakes in Frisch's territory (before being shuttered in late October 2025); and four additional locations in California branded as Bob's Big Boy. One Big Boy location also operates in Thailand. Frisch's operates 31 Big Boy restaurants in the US, of which 13 are franchised. Big Boy Japan, also independent of Big Boy Restaurant Group, operates 274 restaurants in Japan.