View source for Webers

{{Seealso|Weber (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox restaurant
| name              = Webers
| image             = Webers hamburger (cropped).jpg
| image_caption     = Webers on Highway 11
| established       = {{Start date and age|1963|07|11}}
| current-owner     = Tom Rennie
| street-address    = 8844 11 Hwy S
| city              = 15 Kilometres north of [[Orillia]], [[Ontario]]
| postcode          = L3V 6H3
| country           = [[Canada]]
| coordinates       = {{coord|44.6940|N|79.39884|W|display=inline,title}}
| website           = {{URL|http://www.webers.com/}}
}}

'''Webers''' (also known as '''Webers Hamburgers''') is a [[hamburger]] restaurant on [[Ontario Highway 11]], located 15 kilometres north of [[Orillia]], [[Ontario]] that opened in July 1963. Webers grills their burgers over charcoal, with a grill man said to be able to flip up to 800 patties an hour. Long line ups are a common sight at the restaurant, which made the restaurant build a [[footbridge]] over the highway to provide access for guests from the southbound side. The restaurant's hamburger patties are also sold at [[Loblaws]] outlets.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.readersdigest.ca/food/bbq/canadas-8-greatest-burger-restaurants?id=2|title=CANADA'S 8 GREATEST BURGER RESTAURANTS|last=Sue Campbell & Jen McMorran|work=[[Reader's Digest]]|accessdate=19 October 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/travel/activities-and-interests/on-muskokas-back-roads-i-felt-17-again/article4591379/|title=On Muskoka's back roads I felt 17 again|last=Kirkby|first=Bruce|date=5 October 2012|work=[[The Globe and Mail]]|accessdate=19 October 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/living/article/1236157--the-dish-on-cottage-country-s-famous-foodie-treats-burgers-to-butter-tarts|title=The dish on cottage country's famous foodie treats: burgers to butter tarts|last=Ogilvie|first=Megan|date=3 August 2012|work=[[Toronto Star]]|accessdate=19 October 2012}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref name="Taylor" />

As of 2009, Webers is reported to sell approximately 8,000 hamburgers on a typically busy Friday. The restaurant is open weekends from Thanksgiving until Christmas, but closed from January to March break.<ref name="Taylor">{{cite news|url=http://www.orilliapacket.com/2009/07/16/webers-not-hurting|title=Webers not hurting|last=Taylor|first=Nathan|date=16 July 2009|work=Orillia Packet and Times|accessdate=20 October 2012}}</ref>

==History==
Webers was opened on July 11, 1963, by Paul Weber Sr., to cater to cottage goers. By the 1970s, it became so popular that patrons on the opposite side of the highway would often risk injury running across the street to the restaurant. In 1981, the province built a traffic barrier along the [[Central reservation|median]] of the highway in an effort to stop the [[jaywalking]]. Even so, travellers heading toward [[Toronto]] climbed over the waist-high wall to get their food. The following year, the province took further precaution by erecting a fence on top of the barrier. In 1983, Paul Weber Jr., the founder's son, bought a [[footbridge]] from a Toronto lawyer that was being used as part of the [[CN Tower|CN Tower's]] [[SkyWalk]] over [[Front Street (Toronto)|Front Street]] to provide safe access to southbound travelers. This bridge has the distinction of being the first and only privately owned bridge spanning a public highway in Ontario. In 1987, Webers installed three [[Canadian National Railway|CN]] train cars, [[Retrofitting|retrofitted]] to house their own meat processing facility. They have since added five train cars, one of which is used as an eatery. The founder's sons eventually took over the business before their father's death in 1994. Webers opened up additional restaurants in Barrie in the late 1980s; one in Orillia, off the highway, in 1995; and two outlets in [[Toronto Pearson International Airport]] in the late 1990s. These restaurants have since closed, leaving only the original location on Highway 11. In 2005, Webers began selling frozen hamburgers through [[Loblaws]].<ref name="Taylor" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://www.thebarrieexaminer.com/2013/07/10/iconic-restaurant-celebrating-50th-anniversary-this-week|title=Webers is golden {{!}} Barrie Examiner|date=2013-08-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130820185210/http://www.thebarrieexaminer.com/2013/07/10/iconic-restaurant-celebrating-50th-anniversary-this-week|access-date=2018-08-08|archive-date=2013-08-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://dobbernationloves.com/2011/08/10/review-webers-hamburgers-orillia/|title=Review: Webers Hamburgers, Orillia|last=Dobson|first=Andrew|date=10 August 2011|website=Dobbernation Loves|accessdate=August 13, 2012}}</ref><ref name="Reinhart">{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/senior-weber-would-say-well-done/article742425/|title=Senior Weber would say 'well done'|date=12 March 2012|last=Reinhart|first=Anthony|work=The Globe and Mail|accessdate=August 14, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://magazine.lakeheadu.ca/page.php?p=97&i=11|title=Target $20 Million|last=Pigeau|first=Lee|work=Lakehead University Magazine|date=Winter 2008|accessdate=14 August 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Famed Ontario cottage-country hamburger joint Webers under new ownership|date=10 March 2004|work=Canada Press Newswire|id = {{ProQuest|346027436}}}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://tvo.org/article/current-affairs/how-a-roadside-burger-joint-became-an-ontario-institution|title=How a roadside burger joint became an Ontario institution|date=2018-08-03|work=TVO|access-date=2018-08-28|language=en}}</ref>

Paul Weber Jr. sold the company in 2004 to [[Guelph]] businessman Tom Rennie, to spend more time with his family. This gave Rennie rights to the Webers name, and control of the Highway 11 flagship location as well as the outlets at Pearson. John Weber, the founder's other son, retained control of the locations in Orillia and Barrie. Since the additional restaurants closed their doors, Rennie became the sole owner of Webers.<ref name="Reinhart" />

On July 19, 2018, [[Canadian Prime Minister]] [[Justin Trudeau]] visited Webers after visiting the [[Tim Horton Memorial Camp]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=Dunning|first=Jenni|date=2018-07-20|title=Prime Minister Justin Trudeau drops into Webers on trip through region|language=en|work=[[Orillia Matters]]|url=https://www.orilliamatters.com/local-news/prime-minister-justin-trudeau-drops-into-webers-on-trip-through-region-991127|access-date=2018-08-08}}</ref>

During the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Canada|COVID-19 pandemic]], Webers remained open with [[Social distancing measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic|social distancing measures]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|last=Nicole Davis|first=Erin|date=2020-06-26|title=Yes, Cottagers: Webers is Open and Now Accepts Debit|work=Storeys|url=https://storeys.com/muskoka-webers-burgers-open-june/|access-date=2021-08-21}}</ref> Webers also started accepting [[Debit card|debit cards]] for the first time in its history, having previously been a cash-only establishment.<ref name=":1" />

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commonscat}}
*{{Official website|http://www.webers.com/}}

[[Category:Restaurants established in 1963]]
[[Category:Roadside attractions in Canada]]
[[Category:Orillia]]
[[Category:Fast-food hamburger restaurants]]
[[Category:Restaurants in Ontario]]
[[Category:1963 establishments in Ontario]]