ZEHNDER'S OF FRANKENMUTH:
A Story of Hard Work
and Heart
The Zehnder's story began with the Exchange
Hotel, built in 1856, which served the town's
first restaurant meals. In the midst of the Great
Depression, the Zehnder family saw an opportunity
to bring people together with a hearty, family-style
meal. That simple idea of serving an all-you-can-eat
chicken dinner became a sensation. Through
decades of dedication, Zehnder's has grown into
one of America's largest family-owned restaurants
Did You Know?: The neon sign in front of
Zehnder's is believed to be one of the longest
continually used neon signs in existence.
BAVARIAN INN RESTAURANT:
From Hotel
to Icon
The history of the Bavarian Inn began in
1888 when the Union House (a boarding
house) was built. It was later renamed
Fischer's Hotel before being purchased by
the Zehnder family in 1950. With the goal of
bringing an authentic taste of their German
heritage to Frankenmuth, they remodeled
the hotel with a Bavarian theme and
renamed it the Bavarian Inn in 1959.
Did You Know?: The grand opening of
Bavarian Inn Restaurant was actually the first
Bavarian Festival.
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