At nearly 100, Swensons has nailed the longevity game. Maybe it’s the consistency of its signature Galley Boy burgers or the novelty of having food delivered right to your car window after you’ve parked. But in the chain dining category of food service, novelty and consistency are a dime a dozen. 

Instead, CEO Dan Mesches chalks it up to the chain’s relationship with the community, with a side of innovation. 

“We’ve been so fortunate how we’ve been supported over the years, and we need to make sure we’re always giving it back,” he said. 

One way they’ve done that recently is to feature local restaurants and chefs in their menu items. Since the chain won Signal Akron’s best burger category (as well as best chain and best food truck) last year, Swensons has continued to add new items to the menu — some permanent, but most through short-term offerings in collaboration with local chefs.

A close-up of the Pimento Burger from Swensons and Cordelia. A bite is taken out of the burger, revealing the pimento cheese, the two beef patties and the Kool-Aid pickles.
The new Pimento Burger at Swensons was a collab between the beloved local chain and Vinnie Cimino, head chef at Cordelia. It featureed a layer of pimento cheese, two beef patties, Swensons’ signature white sauce and bright green Kool-Aid pickles. Credit: (Christiana Cacciato / Signal Akron)
Cordelia chef Vinnie Cimino runs out a customer order on June 1 at Swensons.
Cordelia chef Vinnie Cimino runs out a customer order on June 1, 2025, at the Swensons original location in Akron on South Hawkins Avenue. During the month of June, all Swensons locations carried two of his collaborative menu items. (Christiana Cacciato / Signal Akron)

Take, for instance, the Big Spicy Boy burger, Loaded Fries and Saucy Nugs featuring a hot sauce from Black Cap Hot Sauce in Columbus. 

Last summer, Akron’s Vinnie Cimino, chef of Cordelia and Rosy in Cleveland and a James Beard finalist, partnered with Swensons to create his own version of the beloved burger chain’s popular Galley Boy: a double cheeseburger with pimento cheese, onions, Swensons’ special white sauce and fluorescent green Kool-Aid pickles. 

This year, they also partnered with Larder deli in Cleveland to feature their pastry chef’s Oatmeal Cream Pie Shake to follow up last year’s pastrami sandwich collab from the same establishment. 

Most recently, the feature was Guardian Cold Brew, who Swensons worked with to make a Cold Brew Shake and a Cold Brew Whip. 

They call these their Ohio-Born Collabs. 

Swensons curb server Adam Reese delivers food to a customer at the chain's original location on Hawkins Avenue in Akron on Monday, Oct. 20.
Swensons curb server Adam Reese delivers food to a customer at the chain’s original location on Hawkins Avenue in Akron on Monday, Oct. 20, 2025. (Ryan Loew / Signal Akron)

While they haven’t opened any new locations in the past year – the chain is still at 25, including locations at Rocket Mortgage Arena and ScottsMiracle-Gro Field for the Columbus Crew – they have altered their menu. They’re about to swap their mozzarella sticks and hotdogs for a new take: fried pepper jack cheese bites and Nathan’s all-beef hotdogs. Both of those start in September. 

“We did fried mozzarella before but didn’t love the quality. We think this will be a little more interesting,” Mesches said. “And listen, we didn’t think our hot dog was great. It was good.”

Plus the bacon burgers will be getting more bacon and the grilled cheese will be getting more cheese – little upgrades Mesches points to that make the company 1 percent better each day. 

And there’s also a new feature on their app, which now alerts staff when you’ve parked and are ready to pick up your online order, so they can run it out to you. 

“We’re always trying to make those things better, make sure there’s less friction,” Mesches said. 

Customers flock to the Swenson's Food Truck, which was selected as the best food truck in Signal Akron's 2025 Best of the City competition.
Customers flock to the Swenson’s Food Truck, which was selected as the best food truck in Signal Akron’s 2025 Best of the City competition. (Photo courtesy of Swensons)

Aside from menu items, Mesches said the chain was thrilled to celebrate Cleveland’s announcement of the new WNBA team, the Sirens, this summer and to recognize local athletes in the Winter Olympics. It’s in keeping with their continued partnerships with the Lebron James Family Foundation, providing meals for outings. And how The Black Keys threw Swensons burgers out to the crowd during their Blossom performance last summer. 

Last summer, Swensons handed out 7,000 meals to kids of families who lost their SNAP benefits. That’s something Mesches says they don’t advertise too much — “it’s just what we should do,” he said. But it demonstrates the establishment’s commitment to patrons in Akron and beyond.

“All of these are really us integrating with the community,” Mesches says. “The community is incredibly important to us.”

1st place:

Swensons
North Akron, 658 E. Cuyahoga Falls Ave., 330-928-8515

West Akron, 40 S. Hawkins Ave., 330-864-8416

Montrose, 40 Brookmont Road, 330-665-1858

11 a.m. to 1 a.m., Monday through Thursday and Sunday

11 a.m. to 1:30 a.m., Friday and Saturday

2nd place (tie): 

Aladdin’s Eatery

782 W. Market St., Highland Square

330-535-0110

11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday-Thursday

11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday

11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Sunday 

aladdins.com

Longhorn Steakhouse

443 Howe Ave., Cuyahoga Falls

330-922-3391

45 Montrose West Ave., Copley

330-670-9059

11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday-Thursday

11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday and Saturday

Kristine Gill is a freelance writer based in Willoughby with experience covering real estate, crime, higher education and health. She majored in newspaper journalism and creative writing at Kent State and runs a fiction workshop for local writers. She spent a decade living in Florida, working first as a reporter for the Naples Daily News. She later worked as a media relations specialist for the Collier County Sheriff's Office.