Ed Debevic's

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Ed Debevic's (2007)

Ed Debevic's is a popular 1950s-nostalgia-themed restaurant in Streeterville, Chicago, Illinois, United States.[1] The original Chicago location opened in 1985 at 640 Wells in the River North neighborhood.[2] That location was closed in 2015, and the building razed and replaced with an apartment building.[2] The restaurant was decorated with "neon and aluminum signs, jukeboxes sitting at the tables, and glittery vinyl booths," and a sign hanging over the dining room that read "children left unattended will be towed at the owner's expense."[3]

Ed Debevic's was a project of Chicago restaurateurs Rich Melman and Lee Cohn.[4] The first Ed Debevic's was opened by Cohn in Phoenix, Arizona (1983–2003), and there was later a Beverly Hills location opened circa 1987.[5] By 1990 it was a chain with two locations in Chicago, two in California (Beverly Hills and Torrance),[6] one in Osaka, Japan, the Phoenix site, and a planned opening in New York City.[7] Bravo Restaurants bought Ed Debevic's from Lettuce in 1991.[2]

Melman ran a hospitality company called Lettuce Entertain You that ran restaurants that offered theatricality as well as food.[8] He would write "a description of each restaurant as if it were a movie script. The "setting" for Ed Debevic's was the year was 1952, 'just before teenagers went wild and Elvis was not yet a giant.'"[8] He told a reporter in 1986, "It's like directing a movie or a play...But if the waiter brings the salad too late or the silverware is dirty, the entertainment does not matter."[8] Ed Debevic was a character invented by Melman.[8] Melman imagined that Debevic was a "Polish Archie Bunker" type who opened a restaurant after returning to Chicago from Korean War service.[8] Employees would describe Debevic as a guy with a pot belly and point to a wall of trophies he'd supposedly won.[8] If guests wanted to meet him, he was unavailable because he was traveling to Buffalo the day.[8] Customers often enjoyed playing along with the fiction.[7]

Thanks to marketing hooks like the NFL cheerleader-inspired Refrigerettes and a weekly radio show broadcast from the Chicago location, the business served an estimated 15,000 customers a week.[4] In the 1980s the location on Wells Street had seats for 300 people in four rooms: Ed Debevic's, Versailles, Pavillion, and Ed's Back Room.[8] The dining room of the original location had a "grizzled, lived-in feeling" and was a popular location for birthday parties and school groups on field trips.[2] The Obamas once hosted a kid's birthday party at Ed Debevic's.[3] The food has been described as "adequate."[2] A memorable menu offering is the "World's Smallest Sundae," made with Mitchell's Ice Cream.[3]

Among the Ed Debevic's servers who went on to fame in other careers are David Schwimmer and Lamorne Morris and Mark Ruffalo .[3]

On the TV show The Bear, a visit to Ed Debevic's inspired the main character's dad to open a restaurant.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b Selvam, Ashok (June 26, 2025) [2023-07-17]. "Every Single Restaurant Featured in All 4 Seasons of 'The Bear'". Eater Chicago. Retrieved 2025-09-21.
  2. ^ a b c d e Kindelsperger, Nick (December 15, 2021). "Windy City Return". Leader-Telegram. pp. B12. Retrieved 2025-09-22.
  3. ^ a b c d Selvam, Ashok (October 2, 2015). "Goodbye (For Now) Ed Debevic's: 5 Facts About the Downtown Diner Relic". Eater Chicago. Retrieved 2025-09-22.
  4. ^ a b Sietsema, Tom (January 23, 1986). "Ed Debevic's diner specializes in heaping helpings of nostalgia". News-Press. Washington Post News Agency. p. 66. Retrieved 2025-09-21.
  5. ^ Potempa, Philip (October 1, 2012). "Ed Debevic's celebrating the 1950s for 25 years". The Times. pp. C8. Retrieved 2025-09-22.
  6. ^ Kenner, Laurel (August 4, 1991). "Torrance Ed Debevic's to close". The Daily Breeze. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-09-22.
  7. ^ a b "Diner". Newsday (Suffolk Edition). September 19, 1990. p. 161. Retrieved 2025-09-22.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Seaver, Lynda (September 28, 1986). "Ed Debevic's—feisty, albeit tasty, slice of American Pie". Oakland Tribune. p. 36. Retrieved 2025-09-22.