History recorded that Frank and Charles Menches ran out of pork for their sausage patty sandwiches at the 1885 Erie County Fair. Their supplier, reluctant to butcher more hogs in the summer heat, suggested they use beef instead. The brothers fried some up, but found it bland. They added coffee, brown sugar, and other ingredients to create a taste which stands distinct without condiments. They christened this sandwich the "hamburger" after Hamburg, New York where the fair was being held.

At the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, Frank and Charles baked waffles in Parisian waffle irons and topped them with ice cream. They then had an idea to wrap the warm waffle around a fid, a cone-shaped splicing tool for tent ropes. The waffle cooled and held it's shape to provide an edible handle for eating ice cream.

Returning home to Akron, the Menches' began production of "Premium" cones in their popcorn factory. The Premium Popcorn Works, Inc. was the site of their first innovative breakthrough, caramel coated peanuts and popcorn with a prize in the pack. After offering "Gee-Whiz" at the 1893 World's Fair, someone developed the idea as the snack known today as Cracker Jacks®

The Menches tradition for quality carries on today, as if still made in the turn-of-the-century factory in Akron. Only superior ingredients are used and the process remains unpretentious to keep the simple taste of quality coming through.

Only the finest cuts of beef are used in the Menches hamburger. Buns are baked to specification and corn flour dusted, just the way they were served at the turn of the century. Premium Cones are baked fresh daily, filling the air with their wonderful scent. Strict control of the process (and the recipe) is sustained to assure the unique flavor of the original hamburger, the Menches Hamburger.

The Menches have been serving America burgers, popcorn, and ice cream cones for over 100 years. Today's Menches Family is ready to continue this tradition into yet another century.