American company that operates a chain of fast food restaurants specializing in hot dogs. Handwerker undercut Feltman’s by charging five cents for a hot dog when his former employer was charging 10 cents. At a time when food regulation was in its infancy pretzel hot dog buns the pedigree of the hot dog particularly suspect, Handwerker ensured that men wearing surgeon’s smocks were seen eating at his stand to reassure potential customers.
The expansion of the chain was overseen by Nathan Handwerker’s son, Murray Handwerker. All locations were sold by the Handwerker family to a group of private investors in 1987, at which point Nathan’s was franchised and a great number of establishments were opened around New York City and beyond. The company also owns the exclusive co-branding rights to the Arthur Treacher’s Fish and Chips chain. On March 28, 2017, it was announced that Nathan’s Famous had reached a sponsorship deal with Major League Baseball, allowing the company to market itself as the official hot dog brand of the league.
As of 2018, the original Nathan’s hot dog stand still exists at its original 1916 site. The Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest has been held annually at the original location on Coney Island since the early 1970s on the 4th of July. Contestants try to consume as many hot dogs as possible in 10 minutes. How Nathan’s Famous turned one hot dog stand on Coney Island into a household name”. See chart at bottom of page. Contact Us” Archived October 24, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
