1915 Ford T - with Parry Body - Portillo's in Fishers, Indiana

 

Craig Presler said:

One of the continual problems I face nearly every day is where to eat. Last night I stopped at the newest restaurant in the area.

 

Portillo's is a chain from Chicago that recently opened a new store in Fishers, Indiana. They specialize in hot dogs, beef and burgers, so I didn't expect much. When I stepped inside, the collection of stuff above the ketchup was more interesting than everything else. I didn't look up until I read the little sign explaining the Parry Company. The manager said they have over 50 locations and some have trucks hanging over the dining room, but not all. I can't tell if the brochures are real or really good copies.

 

Web master’s Comment:

Craig did further research and discovered that the truck is one and the same as Gary Kmiecik owned in the vehicle description above on this website. I contacted Gary and he told me the following:

 

I don’t know the guy I sold it to. He came and paid cash, scribbled his name which I can’t read on a receipt and left. That is an original sales brochure I gave it to him along with all the other Elson things you see in the photos.

 

Web master’s Comment:

I got Craig and Gary together and the following is Craig’s response to Gary.

 

Hello Gary,

Your truck is hanging from the ceiling of Portillo's, a '20's Chicago themed restaurant in Fishers, Indiana, two miles north of Indianapolis. https://www.portillos.com/locations/fishers/

 

The closest intersection is 116th and I-69.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Portillo's+Hot+Dogs/@39.956298,-86.0067916,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x8814b47cff659f73:0x52e07c5e96f4cd94!8m2!3d39.956298!4d-86.0046029

 

This restaurant opened two months ago. When I visited on May 4, 2018, I was surprised to see a vintage M-P brochure and photos of a truck-mounted above the condiment bar immediately on the right. The ceiling is rather dark, so it took me a while to notice the truck was overhead. The truck is the best thing in the restaurant. I haven't been very impressed by the food, but they were very busy today at noon.

 

The customer service rep at Portillo's headquarters told me they use the same design firm to provide all of the interior stuff for all of their locations, including trucks to hang from the ceiling!