Wetson’s

Find a bunch of New Yorkers waxing nostalgic over hamburgers from the good old days and you’re likely to hear Wetson’s enter the conversation. The restaurant’s history is brief, slayed mercilessly during the fast food wars of the 1970s. Still, amongst those who had the pleasure, it remains one of the most fondly remembered burger joints from the era.

In 1959, the fast food giant of the West Coast, McDonald’s, had yet to open any restaurants in the New York area. Two men from Valley Stream, Harold Norbitz and Carl Wetanson (a popular race car driver on the Island) visited a McDonald’s in Chicago, were impressed by the concept, and decided to duplicate it in New York, hopefully before the Golden Arches made their inevitable entrance into the local market.

With White Castle serving as their only real competition, the pair opened their first Wetson’s location. Each stand featured rows of bright orange circles on the roof, and offered a walk-up window and outdoor seating only.Wetsons-ad

Wetson’s menu was practically identical to McDonald’s, with hamburgers, french fries, drinks and shakes. The burgers were 15-cents and could be “bought by the bagful, while the fries, made from hand-peeled potatoes, cost a whole dime. In a further nod to McDonald’s, Wetson’s presented two mascots, Wetty and Sonny, who were, you guessed it, clowns.

Over the next decade, Wetson’s expanded over much of the Northeast, opening over 70 locations across New Jersey, Connecticut, Staten Island, Brooklyn, and yes, Long Island. Unfortunately, McDonald’s and Burger King had both grown significantly, with each vying to capture the majority of the New York market.

In 1975, unable to compete with the behemoths, Wetson’s finally threw in the towel and closed all of their location. Many Long Island fast food fans have mourned their loss ever since.

Sadly, I was unable to dig up any commercials or related video for Wetson’s to share in this article. Even images of the restaurant are pretty scarce online, so I can’t even show you an old menu. I wish that wasn’t the case, and hope that if you have any old photos, you consider sharing them with the site.

At least I can conclude this article with this little glimmer of hope – a few years ago, National Food Brands bought the rights to the Wetson’s name. Whether that suggests a comeback in the works, I don’t know and I’ll leave the speculating to others online. Once can certainly dream though.

In the meantime, I want to hear from all of the fans of this former fast food chain. Which location did you visit? What do you remember most about the food? I welcome all of your memories of Wetson’s in our comments section below as we pay tribute to this little slice of Long Island in the 1970s.

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313 Responses

  1. Former locations:

    Brooklyn, NY Pennsylvania Ave and Stanley Avenue (now Popeyes)
    Brooklyn, NY Bay Parkway and Shore Parkway (now Wendy’s)
    Brooklyn, NY Flatbush Avenue And Avenue U (demolished, now a bank)
    Brooklyn, NY Flatbush Ave and Empire Blvd (now Wendy’s)
    Brooklyn, NY 86th St and 7th Avenue (now Nathan’s)
    Stamford, CT Hope Street (now Donut Delight)
    Norwalk, CT Connecticut Ave. (demolished)
    Bronx, NY Boston Post Road (demolished)
    Staten Island, NY Forest Avenue (converted into an Italian deli)
    Staten Island, NY Hylan Boulevard and Burgher Avenue (now an auto parts store)
    Elmhurst, NY Queens Boulevard (Route 25) and Woodhaven Boulevard (demolished)
    Valley Stream, NY Sunrise Highway at Rockaway Ave. (demolished)
    Franklin Square NY Hempstead Turnpike (north side of Route 24) one block West of Franklin Avenue / New Hyde Park Road (demolished in the 70’s to build a Arthur Treachers Fish & Chips which is also long gone)
    Flushing, NY Northern Boulevard (Route 25A) and 195th Street (demolished, now a strip mall)
    Flushing, NY Northern Boulevard (Route 25A) and 147th Street (now a liquor store/7-11)
    Syosset, NY, 321 Jericho Tpke (now a Burger King)
    Rego Park, NY Woodhaven Boulevard and 63rd Drive (now Dunkin’ Donuts/Baskin Robbins)
    New Hyde Park, NY corner of New Hyde Park Road and Union Tpke (demolished, area now a Gulf gas station)
    Hicksville, NY Old Country Road (demolished, area now Dunkin Donuts with a drive-thru)
    West Islip, NY Sunrise Highway (Route 27) westbound service road (now a car dealership)
    Lake Grove, NY Middle Country Road (Route 25) and Hawkins Avenue (now Two Guys Appliance)
    Little Neck, NY Northern Boulevard (demolished, now a Dunkin’ Donuts/Baskin Robbins store)
    Roslyn, NY Northern Boulevard (now East Hills Chevrolet within the old structure)
    Freeport, NY Sunrise Highway at Henry Street
    Paramus, NJ Route 17 (converted into a branch of the Stage Delicatessen)
    Pine Brook, NJ Route 46 & Hook Mountain Road
    Hempstead, NY Fulton Ave.
    Bethpage, NY Hempstead Tnpk and Rt. 107 (demolished, area now a shopping center)
    Far Rockaway,NY Beach Channel Drive (converted to KFC)
    Hazlet, NJ State Highway 36 (demolished)
    Danbury, CT, White Street
    Schenectady, NY, Erie Boulevard
    North Lawrence, NY Rockaway Turnpike
    Jamaica, NY Hillside Ave (now a car dealership)

    http://everything.explained.at/Wetson's/

    • 70sKid says:

      Thank you for sharing that. What a great resource!

    • Dan says:

      I worked at the West Islip (Bay Shore) store across from the South Shore Mall. $.20/burger at that time. Muzak playing over the speakers in the tiny covered customer service area. The manager would make us punch out if we didn’t clean up fast enough at closing time, then go finish up. An occasional 12 pack of beer out in the parking lot with the boys before hitchhiking home 6 miles at midnight.

      • Jeff Burg says:

        I was a little kid and have a distinct memory of going to that Wetsons after going to the south shore mall with my mother. Remember the “Flintstones” looking bank in the mall parking lot? Anyway great memory!

        • S LR says:

          The Mani Hani Manufactorers Hanover in the submarine shape

          • jans says:

            LOL!!! I thought it looked like a submarine too..I can still picture it in my head..If I’m not mistaken Howard Johnsons was right across from it..

          • ThePhantom says:

            That bank branch was originally a Marine Midland Bank (hence the look). Marine Midland was bought up by Manufacturers Hanover around 1986/7.

            I remember a Marine Midland branch at Mid-Island Shopping Plaza that had an ATM that would hand out cash in *any* denomination — including change (via a Wendy’s like change dispenser). Great times!

        • ALLAN says:

          YEAH REMEMBER THAT CRAZY BANK AT SOUTH SHORE MALL AND REMEMBER WETSONS WAS A TREAT TO GET MISS THAT. BANK LOOKED LIKE A SUB AND BURGERS WERE GREAT

          • Janice Hummel says:

            I remember there being an enclosed foot bridge from the main mall over to a store called..I think..Gertz? I grew up in Bay Shore.

          • jans says:

            Janice Hummel.. you may be thinking of the Gardner Manor Mall when there was a Sears there…It had a foot bridge..Bay shore mall was only one level…I remember way back when they hadn’t enclosed it yet, and there was a Hills supermarket there.. Memories.

          • Anonymous says:

            Omg. In Roslyn, NY. IT was a short cut from our house in Rolling Woods. We ate there too often and we looked like we did. My mother wasn’t into cooking. Hamburgers w/onions & pickles w/fries, oh my.

        • JL says:

          Saturday afternoon going to the South Shore Mall and then to Wetson’s: a Long Island kid’s dream weekend. How I miss those days…..

      • Terry A Vasquez says:

        I have great memories of that location I was just a kid at the time my parents would take us to the drive in movies and we would always stop for burgers and fries our dog always got a burger when we came home she would smell them and go into a fit until she got one. Great times and memories

      • Jamie says:

        During the summer of 1967, at age 9, I took swimming lessons at the Bayshore Motel, which was about 200 yards or so from the Wetsons. My mom worked as a front desk clerk at the motel and gave me 50 cents each day to get lunch at Wetsons. I remember getting a burger, fries, and a shake that were THE BEST. Awesome memories! Thank you so much for posting this!

      • Anonymous says:

        That’s the one my parents would take my siblings and me to. Great memories.

    • Dan says:

      The Jamaica location is now a fruit stand, assuming you’re talking about the location that was at Hillside Avenue and Hollis Court Blvd.

      • Skeet says:

        You’re right on that. The one she’s lists was @ 144th St. and Hillside Ave. Became a Nathan’s for a while and is now a car lot.

      • Anonymous says:

        yea the one at the end of the Clearview expressway on Hillside Ave

    • Stuart says:

      Is it possible there was one in Bellport as well? I worked at Jolly Roger starting around 1960 next door to the Bethpage Wetson’s. While I was working there MacDonald opened down the block. It was the first one I had ever seen.

      • Anonymous says:

        I worked at the Freeport Wetsons in the summer of 1966. The burgers tasted like s-it, the shifts were 12 hours long, and the pay was a dollar an our. When school began in September, I told the manager I quit and never went to any Wetsons ever again. When they went out of business I did not shed tears. Good riddance. Btw, did I mention the burgers tasted like s-hit?
        PS: Graffiti in the Employees restroom, Flush twice, it’s a long way to the kitchen.

        • Anonymous says:

          Great memories at Bethpage location best fries and burgers then go next door to jolly Rogers always a treat

        • bill says:

          syosset ny location was great

          • Ellen Stephenson says:

            Syosset was where I went.5 yrs old.a couple of families would pile in the station wagons( with the back seats that faced each other)I remember the glowing arch circles at night as you were pulling up.

        • Don Izzy says:

          Salty as hell. Good shakes.
          In Freeport by the Freeport Theatre and the LIRR

      • Codycat says:

        that is correct. I too used to eat at the Bethpage location in the 60’s. I remember when McDonalds opened too.
        Wish they would return. I liked Wetsons better.

        • Mike says:

          Miss Wetsons. I remember my father taking the family there for burgers (when people actually cooked) as a treat before heading to the Sunrise drive in for a double feature.

        • Thomas J. Reilly says:

          Wetson’s had the Better Fries, Mcdonalds had the Better burgers, Jolly Rogers had the Better Hot Dogs.
          Dem were da Days !

      • Your Oldies says:

        You forgot the one in Woodside Queens

    • Anonymous says:

      Wow!! I loved the 70’s! Really wish I had a time machine. That was the best decade ever! I remember the Flatbush and Empire Blvd location in Brooklyn. Thanks so much for sharing : )!

    • Anonymous says:

      There was also a Wetson’s on Northern Blvd. and 46th St.. In Astoria/L.I.C.
      Remember it very well……

      • Robert says:

        Wetsons,Jack-in-the Box, White Castles, the best fast food hamburger resturants ever and I mean ever.

      • Rob says:

        Yes, same here. I grew up on 47th St in the late 60s and 70s.

        • Anonymous says:

          I grew up on 48th, between Broadway and Northern Blvd around the same time, down the street from Bryant HS, went to PS 151. Any memories? We use to get great little burgers from a place on the corner across from the school.

        • Carolyn says:

          I grew up on 48th between Broadway and Northern Blvd, down the street from Bryant HS. I went to PS 151. There was a place across from the school that had great little burgers at the counter. Any memories?

    • Melinda says:

      Thank you 70sKid for this article. I was just telling my husband that one of my best memories of Brooklyn was going to Wetson’s with my godbrothers, godparents and my parents. I thought it was the best burger in the world a child. Missing Wetson’s and fun family memories of the early 70’s. Thank’s again!

    • Ray says:

      The one in Hicksville is still there well the structure is.You can still see the rings.I pass it almost every day.

      • Deb says:

        Is that the location that was turned into a used record store in the early 80s?

        • JC Johnsong says:

          The record store you are thinking of was TITUS OAKS in a former Wetsons on the corner of Levittown Parkway and Old Country Road on the border of Hicksville and Westbury. When they were there it was almost the same on the outside … the Orange RIngs and the White Tiled exterior (Just added a Titus Oaks sign on the front where the old WETSONS sign used to be). After the record store closed it stayed like that for awhile when it was vacant but the new people (Dunkin Donuts???) redid it … no more orange rings or white tiled exterior. I was trying to find relatives of the original owners of Wetsons to let them know (just in case those were the last orange rings still in existence) in case they wanted them when they were removed … but wasn’t successful … gave up too soon I guess. I regret not trying longer … I miss driving by those orange rings.

          How can Ray pass it almost every day … the orange rings were taken down several years ago?
          What are the crossroads Ray, of the one you are talking about? Does Levittown Parkway go right into the parking lot entrance if you keep going straight?

          • LIRocker says:

            Titus Oaks was a such great store loved going there and trading in my old CD’s and cassettes for new music. what great memories….back when there actually WAS a music scene!!!

          • Anthony S says:

            I recall that even after DD moved in, they kept the building as is, including the orange rings. then after DD remodeled the place the rings were removed. I would always drive past that place and wondered if any of the DD employees knew the history of that building. i was sad to see the rings go

        • Rich says:

          yes Deb, and now a Dunkin Donuts

        • Anonymous says:

          Yup. Titus Oaks

    • Anonymous says:

      I remember the one at the corner of Oceanside Rd and Sunrise Hwy in Rockville Centre. It became a Arthur Treachers now a Taco Bell.

      • Don Schleich says:

        @Anonymous. The one on Sunrise and Oceanside Rd was first a Carvel then it was Joseph’s Hamburgers then Wetson’s. Ahh, the good old days. There were 2 Wetson’s in Valley Stream on Sunrise Hgwy. Also one in West Hempstead I believe on front street, across the street from White Castle. They were behind the old A&S and a little west.

      • Doris says:

        I remember working there in the early 70’s.. There was a Kid named Stevie that worked there also and one morning before the Mgr. got there, Stevie did not have his license then, and his friend showed up and let him drive his car. Instead of putting the car in reverse, he put it in drive and drove right through the restaurant dining room. The tables and chairs were all over Sunrise Highway. and glass everywhere. What a disaster. They rebuilt Wetson’s and never fired Stevie because all the customer’s liked him so much. We worked right through the construction over the next couple of months. Had a ball working there. We had great mgrs.

    • Teddy Dean says:

      I still remember the Hazlet location on Hwy. 36, we would fill the station wagon, all 7 of us and enjoy a very memorable experience. We grew in up in Keansburg just down the street, I can still taste the burgers. What a lost treasure this is.

    • Elliott Williams says:

      Always went to the one in Roslyn on Northern Blvd…..Loved the burger because the pickles were much more tasty than McDonalds or BK…The crinkle cut fries were better than McDonalds or BK…Port Washington went years before we had a Burger King. I think the demise of Wetson’s was more due to mismanagement than the entry of McDonalds and BK into the market.

    • Jerry Parisi says:

      There was a Wetson’s on Flushing Avenue in Ridgewood Queens not listed.

      • bill mclaughlin says:

        That would be in Maspeth on Flushing Av. & 61st St. It was the last/first stop on the B-57 bus. Those buses ran on overhead electric wires . The site has been a DD for quite a while now

        • Rob Kichinski says:

          I grew up in Maspeth and rode the B-57 bus frequently during the 1970’s. None of those buses ran on “overhead electric wires”. They were all diesel powered.

    • Al k says:

      A Wetsons Hamburger restaurant would be a nice alternative. I used to love their fries and Strawberry shakes, let alone their burgers.

    • Anonymous says:

      Everyone forgot the one on Grand Avenue in North Baldwin, which is now a Dunkin Donuts.

    • Jeffrey Ulmer says:

      Yes I Remember Wetson’s On Northern Blvd In LIttle Neck Queens, I Used To Go To Weton’s Hamburger Place For Lunch. The Food Was Excellent. I Love The Hamburger And The Pickles Was Very Tasty.

    • Jt says:

      I went to the one in Valley Stream and YES they were the BEST BURGERS! Loves the simple cheese burger and the onions omg my mouth is watering just thinking of them now!

      • Nygirlis59 says:

        I remember going to the one in Valley Stream on Sunrise Highway at night for a “snack”on the way home from family outings in the city.
        I was questioning my memory so I decided to google it. So glad this article was written. Thank you for your research.

    • Dimi A. says:

      Wetson’s was my first job, I was 15 and worked on 86th St and 7th Ave in Brooklyn. The hamburgers were made on the grill by Greek men who actually cooked. Nothing was microwaved. We had shakes and apple pies also. The lines were out the door. Good food, Great friends and great memories!

    • Torgo says:

      Forgot the one on Braddock Avenue and Hillside Ave in Queens Village.

    • Ray says:

      Your missing one. There was a Wetsons on Sunrise Highway in Bay Shore back in the 60’s.

      • CJ says:

        That is the one they list as West Islip … and I think it is really Brightwaters! There was a haircutter there for a while .. now used cars.

    • Rita Novak says:

      Jamaica, NY Hillside Ave (now a car dealership)… that is wrong. It was the opposite side. It is now New Giant fruit stop. It also was a Nathan’s and an Arthur Treachers fish and chips!! I remember riding my bike early Saturday mornings with my father, sister, and neighborhood friends going for breakfast!! at Wetson’s. I was telling my children 15 and 21… that was Burger king and McDonald’s competition… along with (which came a few years later… not at all in the same location)~ Roy Roger’s!!

    • Cliff says:

      You neglected to mention Bellerose/Floral Park, on Jericho Tpke. That’s where I had many fond memories. Also, I think McDonalds stole the big W to make big mac.

    • Anonymous says:

      There was one on rt10 in East Hanover and one in Brick, NJ

    • Jeff wetmore says:

      I’ve just learned about Wetson’s and love the architecture of the buildings. Do any still exist or have they all been demolished?

    • Cfiff says:

      Glen Cove on Glen Street now a mcdonalds

    • Chris Z says:

      The Hicksville location became a Titus Oaks record store and the building was there for years before it became a Dunkin Donuts

    • Terry says:

      Hi I use to work at Wetson’s in Woodside in the 70’s you forgot to mention it as a teenager I thought it was a awesome job.

    • Carol says:

      I lived on 194th street and Northern Blvd ,I remember Watson’s before they built in and they were giving away free hamburger coupons the week before it opened they were the best better than McDonald’s wish they were around now !!!

    • Andrew Schmid says:

      The one in the corner of Oceanside road and sunrise hwy, in Rockville center,that turned into whether teachers to taco bell..awsome.i still live on the same block and talked about it all the time.all the orange seats I remeber.walking up with the family and sitting on the booths

    • Steven Willner says:

      Indeed, I remember Wetson’s. During my senior year at Valley Stream Central High School in 1964 I worked for a brief period at their location on Sunrise Highway. I biked 3 miles each way. Much of my working shift was spent rehydrating the sacks of dried onions, helping to carry frozen meat patties to the grillman and generally cleaning up. The meat patties once thawed were a gray-greenish color. No cleverly designed utensils, everything was done by hand; the small bags for French fries were filled using metal tongs (try it – very difficult to accomplish quickly). One evening we underwent inspection by a very young fellow – could only have been Herbert Wetanson. He passed by me and nodded, I nodded back.

    • bob urphy says:

      also there was one on hempstead Tpk.Levittown

    • Kevin says:

      Lake Grove Long Island. Remember it well. Thanks for sharing

      • Jim says:

        My dad woul take us there on Friday’s about 4:00pm, as soon as he got off work and had the 65 panel truck loaded up to head upstate to the cabin. He would get 6 hamburgers, five small fries and five milkshakes. He would get two burgers and my mom, brother, and sister would get one each. Me, being all of 8 years old thought I should get two burgers as well. Yes I remember it well

    • Anonymous says:

      I vaguely remember one location in Brooklyn where Bushwick Avenue and Highland Blvd crossed each other.

    • Anonymous says:

      you missed the one on Jericho Turnpike just east of New Hyde Park Road. There is a Tach Hell there now.

    • Joe K. III says:

      Bay Shore, NY, on the corner of where Penataquit Ave & Sunrise Hwy meet. I lived one block away. It was torn down and turned into a carpet store and still was before I left for the Navy in 82. Miss those burgers & fries.

    • Bobbi says:

      I grew up in Lynbrook, right across the border from Valley Stream. Wetson’s was close enough to walk to, and we did. Their burgers were good & their fries were the best!

    • David says:

      The Levittown site on Hempstead Turnpike across from Island Trees High School is missing from the list.
      We had lunch there almost daily.

    • Brian Hall says:

      We used to go to one near the Crossbay Theater in Queens when we were kids. We talk about it all the time. Great Memories there!

    • Hank says:

      There was one in west Hempstead long island..there were hamburger eating contest on the weekends

    • Joe says:

      I remember the Franklin Square location well. Grew up eating their burgers and fries. Was sad to see them gone one day.

    • Anonymous says:

      Bellerose, Queens. on Jamaica Avenue between Commonwealth Blvd. and 247 Street. The original building remained there on the site until just a few years ago.

    • Pete says:

      Amazing stuffs! Thx! I do remember as a kid that the location on 86th street and 7th Avenue was previously a Mitchell’s drive-in, with car hops and all, before it became a Wetson’s. When Wetson’s then closed, it became a “Wesson’s” – I guess, a literal one-off – but one which actually also had a really good burger, which I ate quite often while I was working my very first job, diagonally across 86th street, at Carley’s Mobil Station, pumping gas and fixing flats back in 1980, after a day of school at Ft Hamilton High was over…Nathan’s would soon take over at the spot where Mitchell’s/Wetson’s/Wesson’s all stood, and for a good 30-35 years! But now Nathan’s is also gone from that spot. A lot of good times, eats, and memories for a 15 yr old kid…

  2. Vince says:

    Good evening I worked at the Valley Stream Wetsons Location all through High School. I started working at the french fryer and the counter and worked my way up to the grill. I can remember coming in on the weekends at 6am and cutting, Blanching and preparing 300 lbs of french fries for the day. I used to travel to many of the other Wetson locations when a grill man called in. I worked in many of the stores within 20 miles of Valley stream. We used to work 40 to 50 hours a week back than unheard of these days for a high school kid. I believe i started out at 1.00 per hour. I think we had a total of 43 stores when i left Wetsons. I was inspired by a local Police Officer that occasionally stopped by to take the Nassau County Police Officer test. I passed the test and joined the Nassau County Police Dept. in 1967. I retired in 1990. I have since retired for a second time after Managing Five AMF bowling centers around the country. Great memories.

    • 70sKid says:

      Thank you for sharing all of those wonderful memories and thank you for helping to keep people safe for all those years.

    • Anonymous says:

      We used to live behind the VS Wetson’s which was built after we moved there. The noise drove my dad nuts but my brothers, Mike and Gene, both worked there and had good memories of it. Both ended up becoming police officers also. Small world

  3. Samla says:

    I remember the Wetson’s on Middle Country Road in Lake Grove in the late 60s, just prior to the construction of the Smith Haven Mall. Best burgers ever.

    • Joe says:

      I worked at that store as my first paying job. Taught teamwork but the manager liked to drink at the bar directly in back of the store.

  4. Reverend Jeffrey L. Funk says:

    I loved the Wetson’s in Franklin Square, directly in front of St. Catherine of Sienna School…I will never forget a Friday after school when a bunch of us went there for hamburgers, and being caught leaving there by three of the Dominican Sisters…boy did we get in trouble! (this was in the 60’s) Catholic school students (in uniforms) eating hamburgers on Friday…WOW

  5. Ken Auerbach says:

    I went to the one in Bayshore New York on Long Island with my parents as a kid in late 60 early 70s. Life was so much simpler then in a good way

  6. Barry says:

    The Old Country Road/Hicksville Wetsons eventually became a store that sold used and new records & tapes. It was called Titus Oaks. I used to spend a fortune at T.O. buying LPs in the late 80s to mid 90s. After a name change (to Music Arcade), the store went out of business. However, many of the store employees went on to work at Mr. Cheapo’s Record Exchange (Mineola), which is still in business today.

    • Anonymous says:

      i remember wetsons on old country road when it changed to titus oaks nothing was changed it still had the orange rings i used to buy records there also i go to mr cheapos and that same heavy man is there who was at titus oaks

  7. DrNo says:

    Ha d avery good friend who worked in the back of a Wetson’s one summer. He and the other guy putting the burgers together had competitions every day – who could swat the most flies per burger. Ummmm Wetson’s!!

  8. Bob says:

    I remember Wetsons at Sunrise and Horton Ave. Am I wrong?

    • Anonymous says:

      No, you’re not. For a brief time there were actually two Wetsons operating simultaneously within a few blocks of each other in Valley Stream.

      The old take out place stayed open a little while after the sit down restaurant opened where the McDonalds currently is on Rockaway and Sunrise.

      It wasn’t Sunrise and Horton though. It was Sunrise and Astor Place. There was a bank there for a while, then a daycare center. Now it is a Honda dealership.

      • Anonymous says:

        Absolutely correct. I grew up on Astor Place and it near ruined our lovely block until it went out of business. My bro worked there its first summer cutting the fries. Herb’s son Errol parked his XKE there every day before he married Margaux Hemingway.

      • Anonymous says:

        It was actually sunrise highway and Stewart place

  9. Bart LeSeur says:

    Brooklyn: Church ave and Ralph ave. when it closed it became a wonder bread outlet. I don’t remember what is at that location now.

    • Barry Feldman says:

      I lived one block from that location, on E 59th St. I used to give my dad a description of the status as it was being constructed on my way walking home from PS244 every day. To my disappointment, this location had only orange bricks instead of the usual striped orange & white design. But still I was so excited the day those orange bricks went up I went home and told my dad about it. His response was that I am focusing on the wrong things in life – yellow brick! To which I responded, but dad, they’re orange! My favorite Wetson’s meal was a Super Burger and their fries.

  10. julian bergman says:

    ate at far rockaway many times in the 60’s and 70’s. miss it.

  11. Pat says:

    There were 2 Wetsons in Bridgeport CT
    One on Boston Avenue (US Route 1) and one on Main Street in downtown Bridgeport.

  12. Anonymous says:

    Brooklyn, Location Empire Blvd corner of Utica Avenue across from White Castle and Cheverlet Car Dealership….Best Vanilla Shakes in the world

  13. Anonymous says:

    There was also one on Route 440 in Jersey City NJ which was demolished. However, on that site now, there is a Pizza Hut.

  14. Anonymous says:

    I worked on the one on Penn and Stanley ave.

  15. Mima says:

    What happened to Jimmy and his pops… The one on Penn and Stanley, worked there for 2 yrs as a teen

  16. Karen says:

    My husband George absolutely loved Wetson’s fries with some of the potato skins left on them!! They were great!!! I loved the burgers. .. We went to the Bayshore, Long Island NY one and sometimes the Freeport NY one. Wish they would bring it back…..

  17. Melinda says:

    I was just telling my husband about Wetson’s and the best childhood memoreis ever. Thank you so much for this article. It brought a tear or two, missing my dad who used to take me there.

  18. Gregori Kurtzman, DDS, MAGD, FACD, FPFA, FADI, DICOI, DADIA says:

    I remember they had fried chicken and when they decided to go out of business they offered a bucket of chicken for $1 so my parents must have bought 10 and stuck them in the freezer we were eating that fried chicken for a long time.

  19. HOPE VALDEZ says:

    I remember going to Wetson’s after school, in Bay Shore. Long Island,Sunrise Hwy with friends. My first hamburger,fries & milkshake. The best ever in the 70’s. We were so disappointed when they closed. I recall paying 15 cents for a burger & 10 cents for fries.

  20. Tim Danby says:

    I went to the one at the corner of Oceanside Rd and Sunrise Hwy in Rockville Centre.It was demolished to building a Arthur Treacher Fish and Chips then it became Taco Bell.

  21. Dave Thomas says:

    There was one in Rockville Centre at the corner of Sunrise Hwy and Oceanside Rd. I lived two houses down and across the street on Oceanside Rd.1972-74.

  22. Franie says:

    I used to go with my dad to the one in Bay Shore. I was just a kid, & he would make me go on a separate line than he, to use the the coupons. One day the cashier asked if he should put it all in a separate bag. I turned red, because I thought we did something illegal.lol Their hamburgers were good. I think maybe back then, they used real meat & all.

  23. Joe S says:

    The Wetson’s mentioned in Valley Stream was actually in Rosedale Queens. Next town going East is Valley Stream. It was on Sunrise Highway and Hook Creek Blvd.

    • Anonymous says:

      Actually, the one in Valley Stream was on Sunrise Highway east of Green Acres.

    • Lib says:

      The one in VS was on Sunrise Hgwy and Rockaway. The one in Rosedale was on Sunrise and Hook Creek.

      • Jack says:

        The original Valley Stream Wetson’s was on Sunrise Highway between Stewart Pl and Astor Pl (now Valley Stream Honda Pre- Owned). It closed when they moved to the southwest corner of Sunrise & Rockaway Ave.

        • ER says:

          I worked at that older Wetsons in Valley Stream in the early1970’s after the new one opened west of that one also on Sunrise Hwy, but on the corner of Rockaway Pkwy. I worked at the new one a few times when they were short staffed. The older one had better food, service and personel. We used a tumbler/peeler to peel the potatoes for the fries, while the new one used frozen fries. There was also a Carvel nearby on the same side of Sunrise. I was only paid $1.75/hour but ate real good.

    • Ed says:

      Sunrise and Hook Creek was Burger N Shake. Valley Stream was more towards Brooklyn Ave further east

  24. Fred Leibert says:

    There was one on Astoria Blvd in Astoria Queens. They gave away toy race cars with kids meals.

    • Jerry V. says:

      I remember that one – just up the block from the elevated train tracks, near the foot of the Triborough bridge – we ate there a lot!

      • ER says:

        I worked at that older Wetsons in Valley Stream in the early1970’s after the new one opened west of that one also on Sunrise Hwy, but on the corner of Rockaway Pkwy. I worked at the new one a few times when they were short staffed. The older one had better food, service and personel. We used a tumbler/peeler to peel the potatoes for the fries, while the new one used frozen fries. There was also a Carvel nearby on the same side of Sunrise. I was only paid $1.75/hour but ate real good.

  25. Judy Levy Horowitz says:

    I remember a Wetson’s in Levittown, NY, on the North side of Hempstead Turnpike in the late 50’s and early 60’s. It is not on the list of locations. Does anyone else remember it?

    • gary emert says:

      looking for anyone that hung out at wetsons hempstead tpk

      • Don Schleich says:

        I used to hang out at Wetson’ on Hempstead Tpk with the hot rods back in the mid 60’s.

        • Keith says:

          My father owned the wetsons in hempstead.also the wetsons in Franklin square.the only picture I’ve seen of a wetsons has a sunbeam alpine parked in the parking lot.that picture is the hempstead store and that car belonged to my father.

          • Anonymous says:

            Hi Keith, Do you know why the rings on the roof were raised? It is shown that way in a picture that is reported to be the Hempstead Wetson’s in Hempstead. Thank you for any help you can provide.

            Patricia

    • Rick says:

      It was actually on the south side
      Of Hempstead Tpk,, down the road from Jolley Rodgers / Nunleys, on the north side was Pergament with McDonalds not far west down the road. My first job.. remember cutting and blanching fresh potatoes each morning into French Fries 🙂

  26. Howie says:

    Weston made the best double cheeseburgers on Long Island they melted the cheese I came all the way from queens to go to the Weston’s in Hicksville between old country rd. and Levittown Parkway it is part of history.and everyone I talk to say the samething. Thank you Weston …………

  27. Deen says:

    We went to the one in Elmhurst, NY on Queens Boulevard and Woodhaven Boulevard.
    I was happy to find this since no one in my husbands family or any of my friends seem to remember Wetsons. Dad used to take us there as a treat when we’d been really good. But it was a luxury to eat out…even at 20 cents a burger!!

  28. Charlie says:

    I remember a Wetsons by Commonwealth Blvd. & Jericho Tpke, Bellerose, N.Y. Late 60s, early 70s, remember burgers 10 cents, anybody remember location and price, just down the block from original High Class Pizza and Pizza Hut which I remember turned into a used car dealer. Nothing like the 70s ,Bellerose, N.Y.

    • Anonymous says:

      I used to stop in that Wetsons to get pea shooter straws. They had the good large diameter straws. LOL

    • Anonymous says:

      Wetson’s was demolished and a Roosevelt Savings Bank was put up there. I’ve haven’t been back home in years. Last I heard, the location was a Queens County Savings Banks.

    • Anonymous says:

      Is this the one on the north side of Jericho right before the train trestle that crosses over Jericho

  29. Diane Haska says:

    Grandparents had a “pink house” right behind the fence of Wetson’s, on Old Country Road in Hicksville NY…when it was time to depart, grandma would run upstairs at the window above the fence and wave goodbye as we drove the car down Old Country Road back home to Flushing….What great memories, wonderful visits and what a treat when we were allowed a hamburger at Wetson’s

  30. Anonymous says:

    Bring back Wetson’s.

  31. donna says:

    I remember going to the Bay Shore, Long Island location in 1966 with my mom in her red VW bug. Hamburgers were 15 cents at that time. It was a special treat to go there and I remember how I just loved their burgers! They were much better than Jack In The Box!

  32. Anonymous says:

    Loved Wetsons BIG W yum!!! Fries and shakes boy friend \ then Husband work both location’s on S I NY,wish I could go back to those days!!!

  33. Mary says:

    We used to walk to the New Hyde Park Wetson’s a little over a mile away. Brought back fond memories of my childhood 🙂

  34. Scott Wilkens says:

    I remember going to a Brooklyn location on Flatbush Ave 1968-1971. I don’t remember how the food tasted, but I remember I liked it and was sorry when the store closed down.

  35. Don says:

    There were two in the Bay Shore area, one on Sunrise Highway opposite the South Shore Mall and the other one on Sunrise Highway on the border of West Islip and Bay Shore. Last time I drove by a number of years ago the building was still there. I worked at that one in the early 70’s. What a great experience. I loved the busiest days because the day would fly by. We called the double cheeseburgers sliders because if you weren’t careful, when you put them up on the transfer ledge the top burger would slide off of the bottom one. Damn those burgers tasted good.

  36. Samp says:

    The Wetsons on Glen St. In Glen Cove, NY wasn’t on the list! It is currently a McDonalds.
    The total years of both and they are still selling burgers and fries at that location.
    I once received a whole patato in my fry bag at the Weston in Roslyn!

    • mike says:

      I’m pretty sure the Wetson’s in Glen Cove was demolished to make room for
      an office building with store fronts. It was right between the Town and Glen
      Cove theater on Glen St.

      The Town theater building was later demolished for office space. As a kid
      attending St. Pat’s, we used to run around and play in the parking lot
      behind them during recess. I can remember Sister Angelica telling us not
      to go anywhere near Wetson’s – it was evil. So we let Dad do the buying.

      • Anonymous says:

        Glen Cove Wetson’s was razed & the current McDonald’s was built in its place in 1975, not an office building (I worked in the new McDonald’s in ’75). You’re correct that it was between those two movie theaters – we used to have their schedules to plan for the ‘movie rush’.

  37. Loved LI says:

    I remember the Weston’s on Hawkins Ave. My parents got divorced and Wetsons was the exchange point. My father would buy my sister and I burgers when he picked us up. Also remember the Jolly Roger ( vaguely ). We moved out west in 83 and felt like we moved to another planet. Things just seemed so different back in 70’s. I recall Fleetwood Mac was on the radio all the time ( dreams) ….. Wish I could take my kids w me and show them how it used to be.

  38. Huelein says:

    I remember one in Bellport, NY on Station Road off of Montauk Highway. It became a chicken barbecue place later in life. The building was still there last November (2014).

  39. Rick Jack says:

    Great web site! I loved Weston’s. We had one in New Hyde Park, and Franklin Square. So many have come and gone. I remember White Tower in Mineola, and Carol’s on Hempstead turnpike near a Great Easten Mills near Franklin Square. Then there was Hubie Burger with seeds on their buns. We had those chains before Burger King and McDonald’s arrived. But still to this day White Castle is my favorite. I have to drive 30 miles to get to it but it’s always worth it. My aunt used be be one of the roller skate girls who delivered your meal on a car window tray, back in the Bronx in the 1950’s. I always made my mother scrape off the onions back then….not now. geez…now I’m hungry. I might take that 30 mile drive tomorrow.

  40. keith says:

    there used to be a wetsons in Glen Cove , between two movie theaters. dose anyone remember ?

    • Anonymous says:

      My cousin worked there in 71. I believe there was the Glen and the Town theaters.

    • Jeff says:

      Yes, I remember it. Was between the Town Theater & the Glen Cove Theater. Then demolished, and in 1975 the McDonald’s was built which is still there.

  41. RayR says:

    I used to eat at the one in Hicksville when I worked a mile away. It was very reasonablea nd tasted great. Now to get my fix I go to All Americans in Massapequa when on Long Island.

    The reason Wetsons and All American burgers tasted and taste so good is they used hand separated premium ground beef. Now the big chains use mechanical separators and air jet hoses which give you grizzle and worse. That gives the chain burgers an off taste. Also the chains freeze the beef and the fries which again effect the taste

  42. John allen says:

    I remember going to wetson’s and getting my hamburger and french fries for $.25 I lived in Valley Stream and went there often. It would be nice to have them back again old memories

  43. nancy says:

    Some misguided soul hired my late Brother, Pete Walsh, as an assistant manger, maybe in 1969 or so. He realized the management counted the BUNS, but not the patties, and the CUPS, but not the amount of soda or shakes. So..all of his friends would come, order a plain burger, and get 4 patties on it, and a small soda, then come back for refills in Thick shakes.
    This was the Wetsons on Hempstead Ave in West Hempstead, NY

  44. Laurie Robinson Turnow says:

    I called my mother today to ask if she remembers Weston’s because I was recalling happy Sundays after church. We would stop in New Hyde Park (I think it was on New Hyde Park Road and Jericho Turnpike) right before the railroad tracks going into Garden City (where I lived) on Long Island. My brother and I would each get a couple of hamburgers (they were small) and the hot fries, which were greasy and delicious, and then eat our lunch in the car. The burgers always tasted fresh and hot and were a treat 🙂

  45. James Wulff says:

    Back in the day of eating home cooked meals every day,Wetsons was a treat, when mom would buy burgers, fries and shakes that we would eat outside during the spring and summer months. Great memories.

  46. Rich says:

    Was there a Wetsons at the current All American Burger location in Massapequa before it was All American?
    It had orange colors there way back..

    • Chris V says:

      No, All American was custom built for All American. My classmates watched it go up when we were in 6th grade. As soon as it was finished, we would cut out on Friday’s to buy lunch there.

  47. Patrick Flanagan says:

    I used to live in Syosset when I was growing up. They had a location there on Jericho Turnpike, near Syosset hospital. It was understood that on the Weekends, when my Dad took us to Jones Beach, that we would stop there on the way home. Also went to the location when my parents took us to Jolly Roger. By today’s standards, the burgers probably wouldn’t get rave reviews, but when you are starving after a day at the beach, they tasted great. They also had a pretty good Fried Fish sandwich. Thanks for the memories. I can smell them while I;m typing this.

  48. Norm Reisman says:

    I worked at the Freeport Station Wetson’s in the early ’60’s. First we’d make the fries. You’d throw whole potatoes into a large grating machine. Then you’d put each potato into a slicer, water them down, and fry them. We also had a big pot of melted american cheese. You would take a wooden spoon and add the cheese to a burger to make a cheeseburger. To a teen like me, this was heaven. Biggest problem was weekend mornings. We’d get the crowd leaving the Celebrity Club, a nearby heroin den, I think. I loved the food, the work was difficult, but it all made for great memories.

  49. Jim Clark says:

    Worked at the Wetson’s in Hicksville on Old Country Rd in 1964-1965 during the summers and after school. Was a great time. Burgers & Fries pickles & dehydrated onions also. I ate so many burgers they called me Wimpy. The fries were made the right way peeled in a electric cylinder cut length wise placed in tub of water over night, next day drain them dry, baste them a couple minutes 600 degrees of lard. Hang the baskets up and cook them fresh to a golden brown. Made ton’s of them. We had lines on Saturday & Sunday during the summer all day & night that didn’t stop. Great memories.

  50. Alan R Jones says:

    Wetson Burgers

    What could I say, brings back memories, good ones. the one on queens blvd is where we went. I rember as a child haveing trouble trying to hold the burger and trying to bite in to it , very messy but fun . always a welcome feeling when going their, a treat for me. to bad it no longer exlst . its a real shame that the kids today cant experience Wetson Burger. every now and then I think about when I was a kid my friends and my family, and all the good times we had. and The Wetson Burger always a part of thoes good times.

  51. Steve says:

    Jericho Turnpike/Jamaica Avenue, Bellerose, between Commonwealth Blvd and 91st Ave. Site is now a Queens County Savings Bank. Hot apple pie– served in a paper sleeve.

  52. Patrick says:

    My mind is blown. I am sitting here in Long Beach (CA that is) and the name just popped inot my head. Lived on Bell Air Rd in SI. P.S. 13. Moved upstate in ’73. Typed it in and bam, herethis is. Went to the one on Hylan Blvd a lot! Loved it. It was always a treat and a welcome relief from the turkey tetrazini, what ever the he’ll that was mom was making.
    Thanks for this. The pics brought it all back.
    Miss them days.

  53. Marty V. says:

    As a young child in the early to mid 1960s I remember a Wetsons in Sayville, NY.11782, on the southeast corner of Lakeland Av. & Sunrise Hwy. I believe it was sold and became an “adult store” then an auto parts store. I was told there was never a Wetsons there. Please help me out. Thank you very much

  54. Anonymous says:

    I remember the Wetsons in the Bronx I think there may have been one New Rochelle that was converted to a BK and noww DD

  55. Jim M says:

    During the 60’s I enjoyed going to Wetson’s in Norwalk, Ct. The burgers were fine for 20 cents. I may be wrong but I seem to remember their cheeseburger cost 5 cents more. At least the burgers and fries tasted like real food. There’s a strip shopping center on the site now. I really miss those days when a dollar went much farther than today.

    • B. K. says:

      Used to frequent the Wetsons in Pine Brook, NJ. There were a bunch of kiddie rides next door. Up the road was Pine Brook Racetrack. Home of the midget racers.

  56. carl says:

    Brings back some old memories. Use to live on the Wetson and White Castle burgers that were across the street from one another on the border of where Hempstead met West Hempstead. .15 cent burgers at Wetsons, .12 cent burgers at White Castle(where when my father would drive up….he’d roll down the window half way…and the “waitress” would roller skate up to the car with a tray that hung on the window)……they also had a Sabaret hot dog stand that sold .25 dogs(with everything)(close by). Best cheese burgers ever at Wetsons. Starting to sound like my parents when I was young when they told me about “their good old days when everything cost a “nickel”…lol!! Nice to look back….when a dollar in your pocket went a long way.

    • Glenn K. says:

      Just saw this post; completely accurate in all respects. I worked at this Wetson’s during my senior year in high school (’69-’70) never making it past counterman (no pc stuff back then). Believe it or not it was a union job. Left in June of ’70 (entered the service) and turned my spot over to my best friend, Dave Jennings. Yes, the former Giants and Jets punter (RIP, Dave).

  57. Chris says:

    My brother wanted to go to McDonalds for his birthday when he was young. My parents brought him to the Lake Grove Wetson’s instead. He couldn’t read at the time so he didn’t know any better. We still talk about it.

  58. John C. says:

    Worked at the Freeport location in the early 60’s. Owner Wetenson, had 2 sons. Errol who was a POS had married one of the Hemingway daughters, Didn’t last long as was expected. Total loser with no redeeming value..

  59. Phyllis says:

    Who replaced Wetsons on Empire Blvd and Flatbush Avenue?

    • raven kubiack says:

      The Wetsons on Empire and Flatbush became a Nathans around 1976. Same building with different signage and except for the addition of hot dogs, fried clams and breakfast sandwiches, the menu was the same. It even took them awhile to switch to Nathan’s fries.

  60. Anonymous says:

    We had a Weston’s on Rte 1, old post road in Greenwich (Riverside) CT. Sonny Wetson, the clown would frequently visit our elementary school (Dundee). I remember getting hamburger, fries and coke for less than $.50

  61. Mike says:

    I was just telling my wife about Wetsons at Queens Blvd ans Woodhaven Blvd. every day on the way home from CCNY, I would have a fish fillet, fries and a drink while waiting for my bus. The fries were addictive

  62. Larry says:

    There was another Wetsons on Staten Island, on Richmond Ave and the Pathmark shopping Center. It was a free standing unit. I remember because I named my dog Wetson.

  63. Larry says:

    I used to work at Wetsons (early 60’s) in Freeport. Guy Lombardo (band leader from 50’s & 60’s) walked up to the window one day. He lived in Freeport. Had a white blazer on with his
    band’s gold crest emblazoned on the jacket. He got his hamburger and a server (not me) tried to help him with a plugged ketchup bottle. He wound up spraying ketchup on Lombardo’s white blazer. I thought the manager was going to turn blue. They offered to have it cleaned but Lombardo took it in stride and said he would take care of it. Today there would be a lawsuit.

    • Anonymous says:

      Dad would sit with him at White castle counter 1948-50 , both worked nights. Best guy in the world , we’d all visit him years later.

  64. Phil says:

    I worked at the Syosset Wetsons on Jericho Turnpike in 1966. I like their cheese burgers because we made them with melted cheese. An hour was considered busy if they took in $100, how thing have changed.

  65. Theresa Simione says:

    Bellerose, new York best banana milkshake!!!

  66. JIMI says:

    I used to work at the three wetson’s on Staten Island the one on Hylan Boulevard was actually on the corner of burgher Avenue is an auto parts store across the street from Burger King 1 Forest Avenue is now a Dunkin Donuts and was ironically a block away from North Burger Avenue do you think they planned to put their stores the streets that had the word Burger in it? And the other one on Forest Avenue Best By Richmond Avenue and is now at McDonald’s the family that only three stores also had one in New Jersey that the crew was shuffled between the four stores. Best food in the world the best times we were actually a family and I remember a lot of the guys that used to work there. Wii sure had a lot of fun

  67. Jack says:

    The original Valley Stream Wetson’s was on Sunrise Hwy between Stewart Pl. and Astor Pl. Today it is the site of Valley Stream Honda Pre Owned. They closed when they opened the Rockaway and Sunrise store. After closing they built a bank at the original location.

  68. Ned says:

    Was the All-American Burger on Merrick Road in Massapequa originally a Wetsons? Someone else asked this before but I didn’t see a response; hope somebody knows.

  69. Anonymous says:

    We had one in Syosset. We talk about it all the time. Most people who still remember it think it was better than McDonalds and Buger King. I do. Great fries great shakes. Ah memories.

  70. ATS says:

    As a family of 8, even fast food was a luxury. But throughout the ’60s Weston’s in Hazlet, NJ was our end of the summer treat. After packing up our summer bungalow, stuffing family, suitcases, and a few cats and dogs into the station wagon, and driving up home from Bayville, Mom was not cooking that night, and Dad would have to stop for burgers. Something so fun about eating in the back seat of the car, all smushed together before the days of seat belts. I love that memory.

  71. Mike says:

    I remember the New Hyde Park Rd location in the 1970’s. My Dad would pick up a sack of burgers and fries. So much better than Mac D’s and BK. Funny on how reading this article I can still taste them today.

  72. James O'Connor says:

    Valley Stream Weston’s was not at Rockaway Ave.

    • Joe Cavanagh says:

      Agreed Jim, It wasn’t on Rockaway at Sunsrise Highway, it was on Brooklyn Ave at the intersection Sunrise Highway across the street from Dunkin Donuts. I know, because my Mom took me there after my Little League games during the week. Loved it and every bit as good as McDonald’s. Are you from Valley Stream? Any relation to the O’Connors on Jackson Road?

  73. Lisa Phillips says:

    I remember the Wetsons in Bethpage on Hempstead Turnpike across the road from the Pergments Department Store & Miles Shoe Store and next door to the Jolly Rogers Playland. That would very often be a treat lunch my Dad would pick up and drop off at John H West Elementary for me to have for lunch…..yup those burgers were GREAT! Actually when McDonald’s first hit the scene the Westons burgers, fries and shake were MUCH BETTER!

  74. joyce says:

    We went to the Flushing location. I bought a brand new ’72 Duster fully loaded for $3,000.00 and since my favorite color is orange, I named it Wetson. Bring back the good old days

  75. Cfiff says:

    Weston’s sponsored my 6 & 7th grade little league baseball team in Glen Cove. After every win we got 2 burgers fries and a soda. We went undefeated in 71-72

  76. Anonymous says:

    Anyone remember the Weston’s sponsored race care at Freeport Speedway in 1960’s- orange and black I believe.

  77. Jon H. Cooper says:

    We had a Wetson ‘s on Woodhaven /Cross Bay Bvd at Liberty Av. in Oxone Park .The big W was better than the big Mac.What great times.Then,in 1971 we moved to Paramus,I don’t remember the one on route 17 south that became the Stage deli.I do remember the Stage.There was also one on Essex St in Lodi,right off route 17&route 80.That,as the one in Ozone park,became a Nathans.Then,Ozone park became a DD.I’d kill for that place now!!

  78. Jon Coop says:

    We had a Wetson ‘s on Woodhaven /Cross Bay Bvd at Liberty Av. in Ozone Park .The big W was better than the big Mac.What great times.Then,in 1971 we moved to Paramus,I don’t remember the one on route 17 south that became the Stage deli.I do remember the Stage.There was also one on Essex St in Lodi,right off route 17&route 80.That,as the one in Ozone park,became a Nathans.Then,Ozone park became a DD.I’d kill for that place now!!

  79. Anonymous says:

    Just one thing wrong with the list up top…..Bay Shore, (not West Islip) had to Wetson’s…the one on Sunrise Highway & Pine Drive was in Bay Shore, and was a very interesting location due to it’s place near number one, Gardner Manor Shopping Center, & number two, that any traffic coming from Bay Shore Road from points west, was detoured to a short stretch of Pine Drive, then east on Sunrise Highway to Howells Road to continue to Downtown Bay Shore or points east….a VERY BUSY intersection. The other Wetson’s was located on the corner of east Sunrise Highway & Penataquit Avenue…also in Bay Shore, located directly across from South Shore Mall. This one was the one I was most familiar with for it was on the way to my school and also because it my fathers favorite burger place.

  80. Jeff says:

    I remember riding my bicycle to Weston’s in Syosset and enjoying a burger and fries when I heard the news that JFK was shot from the patrons. I raced home to tell my siblings

  81. Bill Dudjoc says:

    Left out the Wetson’s on Glen Street in Glen Cove, NY between the two theaters

  82. Debbie Myrato Cantwell says:

    I used to LOVE Wetson’s! My family would always go to the one in Hicksville, LI before heading to the drive-in movies with us kids in the back of the station wagon (window open so we could breathe in all that carbon monoxide that made us what we are today! And certainly no seat belts back there!)

    How I miss those days!

  83. Joe says:

    I recall the highlight of a visit to the Weston’s in bay shore was feeding the ducks in the pond. Later on a putt putt went up not far from there

  84. Steve says:

    I went to the one in Bayshore. If I remember correctly there were a couple of Items I could get at Wetson’s but not at McDonalds. Wetson’s had Onion rings, and for dessert they had apple pie, that was pretty much apple pie filling, fried in an eggroll casing.

  85. Mike Lang says:

    I worked part time while a high school student at the Rego Park – Woodhaven Blvd. and 63rd Ave. location. That was in 1971 – 1972. I recall the restaurant manager’s name was Gus, with a very long Greek surname that I can’t recall exactly. The main kitchen staff person was a very nice woman by the name of Gladys. Memories are fading a bit so that’s about all I recall. Except I do remember the manager Gus was constantly scolding any of the customers who had there feet up on the benches of the eating booths. “Hey, those feet, do you put your feet on the furniture at your home??”. Funny now looking back.

  86. Bob says:

    Am I the only one who remembers the Weston’s location on Flatlands Ave & Ralph Ave in Canarsie Brooklyn or am I mistaken. Either way, fond memories of this historic fast food chain

  87. john c jaworowski says:

    You forgot the one on Essex St. In Lodi N.J. My first job in the late 60’s.Was next to a Tuscan Milk distribution center off of Rt.80..we use to go out at night with raw potato’s and try to kill all the rats that would always be around our dumpsters…now a WAWA.

  88. Frank J Kollar says:

    I worked at Wetsons Levittown on Hempstead Turnpike in 64-65. Flipped burgers, mopped floors after they closed. It was a good time!!

  89. Darryl campbell says:

    I remember the stripes that were red and white on the bldg.wetsons reminds me of Wendy’s when it comes to the taste,although I don’t eat Wendy’s very much

  90. Jim Soronen says:

    Wetsons , Lodi N.J. Loved It.

  91. Dave says:

    There was also locations on Flatlands Ave next to South Shore High School in Brooklyn as well as Church Ave and Remsen Ave in Brooklyn.

  92. DRS says:

    Wetson’s Jericho turnpike near Larkfield Rd
    L.I. NY 1970-72 High School Days.
    We would drive there from Northport high school during lunch.
    Good old days!
    There was a Mcdonald’s just down the road!
    Soon there was a Jack in the box
    close by.

  93. carol walsh says:

    Husband swears that when we were dating 67-69 the fast food restaurant at Levittown Pkwy and Old Country Road was McDonalds. I say it was Wetsons. When did Wetsons close at that location and did it change to McDonalds? Or was there another McDonalds on OCR.
    We used to go there after the drive-in movies in Westbury. Great fries. Hope someone can help me with the dates, etc. This has been an ongoing disagreement for years.

  94. Larry K says:

    I remember the one in Lawrence,N.Y. it was great, Then they opened A&W Root Beer I worked in the Far Rockaway store on Central Ave

  95. Joe says:

    I remember one in Franklin Square, LI, in between the towns of West Hempstead and Elmont on Hempstead Turnpike.

  96. Bruce says:

    I used to live in Valley Stream NY. As a kid my family always visited Howard Johnson’s and the favorite place to go for a burger was Wetsons, Ah the good old days and the memories. Growing up as a kid on Long Island it was the best. I remember the Green Acres Mall Carl Hoppel”s the Belair theater Hills supermarket Pathmark the list goes on and on. My dad used to take all all to these restaurants. Being from a family of EMT FDNY and the NY POLICE DEPARTMENT you could always find a White Castle. Their used to be one located in Lynbrook LINY. And you could always find a Wetsons all over the place.I use to ride my bicycle to and from Wetsons on Sunrise and Rockaway worked there as well. I remember Nathans on Sunrise highway worked there as well. Then there was Coney Island Jones Beach many a family summer spent there with my friends girlfriends and family. The music from the 60s and 70s was the best. Anyone remember Disco and the Disco Queen Donna Summer? Saturday Night Fever. The Bee Gees. Does anyone remember the Dublin Pub in New Hyde Park one of my favorite places to go on the weekends as a young adult of 18-21.Yes the memories. The last Howard Johnson’s that i know of was in Lake George NY. Spent many a summer there with family. Nice to meet you you all. I am sure each one of us remember Wetsons with fond affection. Sure be nice if one came back in these times. Damn Burger King and McDonalds ruined Wetsons and put it out of business Howard Johnsons Thanks for the memories. Wish we could go back in time to do it all again and relive our youth. Cheers everyone. Bruce…

  97. Vinny T says:

    I remember my dad taking us in Valley Streams LI after the drive in theater. How about that for that 70,s show

  98. robert staples says:

    I worked at the wetson’s on the corner of Rockaway Avenue and Sunrise Highway now a McDonald’s wetson’s change to Nathan’s though back in 76 work there too

  99. robert staples says:

    By the way that was in Valley Stream New York

  100. Anonymous says:

    One of my first jobs was at the Wetson’s in Pine Brook NJ off of rt 46. the manager there must have been a drill sgt in the service he was really hard on the employees but I will say this, it was always neat and clean we had to mop the floor every hr.

  101. Anonymous says:

    I used to go to the one on sunrise hwy in valley stream. we lived only a couple of blocks away. I used to go there 3 or 4 times a week for the chocolate shakes…
    excellent….great burgers and fries at a decent price…..and a dunkin donut was right down the street where you could watch them actually make the donuts….what a country!!!

  102. Marc says:

    My father also took us to the Wetson’s on sunrise highway in valley stream.he would buy me and my older brother a hamburger,fries,and soda and I would sit in the back seat of our 1964 black Cadillac.then he would buy some food for my mom and younger brother who were home waiting for us to finish our eats.great food and even better memories .now my dad is in his 90’s g-d bless and he’s a Burger King fan !

  103. andrew says:

    Compare Wetsons to McDonalds – Wetsons used to sell real fried chicken while McDonalds sold chicken mcnuggets. Some of Wetsons old buildings look like the original McDonalds without the golden arches.

  104. John says:

    Fondly remember going to the Wetson’s in Franklin Square with my mom – (on Hempstead Tpke, right ?) and being a HUGE fan of their fried chicken. Don’t ever remember getting a burger or fries…just the fried chicken !!!

  105. Robert. P. says:

    Does anyone else remember the Wetson’s that was on the south side of Marie Curie Junior High 158, in Bayside , Queens N.Y. ? This was in the early 1960s. I’m guessing that it was on 47th or 48th ave & 210th or 211th st. Incidentally, anyone out there remember the Dairly Maid Ice Cream parlor which was on Francis Lewis Blvd.? How about Meyers Ice Cream on Jamaica Ave. ? Two brothers from Europe that made their own wonderful ice cream . .

  106. Anonymous says:

    Does anyone know what happened to Jimmy? He was the manager at the Wetson’s on Pennsylvania ave and Stanley. My first. Real job as a teenager. His elderly father would drop the fries. Jimmy was Greek.

  107. Bob says:

    Was there ever a Wetson’s located on Flatlands Ave off Ralph Ave. , Brooklyn. That location had been several burger joints. At one time it was Benson Burger

  108. HB says:

    Any Chance the Slo Jacks in Hampton Bays was a Wetson’s? I grew up out there and the building looks like it could have been one. Google Slo Jacks and check out the image. Slo Jacks is still there. Pretty cool old school place.

  109. Barry says:

    If I remember correctly, there was a second Wetson’s in the Bronx. It was on Castle Hill Avenue by the Bruckner Expressway. It is now a Top Banana, which is a combination bodega and pizza parlor (don’t ask!).

  110. Anonymous says:

    Wasn’t there one in Island Park? Or perhaps it was it “Joseph’s” or something… I can’t remember.
    🙂

  111. JP says:

    Hicksville location at corner of Levittown Parkway and Old Country Road, 1970-ish. After every parade, Hicksville Police Boys Club nautical cadet band bus stopped there and they’d bring out a hamburger soda and fries for every boy. It was a great treat for kids whose parents couldn’t afford to eat out, best part of the trip. Wow, what memories.

  112. Lisa Allen says:

    I worked at the Wetson’s on Sunrise Hwy. In Rockville Centre during high school and have such great memories of that place! It mustve been 1968-70. Two of my friends worked there too and we had a blast. I also worked in the Lawrence Wetson’s after high school for about a year. I wish they’d come back! Even though I’m retired now I’d go back to work there in a heartbeat.

  113. Exislander says:

    Does anyone remember someone selling term papers out of the wetson’s on queens blvd (or maybe northern blvd) – heard about if from a guy I hitched a ride with forty years ago and always wondered if it was true – he made it sound like an organized going concern there

  114. Michael says:

    On my 6th Birthday (1960) my Mom took me and 3 friends to the Syosset Wetsons on a hot July Day. Each of us got a burger, small fries and a small coke. I remember laughing with my friends siting on the curb next to my Mom’s brand new blue Ford Falcon while eating fries and feeding the sparrows. Then we were off to the Oyster Bay Theatre to see Godzilla vs. King Kong. Then back home for cake and presents. What a perfect day!

  115. ULTRA Q says:

    TO ANTHONY BARBA: hope you got the details right. i remember weston’s was near by
    the now-defuct TSS store near my home in laurelton whis was across the street.
    the store’s now WHOLE SALE MEAT market. the burger joint was razed in 1976 and there
    was a medical center a few feet behind where it was now also demolishd and it’s now
    becoming a laudry mat!

  116. Wild child says:

    Wetsons at the bayshore Mall was great! The crazy looking bank I heard was from the 64 worlds fair. The 70s was the best era to grow up in!!!!

    • Joe K. says:

      I lived on Catherine St, 2 streets off Sunrise Hwy. I remember that crazy looking white space ship, submarine bank. I was also a mall rat cut’n class hang’n at the game room. lol Good memories!

    • jans says:

      Totally agree..The 70’s were the best..Best music, best cars..Wouldn’t trade my childhood for anything ..I remember the Bank your talking about..It looked like a submarine..It was by Howard Johnsons..

  117. Bob M says:

    Good old Wetson’s — I vaguely remember visiting the Stamford location (I assume Stamford) — unofficial motto — “Where the pickle is bigger than the patty!”

  118. Anonymous says:

    Weston’s , Lake Success, New Hyde Park, near Sperry Gyroscope (my aunt was an engineer) and LI Jewish Hospital! Does anyone remember the pizza, .15¢, the slices were huge and loaded with fresh chewy.
    Piping hot mozzarella cheese that would stretch the length of the forearm when bitten into….. The best and first time I had pizza! O’, the good old days! Friday evening, after the last day of the school year!, time to get the band new Ked sneakers for Summer fun, Jones Beach,, Coney Island, Rockaway Playland, Rye Playland (steeplechase Merry go round, fun house the big spinning slinging wooden disc!). Happy days for real!

  119. Anonymous says:

    The leaky cup!
    Burgers and fries were great but the cup holding the soda would always leak from the lid!
    The one on old country road became a record shop for awhile….
    Carl is still in good health and still drives his hot rods!
    gtjoey1314

  120. Joe Cavanagh says:

    Just a note about the Wetson’s in Valley Stream. It wasn’t on Rockaway and Sunsrise Highway, it was on Brooklyn Ave at the intersection Sunrise Highway across the street
    from Dunkin Donuts. I know, because my Mom took me there after my Little League games during the week. Loved it and every bit as good as McDonald’s.

  121. Henry jackson says:

    The super burger smhsmh still to this day the best tasting burger I’ve had in my life . I use to attend Louis pasteur jhs 67 in Little neck ny …at lunch some of us ran down the hill to get those super burgers and get back to school on time. I hope national foods do come back with the same taste as the past . Unforgettable burger

  122. Santiago says:

    Then in 1975 a member of that family started another chain named TACO RICO. Whatever happened to that?

  123. Wow, I remember the Wetson’s in Hicksville, because my family lived in a garden apartment building that was kind of behind that strip of stores. We went there a lot. I think it eventually just turned into a McDonalds… maybe the McDonalds is still there? I think it was route 107… across from the Korvettes. 🙂

    • Mitchell Sugarman says:

      Wasn’t it a Minute Man burger joint before that?

    • Kevin J. Hales says:

      There was a Wetson’s on Bronxwood Avenue in the Bronx. It sat somewhere between about 228th 229th Streets. My uncle Jerry Hales used to take me there after spending hours driving around in his cab.

  124. Michael Luna says:

    My fiancée, who became my wife loved Wetson’s. We usually went to the one on Sunrise Highway in West Islip, NY. My mom’s little dog loved Wetson’s. We were at my house and we went out to bring home Wetson’s. My mom said be sure to get one for Ginger, but hold the pickle. When we got home my fiancée was holding the bag. Ginger came charging out to the car and put her nose to the bag all the one in.

  125. Rich says:

    Grew up in Valley Stream. Parents used to take us to Wetson’s when I was about 5 yrs old w my brother. We flipped down the tail gate of our Ford Falcon Wagon and chowed down on burgers, fries and shakes. The memory lingers in my mind and I think about Wetson’s often.

  126. James McHale says:

    FYI–> The Texas BBQ place on Junction BLVD in Rego Park, Queens used to have (& may still have) some giant poster sized pics of the Wetson Burger places of old (due to same ownership)…………..Me also thinks that there may have been one on the Queens side of the Triboro Bridge (now RFK) @ Eastbound service road somewhere (or maybe not)…..JMcH.

    • Linda says:

      I’m from CT and trying to confirm that there was a Wetson’s in Bridgeport CT on South Park Avenue next to Railroad Avenue. I know I ate there but people I talk to don’t remember it.. Food was good. I think it closed about 1978. Researched this online but can’t find any info on where in Bridgeport Wetson’s was located. Any suggestions???

  127. I used to work for Carl Wetanson. He had an interesting and creative 10 year business plan. You may know this…almost all the Wetson’s locations were sold to the new fast food chain….McDonalds.

  128. Bruce palmer says:

    I went to the one on sunrise highway in valley stream in the late 50s. Parking lot was full of drag/racing kids. You would pull into the lot and before you could park some kid would flip open your hood to see what engine you were running! And the food—the highlight was the cheese they put on the cheeseburger buns. It wasn’t a slice like it was everywhere else—it was a thick melted paste. It came out of a huge metal can and they slapped it on with a spatula, and spread it. Delicious! It was similar to velveta, smooth, creamy and perfect with bun and burger. I would pay a lot for one of those babies now!

  129. Curtis Appel says:

    Not the greatest memory but certainly vivid. After a bike ride in prospect park in Brooklyn with a bunch of 6th grade friends in 1966 we stopped for a bite at Weston’s on Flatbush Ave and Empire Blvd. As we were enjoying our fries a bunch of young toughs came in , “asked” if they could have some of our fries and ride our bikes. Knowing we would probably get jumped, we tried to ride away but we’re jumped and overcome and our bikes were taken, all while a crowded street of adults stood by and did nothing.
    Don’t remember too much else about Weston’s– but the fries were good

    • raven kubiack says:

      Yeah, you always had to have your friends around you when you went bike riding over there. The fries were greasy, the hamburgers were too small for the bun and the fried chicken wasn’t as good the Chinese restaurant.

  130. RP Comotto says:

    Started working at the Boston Road, Bronx location after High School in 1966. During that summer was promoted to manager by relocating as district manager requested. Beginning hourly rate was $1.50 I believe and received an increase every time I relocated. At times I would be getting a higher rate than some employees that had been there a few years. Locations during short career After Bronx, Norwalk, CT, Lodi, NJ, Queens Blvd and Schenectady, NY ( 1 day visit before resigning).

  131. Tom says:

    Oh yeah, My Dad and Mom would take us, with his ’53 Pontiac Chieftain, there from Brooklyn (Kings Plaza area) in the early 60s. I can still taste the ketchup, pickles, and onions. Man great memories. We always stopped for lunch, off to Bargintown, in Queens, and Dinner in Oceanside at Nathans. This was when time were great! I miss the good times in the early 60’s.

  132. Fred V Provoncha says:

    Mine was: Valley Stream, NY Sunrise Highway at Rockaway Ave. (demolished)

  133. Rob Ritter says:

    There was a location not listed, in Co-Op City on the junction of Tillotson Ave and Baychester Ave. This was the only fast food in the ealry 70’s for Co-Op city residents. Loved it. Ahead of its time.

  134. Joe says:

    I remember the Brick NJ location on art 70 In front of Bradlees dept store, Great. Food

  135. Ed G... says:

    Wow- I just found this page- Bring back Great Memories…
    My Dad Owned the Wetson’s Franchise store in Hicksville on Old Country Rd & Levittown Parkway.. My uncles owned two others.. So glad there are many great memories from those that visited..

  136. James G Soronen says:

    Wetsons was on Essex St in HackensackK N.J. I loved The Place, Broke my heart when they converted to Nathans. BRING WETSONS BACK !!!!

  137. Jill Botsford says:

    My family would take us to Wetson’s Stamford ,conn . Load kids up in station wagon

  138. Billy says:

    We had a Wetson’s on Astoria Blvd. & 33rd Street in Astoria Queens, which then became a full-service Nathan’s (complete with a game room like the ones in Westbury & Oceanside), then a Roy Rogers, last I knew it was a Burger King. I haven’t been back to the old neighborhood in a while.

  139. mike goldberg says:

    what was inside of those burgers was not the best meat but it tasted so good

  140. Ray says:

    Wetsons Hylan & Burger Ave Friday and Saturday Night………….. $$$$$$$. Races!!!!!! Vets, Camaro’s Hmmmmm. YUP. GTO’sss. and hmmmmm. 442’s. yup!!!!!!!! All American made. Ok start checking in if you Beat ME!!!!!!!

  141. Alex B says:

    Our location in Ozone Park was on the corner of Woodhaven blvd and Rockaway blvd, across from the Crossbay movie theater. Now it is a Dunkin Donuts

  142. Ed V says:

    There was another one in Franklin Square on Franklin Ave, across from the Franklin Bowl

  143. Kent Hambrecht says:

    I grew up in Franklin Square and my mother often gave me money to go to Wetson’s on Hempstead turnpike – between the burger, fries and chocolate shakes it was the best.

  144. Vicki says:

    Great memory of going there with my Dad to check it out when Wetson’s opened in Bethpage. We thought it was great. Think White Castle in Hempstead was the only other fast food burger place around at the time.

  145. Andrea I. says:

    I remember the one in Teaneck, N.J. I also had the pleasure of meeting Errol Wetson at Au Bar in NYC on night. A perfect gentleman.

  146. Andrea I says:

    I remember the one in Teaneck, N.J. Years later I had the pleasure of meeting Errol Wetson one night at Au Bar in New York City, N.Y. A perfect gentleman with so much charisma!

  147. Don K. says:

    Work at Syosset Wetson’s from 1969 until it closed (closed while I was in Syosset hospital getting knee surgery) Owner Ray never gave us any indication they were going to close. Then I got a job at Hicksville location until they closed. Maybe they should have called me the “closer”. Anyway made enough money to pay all my college costs. Started making 95 cents an hour with 10 cents going to the “union”. What a rip off. Never got anything for it except to see Vito make his collections.
    Have to say looking back, these days were the best education I could have ever had working at an early age and saving to put myself through college. I am sooooo much better off for it today. THANK YOU WETSON’S!!!!!

  148. When I was in 7th grade at saint Clement Pope Parochial School in 1970 I’d take the q40 bus up to Hillside Avenue to wetson’s for a big W, wetson’s version of The Big Mac. That’s over 50 years ago and it was always a special treat. That was before there were any McDonald’s in Queens. Only far out on Long Island

  149. Michele Malone says:

    I would go to the Huntington Station, NY Wetson’s on Route 110 – I think it was replaced by a McDonald’s

  150. Rufus says:

    Seem like people forgot about the Wetsons at Linden Blvd. & Pine St. In East New York, Brooklyn.
    Their burgers, fries, and shakes were to me better than McDonalds, and Burger
    King’s. I wish they would make a comeback with the same recipes. Delicious!!!

  151. Carole Commack High School Class of 1967 says:

    I remember a Wetsons on Jericho Tpke. in Commack, across the street from the bowling alley near the Sunken Meadow Pkwy.

    There was a place where you could bat baseballs next-door.

  152. Anonymous says:

    Grew up in Garden City and remember 1967 grad year driving to the Wetson off of Hempstead Tpk in West Hempstead near Klein’s, LOVED THEIR FRENCH FRIES! THE BEST FOR ME

  153. C. Joseph Burger says:

    There is a Wetson’s radio commercial (that is, a “live-read” by the legendary DJ Dan Ingram) on the aircheck of his April 13, 1968 77 WABC radio show. Just heard it on Rewound Radio’s annual “WABC REWOUND” special.

  154. Paul says:

    I remember the Weston’s on Bay Parkway, Brooklyn, by Korvette’s shopping center, as a kid in the 70s, in fact met a guy, at Villa Baglieri, Italian “dude ranch”, upstate, NY, who served as a double for the wrestler Ivan Putsky, who told us some interesting stories about the place and some special “serving methods” they employed.

  155. Jim from Oakdale Lane in Roslyn says:

    1960-The nights were spent in Wetson’s parking lot waiting for a race. there was everything in that little lot on Northern Blv. in Roslyn. from street hemi’s to all sorts of things on trailers waiting.
    The strip was on the new 4 lane highway to the garbage incinerator at Bar Beach where our strip was. cars would lie up along the side of the highway to watch and the plice would always arrive after the race was over to hand out tickets top those with defects in their vehicles. I got a few for low front end, glove box light was out and backfiring my engine a few times while the police were up the road with other cars. Everyone there considered it part of the show and put up with all the tickets. Everything was different then. There was a rifle range in the middle school cellar and kids would have their rifles on the school buses bringing them to practice there.

  156. Ken says:

    The Wetson’s in Hicksville became a record store – Titus Oaks.

  157. A Harris says:

    As I kid, I remember the Wetson in Brooklyn at Empire Boulevard and Flatbush Ave. Was wondering if there were any old pics of the place. Didn’t know the history of the franchise. Thanks for sharing.

  158. Rob says:

    I remember there was one on Sunrise Highway in Amityville/Copiague. My parents would buy burgers and then go eat them while watching a movie at the All-Weather Drive-In, also located in Copiague. The Drive-In is now a Home Depot.

  159. patricia says:

    WESTONS: Gosh I was only 5 or 6, and it was such a big treat for us to go. We llived in Oakdale on Long Island. Best burgers ever! Dad would say we could order 2 burgers but only one french fry. Being a family of 6, I am sure it wasn’t cheap. I remember it being on Sunrise Hwy but I though it was east of us, like near Patchogue or Sayville? The only one I see on this list is West Islip, I guess that was it? Anyone else live around that area?

  160. Donald Vining says:

    I remember in the mid 60s there being a Wetson’s in Commack not too far a drive from Stony Brook where I was in college. My girlfriend and I would scrounge for lose change and then drive there for some burgers that couldn’t be beat! Sad that they could not compete with Micky D’s… At that time in my life a Wetson’s was almost as god as lobster!

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