With this thread in mind, I recently took a longer look at my local grocer’s British Isles shelf. It’s probably about 3x6 feet. They didn’t have Heinz blue label but they did have Batchelor’s from Ireland. Can anyone advise whether they’re anything like each other or should I continue to seek Heinz?
Batchelor’s look like they are comparable to Heinz. Give them a shot and let us know what you think.
We had Cincinnati chili for dinner tonight, I blame you… 
wrong, they’re popular in Midwest; just because you have Roscoes doesn’t c&w isn’t elsewhere
You are welcome.
Mr. Hero (at the time called Mr. Philly) once stretched mightily from somewhere west, I guess the mid-west, to the New York Tri-State Area (Third Avenue in Manhattan, even), along with a number of other locations around the area during the mid-1980s, only to slowly withdraw back West across the Hudson to Ohio. Great waffle fries, and pretty decent Steak-um and cheese on a hero a.k.a. Cheese Steak).
Sadly miss them these many decades, although my waistline probably doesn’t…
Yep, while looking different in the UK, I eat the Batchelors, and did when I lived in Cork, Ireland.
I don’t know if that is the same Mr Hero. To quote from their home page, “In 1965 Robert A. Coulson, the founder of Mr. Hero opened his first sandwich shop on Cleveland’s Westside”.
No, it was. For the last years they were in the NY area (I’m tempted to say early 1990s), they changed their name from Mr. Philly to Mr Hero, same color scheme and all. Food tasted the same.
Maybe it was a Checkers/Rally’s sort of deal, I dunno. While looking at the Mr. Hero site, the only remaining outlets are around Cleveland Ohio and environs, there are a few apparently locally owned and independant Mr. Philly restaurants scattered across the nation.
Oh well,
You’re right and I found a bit more information. A 1987 article in the Cleveland Plain Dealer interviewed Robert Coulson. He started the first Mr Hero in May, 1965 at 4143 Lorain Ave (I had been searching for the earliest one anyway!).
At that time there were 77 stores. 23 Mr Heroes owned by Coulson’s company and 54 franchised as Mr Hero or Mr Philly. He had just launched a program to expand to 1500 stores which seemed to have fallen flat in retrospect. He claimed they were adding 15 to 20 a month and hoped to have 600 to 700 stores in 16 states by the end of the year. The out of state stores were Mr Phillys.
Fast forward to 2000 for an interview with the company’s new owner, Ron Wolfe. “Restaurant Developers Corp., the company that owns the brands and grants franchises for Cafe Morocco stores (which sell coffee and pastry in convenience stores), Arabica Coffeehouses and Mr. Hero sub shops.” At this time Mr Hero had 250 stores and generated 80% of the company’s sales with plans to expand to 500. Hmm, seems we have heard this before. But the far-flung Mr Philly stores had all been closed.
Today Mr Hero has 130 stores. Lesson: don’t expand too much. Let’s keep a good thing in Ohio!