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Harvey's is a
fast food restaurant A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast-food cuisine and has minimal table service. The food served in fast-food restaurants is typicall ...
chain operating in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world ...
, with locations in every province except British Columbia. It serves
hamburger A hamburger, or simply burger, is a food consisting of fillings—usually a patty of ground meat, typically Ground beef, beef—placed inside a sliced bun or bread roll. Hamburgers are often served with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles ...
s,
poutine Poutine () is a dish of french fries and cheese curds topped with a brown gravy. It emerged in Quebec, in the late 1950s in the Centre-du-Québec region, though its exact origins are uncertain and there are several competing claims regarding ...
,
hot dog A hot dog (uncommonly spelled hotdog) is a food consisting of a grilled or steamed sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced bun. The term hot dog can refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener (Vienna sausage) or a fr ...
s,
french fries French fries (North American English), chips (British English), finger chips (Indian English), french-fried potatoes, or simply fries, are '' batonnet'' or ''allumette''-cut deep-fried potatoes of disputed origin from Belgium and France. The ...
,
onion rings An onion ring, also called a French fried onion ring, is a form of appetizer or side dish in British and American cuisine. They generally consist of a cross-sectional "ring" of onion dipped in batter or bread crumbs and then deep fried; a vari ...
, and other traditional
Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source o ...
fast-food fare. The chain is owned by
Recipe Unlimited Recipe Unlimited Corporation is a Canadian company that operates several restaurant chains such as Swiss Chalet, Harvey's and The Keg, and food distribution for large operations. The company was originated in 1883 as Canada Railway News Compa ...
(previously known as Cara Operations). Harvey's is the fourth largest burger chain in Canada. Opened in 1959, Harvey's is one of Canada's longest-standing Canadian owned and operated restaurants. Harvey's is known for its grilled burgers and for providing customers with the choice of various toppings.


History


1959 and 1960s: inception and growth

Harvey's was co-founded by George B. Sukornyk and Rick Mauran in early 1959 as equal shareholders. Mauran originally thought to call the chain Humphrey's, riffing off of the down-home friendliness connoted by the Henry's Hamburgers chain that was already successful in the United States at the time (today, only one Henry's restaurant survives). As he was preparing to open the first restaurant in the summer of 1959, he saw an item in the now defunct '' Toronto Telegram'' indicating that the John Harvey Motors car dealership in the city was closing, and the sign — which simply designated it ''Harvey's'' — was available. Mauran obtained the sign and posted it outside his flagship store. The first Harvey's location was opened on April 1, 1959, at the southeast corner of
Yonge Street Yonge Street (; pronounced "young") is a major arterial route in the Canadian province of Ontario connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. Once the southernmost leg of provincial H ...
and Observatory Lane in
Richmond Hill, Ontario Richmond Hill ( 2021 population: 202,022) is a city in south-central York Region, Ontario, Canada. Part of the Greater Toronto Area, it is the York Region's third most populous municipality and the 27th most populous municipality in Canada. Richm ...
, on a parcel of land purchased from the owner of a bankrupt
Dairy Queen Dairy Queen (DQ) is an American chain of soft serve ice cream and fast food restaurants owned by International Dairy Queen, Inc. (a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway since 1998) which also owns Orange Julius, and formerly owned Karmelkorn and ...
. The location was initially expected to be seasonal, based on the precedent of the local Dairy Queen location, but it was successful enough to remain open year-round. The first franchised location was on the company owned property on
Avenue Road Avenue Road is a major north–south street in Toronto, Ontario. The road is a continuation of University Avenue, linked to it via Queen's Park and Queen's Park Crescent East and West to form a single through route.''Toronto Pocket Street Atl ...
. Subsequently, the land was purchased for additional locations to be developed and franchised in
Etobicoke Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district of, and one of six municipalities amalgamated into, the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west-end, Etobicoke was first settled by Europeans in the 1790s, and the municipal ...
,
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilto ...
and Scarborough. In 1959, Harvey's introduced three original concepts in the
drive-in A drive-in is a facility (such as a restaurant or movie theater) where one can drive in with an automobile for service. At a drive-in restaurant, for example, customers park their vehicles and are usually served by staff who walk or rollerskat ...
take-out A take-out or takeout (U.S., Canada, and the Philippines); carry-out or to-go (Scotland and some dialects in the U.S. and Canada); takeaway (England, Wales, Australia, Lebanon, South Africa, Northern Ireland, Ireland, and occasionally in Nort ...
business. The first concept was for a customer to order, purchase and obtain a receipt, which was placed on the topping counter. The cash was immediately placed in the cash register, thereby controlling and monitoring cash, and keeping theft to a minimum. The second concept was to have the customer move along the counter, following his/her receipt, and then, at his/her request, have an employee customize his/her hamburger with a variety of toppings. The third concept — developed for its full-line
Swiss Chalet Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland *Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia *Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...
restaurants in Montreal — was to purchase potatoes from
Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...
, have the franchisee wash and cut the fresh potatoes into oversized chips with skin on, and then deep-fry and serve the chips on-site. This approach was a distinction between thin pre-frozen and pre-cut French Fries of unknown origin that were being sold at the time. Ten years later, under different management, the number of toppings was substantially increased, and pre-frozen and pre-cut string French Fries were introduced, replacing the freshly cut PEI potato.


1970s: Foodcorp and Cara acquisition

Harvey's Food Limited merged with Industrial Growth Limited in the early 1970s to form Foodcorp, led by president Bernie Syron. The company grew to operate 80 restaurants, and was acquired by Cara Operations in 1979, which has since rebranded as Recipe Unlimited.


2010–present: Great Canadian and Health Check

After going through four different flagship burgers in twenty years, Harvey's introduced the Great Canadian as its flagship burger in 2010. It was discontinued in 2013 and replaced by the Angus burger, which has served as the chain's flagship burger since then. In February 2012 the first Harvey's location was demolished to make way for condominiums. In the summer of 2012, Harvey's added Dole Strawberry Kiwi as a fountain juice. Later in November 2012, Harvey's introduced a Health Check approved section for its menu. This includes the
veggie burger A veggie burger is a hamburger patty that does not contain meat. It may be made from ingredients like beans, especially soybeans and tofu, nuts, grains, seeds or fungi such as mushrooms or mycoprotein. The patties that are the essence of a ...
, the grilled chicken sandwich, the Lil' Original and the grilled chicken salad. Only approved toppings, condiments and dressings may be used on the sandwiches for them to meet the Health Check requirements. The Lil' Original has a price of $1.99, comparable to those found on competitors' value-priced burgers.


Products


Operations

Harvey's claims that, in 1998, they were the first to introduce "Custom Combos", allowing customers to modify their combo with different items from those usually included. At a select number of locations, breakfast is served along with "Frings" ("Fridelles" in French), which are half french fries and half onion rings. As of December 2019, Harvey's employed more than 7,000 employees and operated 274 restaurant locations across Canada.


Flagship burger

Harvey's has changed flagship burgers several times before introducing the current Angus in 2014: * Superburger (1989–1996,  lb) * Ultra Burger (1996–2001,  lb, "steak-like") * Big Harv (2001–2007, 2022-present) * Angus Burger (2007–2010) * Great Canadian (2010–2013, over  lb) * Great Canadian Angus (2013–2014, over  lb. Introduced Spring 2013) * Angus (2014–present.  lb. A Double Angus  lb burger is also available. Introduced Spring 2014.) Harvey's introduced their Angus burger series as a competitive measure to McDonald's, which first introduced its own Angus burgers in Canada in 2008. Harvey's presently uses all-Canadian beef.


Legal disputes


''E. coli'' outbreak

In October 2008, over 200 people were infected with the O157:H7 strain of ''E. coli'' due to contaminated onions at the
North Bay, Ontario North Bay is a city in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. It is the seat of Nipissing District, and takes its name from its position on the shore of Lake Nipissing. North Bay developed as a railroad centre, and its airport was an important milita ...
, location. There was a class action lawsuit against Harvey's; the end result was a cheque for $1,000 to $7,250 per victim.


Harvey's vs. Hardee's

There is no affiliation between Harvey's and the American hamburger chain
Hardee's Hardee's Restaurants LLC is an American fast-food restaurant chain operated by CKE Restaurants Holdings, Inc. ("CKE") with locations primarily in the Southern and Midwestern United States. The company has evolved through several corporate owne ...
. The latter's parent company
CKE Restaurants CKE Restaurants Holdings (an acronym from Carl Karcher Enterprises) is an American fast food corporation and is the parent organization for the Carl's Jr., Hardee's, Green Burrito, and Red Burrito brands. CKE Restaurants is a subsidiary of the pri ...
has been prevented from opening stores in Canada under the Hardee's name due to a trademark dispute. CKE has instead launched the Carl's Jr. brand in Canada.


Loyalty program

Harvey's began a partnership with Scene in February 2015.


Advertising

Harvey's advertising takes the form of promotional coupons, social media presence on Facebook and television commercials.


Free Burger Week

On the last Sunday of May each year in 2007, 2008 and 2009, Harvey's held a Free Original Hamburger Day at all locations across Ontario and Quebec. The purpose of this event was to "celebrate Canada's best tasting burger" and to attract new customers who might not otherwise go into Harvey's. These events were
loss leader A loss leader (also leader) is a pricing strategy where a product is sold at a price below its market cost to stimulate other sales of more profitable goods or services. With this sales promotion/marketing strategy, a "leader" is any popular artic ...
sales where Harvey's hoped to sell side items and create customer loyalty. The event was extended across Canada in 2008, and later in 2009 to coincide with the chain's 50th anniversary. All these events were limited to one free burger per person. From 2010 onward, the event was changed to a "Free Burger Week" in June of every year, but now works as a "
buy one, get one free "Buy one, get one free" or "two for the price of one" is a common form of sales promotion. Economist Alex Tabarrok has argued that the success of this promotion lies in the fact that consumers value the first unit significantly more than the se ...
" instead of a completely free burger. However, there is no longer a limit of one per person, and any burger (including chicken and veggie) can be obtained with the new deal.


Slogans


Retail presence

In the early 1990s, some Harvey's locations featured items from the American chain
Church's Chicken Church's Texas Chicken is an American fast food restaurant chain that specializes in fried chicken and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The chain was founded as Church's Fried Chicken To-Go by George W. Church Sr. on April 17, 1952, in San ...
. After Cara acquired Harvey's, the Church's partnership was ceased and replaced with Swiss Chalet. In some cases, locations are adjacent to or co-located with
Swiss Chalet Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland *Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia *Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...
locations. There are also a few Home Depot Harvey's stores that are co-located with Second Cup, a coffee chain that used to be owned by Cara.


See also

* List of Canadian restaurant chains *
List of hamburger restaurants This is a list of notable hamburger restaurants. A hamburger is a sandwich consisting of one or more cooked patties of ground meat (usually beef) usually placed inside a sliced hamburger bun. Hamburgers are often served with lettuce, bacon, t ...
* List of assets owned by Recipe Unlimited *South St. Burger Company


References


External links

* {{Recipe Unlimited Recipe Unlimited Companies based in Vaughan Fast-food chains of Canada Fast-food hamburger restaurants Hot dog restaurants Canadian companies established in 1959 Restaurants established in 1959 1959 establishments in Ontario 1979 mergers and acquisitions