White Castle reopened Wednesday in Whiting, in the lot previously home to the oldest location of the fast food chain in the Chicagoland region. The previous 88-year-old building was closed and demolished in March to be replaced with a modern rendition.
The new location, 1879 Indianapolis Blvd., is double the size at 2,997 square feet with seating for up to 50. It pays homage to the old building with a local artist Adan Ramirez’s mural in the dining room and a plaque outside in the new outdoor park and seating area.
New technology will also be on display with an automated robot in the frying station and AI-powered menu boards for taking drive-thru orders. No positions have been eliminated, the company said in a news release; instead, employees will have more time to spend with customers.
Staff members, leadership and Whiting Mayor Steven Spebar celebrated the reopening Wednesday morning with a ribbon cutting.
The original White Castle was built in 1935 — 14 years after the Columbus, Ohio-based restaurant was created in 1921 — and was remodeled and expanded in 1956. It featured the original White Castle logo and was a white porcelain-clad castle of a restaurant, according to our partners at Times of Northwest Indiana.
Pieces of the old building are now housed at the Whiting-Robertsdale Historical Society Museum, the Times reported.