May. 18, 2023 By Ethan Marshall
Bayside resident Roger Bow was honored by White Castle as an inductee to the restaurant chain’s Food Cravers Hall of Fame. Bow, one of 11 inductees of the class of 2022, was selected after submitting an essay about the important role that White Castle has played in his life.
Photo by Roger Bow/White Castle
Bow and the other honorees each received a free trip to White Castle’s home office in Columbus, Ohio, where they were also provided with a free tour of the facility. They were given complimentary accommodations and meals during their stay. In addition to receiving a commemorative plaque recognizing their achievement, each inductee will have their stories shown on the restaurant’s slider boxes later this year.
“It’s definitely a milestone in my life that I’ll never forget,” Bow said. “White Castle has meant so much to me. It’s been in my life pretty much since I was a kid. [My wife and I] felt like royalty [at the ceremony].”
Photo by Roger Bow/White Castle
According to Bow, White Castle was the first taste of classic American food that he experienced, as his mother and grandmother would frequently prepare customary Asian dishes. He grew up living about five blocks away from one of the restaurants in Jackson Heights. His father would often surprise him and his sisters with White Castle when he came home from operating his Chinese food restaurant.
After moving to Flushing, he would frequent the location at 213-17 Northern Blvd. in Bayside. When he turned 15 and got his working papers, Bow’s first job ended up being at that location during the summer of 1977.
“I really liked working there because I got to see how busy that White Castle was,” Bow said. “And I got to see the crave from the other perspective. The crave is real!”
While attending college at Fordham University, Bow and his friends would frequent the White Castle located across the street from the campus. Bow said that many people he went to the restaurant with came from different states and areas without a White Castle. He ended up introducing them to the restaurant, whether they were from Pennsylvania, Connecticut or New Jersey. He enjoyed seeing their reactions to trying the food.
Just as his father passed along a love of White Castle to him, so too has Bow to his own kids. As his children grew up, he’d often take them there after scout meetings and ballgames and for occasional Friday night treats.
Bow said there are a few items on the menu that he tends to get on a regular basis. Among his go-to items are two jalapeno cheeseburgers, two regular sliders, onion rings, chicken rings, two fish sandwiches, and/or shrimp nibblers. When it comes to getting dessert, his go-to food there is cheesecake on a stick.
“Cravers Hall of Fame day is a magical day for us here at White Castle,” White Castle Vice President Jamie Richardson said. “We love to see the group grow, and every year our 10,000 team members are nourished and humbled by the amazing stories our inductees share. We hear
something new every time and it means so much to know how people connect with our family business through some of the most memorable moments in their lives.”
Founded in 1921, White Castle is the first fast-food hamburger chain in the United States. The family-owned business owns and operates more than 350 locations across the country, in addition to a retail division providing its food at supermarkets.