Oct. 16—When a Facebook post went up Oct. 9, the chatter ran faster than that of a busload of kids lined up to listen to a message from the Happy Chef statue. It was 60 years ago when the Frederick ...

Area readers believe the Happy Chef Restaurant statue should become part of Mankato's historic landmarks, according to a Free Press online question. Out of 326 total respondents, 262 — more than 80 ...

MANKATO, Minn. — The Happy Chef has spoken. Asked to join Mankato’s list of Heritage Preservation Landmarks, the 36-foot spoon-wielding cook that’s loomed over the city’s northern entrance for 50 ...

It wasn’t vintage Leroy Jolstad for most of the first six innings, but after Happy Chef rallied for four runs in the top of the seventh, the legendary 59-year-old pitcher took the mound for the final ...

MANKATO, Minn. - Like a spoon-toting Lady Liberty, for 50 years the Happy Chef has welcomed visitors to Mankato. For the last 20 - silently. But no more. Last Friday, the kitschy 38-foot statue got ...

MANKATO – After more than two decades of silence, the Happy Chef has a lot to say. He's got some thoughts on dining. "That's not a flying saucer!" the 36-foot-tall fiberglass foodie boomed this week ...

CZN Burak, whose real name is Burak Özdemir, is a social media sensation who rose to fame in 2018 and has since become one of Turkey's most popular and successful celebrity chefs. People first knew ...

From the first Happy Chef eatery in Mankato, there followed dozens more of the family-style restaurants, sprinkled around Minnesota and elsewhere in the Midwest as far south as Kansas. That first ...

WATERLOO, Iowa --- First, the chef disappeared. Now this? Happy Chef restaurants in Waterloo and Cedar Falls are slated to close today, ending a nearly 40-year run in the Cedar Valley. Chuck Melby has ...

CZN Burak, or Burak Özdemir, shot to fame as the "smiling chef," winning millions of fans with his massive Middle Eastern feasts and his signature grin to the camera. Today, he's a global sensation ...