There was little talk of shutting down.
And then suddenly on Jan. 26, Velvet Freeze owner Kevin Thomas told his employees that the iconic restaurant in Fondulac Plaza— famous for its Wonderdogs — would close the next day.
“We knew it might happen,” said employee Tim Brown, senior at East Peoria Community High School. “But it was short notice.”
Both the East Peoria location and the Campustown Plaza restaurant in Peoria shut down, according to employees.
“We kind of knew business had been down because of the economy,” said Brown, who was a part-time employee.
The next day at school, Brown spread the word about the restaurant’s last day.
And the response was huge.
While the restaurant regularly closes at 7 p.m., Brown received special permission Jan. 27 to continue serving to about 20 students who were sad to see the restaurant go.
They chowed down on Wonderdogs until about 10 p.m., Brown said.
“All of us had our last hotdog together,” he said. “People usually cheer with a drink, but we decided to do it with a Wonderdog.”
The restaurant chain opened in 1938, and at its height, there were 90 locations from Chicago to St. Louis, said Thomas in a past interview.In the 1950s, the Tri-County-area Velvet Freezes added the Wonderdog to the menu.
Because of the huge response of the business closing, Brown decided to create a Facebook group, called “Velvet Freeze Not Forgotten,” dedicated to the restaurant. On Feb. 2, the group was just shy of 400 members.
“People are sad Velvet Freeze is closing,” said Brown, whose motto is “It’s not a dog unless it’s a Wonderdog.”
Throughout the Facebook page, many people have written about memories or expressed their remorse.
Brown said he was surprised by the group’s following.
“The Wonderdog will not be forgotten,” wrote one restaurant fan.
Thomas could not be reached for comment.
East Peoria, Ill. —
