Claudia Sanders Dinner House

Claudia Sanders Dinner House is a restaurant in Shelbyville, Kentucky, United States, opened by KFC founder Colonel Sanders and his wife, Claudia, in 1968.[1][2] Colonel Sanders opened the restaurant after he had grown unhappy with recipe changes at KFC after selling the company. The restaurant was subject to a lawsuit by the owners of KFC as it was promoted by Sanders, who was also the face of KFC.

Claudia Sanders Dinner House
Map
Restaurant information
Established1968
Previous owner(s)Colonel Sanders, Claudia Sanders
CityShelbyville, Kentucky
Websiteclaudiasandersshelbyville.com

History

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The Dinner House is next to the house which the Sanders family lived in between 1959 and 1984, and became the first headquarters of Kentucky Fried Chicken.[1][3]

In 1964, Sanders sold Kentucky Fried Chicken,[2] and he later grew unhappy with the recipes that the franchise was using.[4] In 1968, Colonel Sanders and his wife, Claudia, started the restaurant, originally named "Claudia Sanders, The Colonel's Lady Dinner House".[1][4][3][5] After Kentucky Fried Chicken was bought by Heublein in 1971, Heublein was unhappy that Sanders was using his image for the competing restaurant (Sanders was a large face of Kentucky Fried Chicken). Heublein sued Sanders for this, and Sanders countersued the company for $122 million in 1974, claiming that Heublein was unlawfully using the Sanders face for products that he did not develop. Heublein settled out of court with a $1 million payment to Sanders,[4][6] and the restaurant changed its name to Claudia Sanders Dinner House.[4] After Colonel Sanders died in 1980, Claudia Sanders sold the restaurant.[1]

In 1999, the restaurant burned down in four hours. It was later rebuilt.[2] The restaurant was listed for sale in 2022 with an initial asking price of $9 million, which was later reduced to $4.9 million the following year.[1]

Operations

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Claudia Sanders Dinner House serves over 100,000 customers per year.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Schipper, Joel (March 1, 2023). "Sale price for Shelbyville's iconic Claudia Sanders Dinner House cut to $4.9 million". WDRB. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Team, WLKY Digital (May 30, 2023), Remember the massive fire at the Claudia Sanders Dinner House?, archived from the original on December 11, 2023, retrieved December 11, 2023
  3. ^ a b Adams, Kirby. "A 'finger lickin' good' piece of Kentucky history is for sale. Inside the Sanders home". The Courier-Journal. Archived from the original on December 30, 2023. Retrieved December 23, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d Havens-Bowen, Austin (November 14, 2023). "Colonel Sanders Once Competed Against KFC And Got Sued". Tasting Table. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  5. ^ "American Food Restaurant Shelbyville". Claudia Sanders Dinner House. Archived from the original on December 23, 2023. Retrieved December 23, 2023.
  6. ^ "Cot Sanders' Chicken War Ends". The New York Times. September 12, 1975. p. 46.

38°12′58″N 85°16′43″W / 38.2160°N 85.2786°W / 38.2160; -85.2786 (Claudia Sanders Dinner House)