Elias brothers Big Boy and Frisch's Big Boy

Several years ago I ate at a Elias Brothers Big Boy in Mansfield Ohio(now Closed)in a former Shoneys, I was impressed that they had more choices on their menu than Frisch's Big Boy.
I never knew why it closed it was always busy. When I spoke to the manger he informed me that
elias brothers and Frisch's were going to merge and all restaurnats will be Big Boy. That never happened. Can't Elias Brothers have Big Boys in the same location as Frischs? I think these two should come together.
 
Doug

Marcus Corporation, here in Milwaukee, owned the Big Boy franchise. They shut them down years ago. However, according to my sister-in-law, the new Marcus theater, which has comfortable seating and waitresses to bring food, had an original Big Boy sandwich while enjoying a movie. I am as excited as can be, and will go to the movies for the first time in years just for that burger!!!

Elias Brothers in Michigan used to serve the Big Boy with a thousand island sauce.  Frisch's in Ohio had a sort of mild tartar sauce.  Marc's in Wisconsin had a sort Cheez-Whiz sauce.  I always thought Elias Brother's Big Boys were much better than the other two. 
Seems like franchisees had some latitude with the Big Boy. Otherwise, the menus seemed pretty consistent.
 
Anybody remember how Bob's, the original Big Boy operator, did the Big Boy.  Shoney's?  Other franchise and regional variations.
 
Lyrics to an old jingle:
"Ain't it time you did something nice for your tummy.
Tell it 'thanks a lot' for all it's done for you.
Elias Brothers Restaurants have food that is yummy.
They're all over Michigan, up North and to the South.
Elias Brothers Restaurants will feed your hungry mouth.
Elias Brothers is the home of the Big Boy,
and a lot of other very good stuff."
 

Manner's Big Boy in Cleveland. I worked at the Shaker Heights one for all of three months.

Unless Marc's in Wisconsin changed their sauce without me noticing, it was not a cheez wiz type sauce.Definately a thousand island sort-they even sold the sauce in bottles at the check out.

Ann: At some point, maybe after Marriott or Elias Brothers took over, Big Boys seemed to standardize on 1,000 island sauce (at least in some places that had something different before).  My experience with Marc's was in the 70s, so the cheese sauce may have been before your time. 

All the Big Boys I can recall having throughout the years at Bob's, Frisch's and Shoney's had the thousand island type sauce. 

Ann, I grew up in Milwaukee.  It was a Thousand Island based sauce.  I would not be surprised if it was just Thousand Island.  Regardless, it was good.  I remember it in my younger years.

I agree, NC- I am 52 years old and the 70's was not before my time. Maybe the cheese sauce was very short lived.What I am thinking is as Big Boy served their burgers very hot, somehow the cheese kind of melted in to the 1000 island. But all of my many experiences was definately 1000 island. As I stated before, they sold it in bottles at the check out. I always bought some, and it was NOT cheese sauce. At least in the Milwaukee area, anyway.

I ate many a Bob's big boy in Calif. and have had a few at Frisch's. They all had a 1k island dressing.

NC Cheesehead said: I would not be surprised if it was just Thousand Island. 
 
I don't know if it was the same everywhere, but we made our own sauce where I worked (Elias bros Big Boy in Petoskey Michigan, 1977-1979).
 
IIRC, the recipe was mayo, ketchup, pickle relish, and Worcestershire sauce.  We used the same sauce as burger sauce and as Thousand Island dressing.

Frisch's has always had it own tartar sauce on the Big Boy sandwiches. Shoney's and, I think, Bob's used Thousand Island.