The story
Tony Packo was born in 1908 to Hungarian immigrant parents and was a native of Toledo's East Side. He learned the restaurant trade while working for at the Consaul Tavern, owned by his older brother John.
In 1932, during the Great Depression, Tony and his wife Rose used a $100 loan to open a small sandwich and ice cream shop. Three years later, the Packo family purchased the wedge-shaped (flatiron-style) building that held the former Consaul Tavern at the corner of Front and Consaul Streets, next to the Maumee River. This building became home to what is today the Original Tony Packo's Restaurant.
In 1935, Tony Packo trademarked his signature dish: the "Hungarian Hot Dog". The sandwich features a Hungarian sausage called kolbász, similar to Polish kielbasa, served sliced in half on rye bread with spicy chili sauce.
When Tony became seriously ill in 1962, his daughter Nancy Packo Horvath took over operations. Tony Packo died the following year at the age of 55. His son Tony Packo Jr. joined the company in 1968 at the age of 20, and the siblings led growth in the late 1960s.
Actor Burt Reynolds visited Toledo in 1972, while starring in a local production of The Rainmaker, he stopped at Packo's on the suggestion of Tony's daughter, Nancy. Reynolds became the first celebrity to sign a hot dog bun at the restaurant, inadvertently beginning a tradition that has continued for over five decades. The collection, known as the "Bun Wall of Fame", has grown to include signatures from presidents, actors, musicians, and astronauts. Today, the autographs are placed on foam airbrushed replicas of the original buns and displayed on the walls of Packo's restaurants.
The company entered the packaged food business in 1980, when Merco Foods agreed to distribute a line of pickles under the Packo's family brand.
Sale
In October 2011, Robert G. Bennett purchased Tony Packo's, Inc. for $5.5 million in a court-ordered sale. Bennett died in May 2013.
In October 2019, the chain opened two concept stores inside Kroger grocery locations in Perrysburg, Ohio and Holland, Ohio.
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Tony Packo's celebrated its 90th anniversary in 2022, marking nine decades of operation.
In 2026, Tony Packo's was named a featured stop on the Lake Erie to Ohio River Trail, part of America 250-Ohio's "Trails & Tales" program, a scenic driving route celebrating Ohio's waterways and connecting more than 150 historic sites across the state.
From Wikipedia’s article on Tony Packo's Cafe, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3