Boll Weevil (restaurant)

Boll Weevil
Company typePrivate
GenreDining
Founded1966 (1966)
FounderFred and Lorraine Halleman
Headquarters
San Diego, California
,
US

Boll Weevil is a casual dining chain of hamburger restaurants located in San Diego, California, United States. Only two independent former franchised locations have survived the 2008 bankruptcy of the parent company, one in Lakeside and the other in Ramona.

History

Boll Weevil was founded in 1966 by Fred and Lorraine Halleman. The original location was adjacent to the upscale Cotton Patch steakhouse, with the Boll Weevil name referring to a smaller restaurant spawned from a cotton patch.[1] Both were located in San Diego on Midway Drive, near Barnett Ave and Pacific Highway in Point Loma. In the first Boll Weevil restaurant, beef left over from the trimmings of prime steak prepared at the Cotton Patch steakhouse were used to prepare burgers.[1] Because of the success of the chain of Boll Weevil restaurants, the Cotton Patch eventually closed.[1] Entrepreneur Fred Halleman assisted in establishing 20 Boll Weevil restaurants across the country.[2] On September 15, 2008, the company-owned restaurants were closed down as the parent company entered Chapter 7 bankruptcy. A few independently owned franchise stores remain open.[3][4]

The last snapshot of the official website showed that there were five locations, all independently owned, were operating in September 2019 before the website was deactivated.[5] The Imperial Beach location closed in March 2020[6] and the Lemon Grove location closed in November 2020.[7] The fate of the Clairemont Mesa location cannot be verified.

Decor

Boll Weevil restaurants are decorated in a style reminiscent of the American Old West, and also featured pool tables and video games.[8]

Reception

While discussing Hodad's, OB Rag editor Frank Gormlie criticized the food served at Boll-Weevil's as being too greasy.[9] San Diego Reader editor Ben Kers included Boll Weevil in his list of "fourteen more things you’ll never see in San Diego again". He said that while there are still a few restaurants bearing the name, he felt that the food was no longer the same as it once was.[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Nelson, David (March 2008). "Side Dish - The Tail That Wags The Dog". San Diego Magazine. No. 60. CurtCo/SDM LLC. p. 186. Retrieved July 5, 2015. [The Cotton Patch's] success gave birth to the Boll Weevil chain (beef left from trimming prime steaks was ground and sold as burgers next door at the first Boll Weevil). As the chain spread like weevils (the comparison is apt), the Cotton Patch gradually lessened in importance and was closed.
  2. ^ Nelson, Dave (May 21, 1987). "Cotton Patch Going Strong at 40 With Same Menu". Los Angeles Times.
  3. ^ Crabtree, Penni (December 13, 2008). "Boll Weevil closes all 6 company stores". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved May 14, 2010.
  4. ^ "Boll Weevil closes stores after Ch. 7 filing". Nation's Restaurant News. December 16, 2008.
  5. ^ "About Us Boll". Weevil Restaurants. Archived from the original on September 15, 2019.
  6. ^ Selgi-Harrigan, Alessandra (January 31, 2020). "Boll Weevil To Close After 29 Years In Southland Plaza". Imperial Beach Eagle & Times.
  7. ^ "As some of you know the Boll Weevil is closed". Boll Weevil Lemon Grove. December 11, 2020 – via Facebook.
  8. ^ "Boll Weevil's really cookin'; chain bores into 7 new sites". San Diego Business Journal. March 15, 1993. Retrieved May 14, 2010.
  9. ^ Gormlie, Frank (February 6, 2015). "Mike Hardin – Owner of OB's Hodad's – Has Passed – RIP". OB Rag. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  10. ^ Kers, Ben (July 2, 2014). "Fourteen more things you'll never see in San Diego again". San Diego Reader. Retrieved July 4, 2015.


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