Thursday, May 29, 1997
For Hamburgers, Stanley’s Is A Cut Above The Rest In Blackstone Valley
The Times Newspaper
CENTRAL FALLS – If you don’t already know about Stanley’s Famous Hamburgers, you must be one of those tourists Bob Billington talks about luring to the Blackstone Valley.
And if that is the case, you could never call your visit to this area complete without a visit to the renowned Dexter Street burger emporium.
A warning though: whether you live near or far away, no matter what it takes to get back, you will after a certain period of time return to Central Falls and Stanley’s because -- well, because you just gotta have more of those burgers.That’s why Stanley’s has been a fixture in these parts for 65 years.
In a true Stanley’s hamburger, the meat is grilled with the onions, so the flavors are welded together. How popular is this local delicacy?
Owner Greg Raheb estimates the restaurant goes through 500 pounds of onions a week. On a busy week, a ton (yes, literally 2,000 pounds) of french fries go over Stanley’s counter.
“That’s the kind of volume we’ve done,” Raheb says proudly.
Generally, he said, the restaurant’s busy period has been in the fall, from about Labor Day to just before Christmas. But last year that distinction was erased. “There was no lull last summer, we didn’t slow down after Christmas because it was a mild winter.”
Raheb who bought Stanley’s from the original owners 10 years ago, says the restaurant is diversifying its menu.
A new favorite, he said, is “Quebec-style fries,” French fries covered with mozzarella cheese and brown gravy. And youngsters go for cheddar fries, smothered in cheddar cheese and bacon.
Another big hit that started last summer is chowder and clam cakes. Featuring both red and white chowder, it is available now on Fridays and Saturdays, but in the summer it will be a daily menu item. “People who don’t get out to Narragansett and Galilee,” Raheb said, “can enjoy a taste of summer right here in Central Falls.
The white chowder sells out every week, Raheb reports, and customers are encouraging him to enter the statewide chowder contest held every year in Newport.
For those with a taste for the bold, Stanley’s cooks up it’s own chili.
Things are going so well for Stanley’s, Raheb says, that he’s thinking of expanding. He said several people have approached him about franchising the Stanleyburger, and he is also considering opening a second restaurant.
“We get people asking to buy in,” Raheb said, “the product is here.”
