Sullivan’s Charbroil

Good food & friendly service. The new owners are doing a nice job at keeping it the same way we all love. :) THE BEST curly fries around!

Sullivan’s is a classic that any true Dunkirk or Fredonia native would recognize. I remember coming to this restaurant after summer soccer practices and ordering a burger, curly fries (with malt vinegar), and ice cream with my grandparents. It’s great food for relatively good prices that beats out the uninspired fast food chains down the road! The service is typically personable and friendly.
However, one does not go to Sullivan’s for burgers n dogs – they go for their curly fries and shakes. If you are a fry person, this is the place for you!

Impressive fish-​fry any day all day … and built to satisfy.
I heard their fish-​fry was good, and now I know. Their coleslaw is only available on Fridays so I was offered a side salad because it was an off day. Not being an uncooked vegies enthusiast, I tried their onion rings instead. The platter was served up with choice of french fries (curley or streight), 2 (two) breaded fish fillets large enough to cover a plate when placed side-​by-​side, and texas toast crisp n warm right off the grill. There were fresh lemon wedges, but I opted for the malt vinegar to season my fish. The whole platter (including the side of onion rings) was piping hot … like do not bite that right now sort of hot … so I kept slurping on my milk shake and trying to nibble fries n rings. Temptation won, of course.
It took some effort, but I nearly cleaned my plate. The fish was kept warm by the breading, so was still nicely heated as I worked my way across the platter. Cut thin, the fillets cooked evenly. Some places serve fish with one end being thick and the tail end quite thin, but the even thickness here produced an evenly cooked and all-​the-​way juicy cut of lovely sweet fish. It was clearly cooked at just the right temp of frier, because it was not the slight bit oily and the meat was perfectly steamed inside the coating.
The onion rings! I have to mention, these are not tiny ground up and extruded types found at those global chain restaurants. The rings here are the whole battered onion ring type that a child might wear like a bangle bracelet. Sure, the side salad is probably good also, but I clearly made the right choice here. Next time I am here on a Friday, I will try the coleslaw.
I could easily have taken half this fish-​fry meal home for a second round, but I was enjoying it so much there was no stopping me. I went for a slow cruise up and down the Dunkirk pier with the remainder of my milk shake in hand, and that level of satisfaction is truely something to be savored.

When the Ed Sullivan show went off air, people wondered what happened to Ed. Well, now we know. He moved to sunny, exotic Fredonia, and devoted his life to making charbroiled hot dogs and hitting on SUNY Fredonia girls. Speaking of which, I knew a girl at SUNY Fredonia once. She knows who she is because I only dated one girl from that school (unlike most schools around the state/​country/​world). She was wonderful! One of my fave gfs ever. So, hi! (waves)
What to get: Hot Dogs.
What else: Ice Cream, Shakes.
I’m not crazy about the burgers here, but I am absolutely crazy about the hot dogs. I found them to be some of the juiciest, yummiest fast food dogs I’ve had. It was nicely smoked and a little charred and is probably my fave place in Fredonia for food, although honestly, there aren’t many options all the way out here.
I have yet to try their ice cream or shakes, but next time I come in, I’ll rectify that. Also I heard that they just switched owners. Best of luck to the new owners, and I hope that they can create the same kind of friendly atmosphere and more importantly the delicious dogs that Ed Sullivan was able to create after his show went off the proverbial air.

The reviews are true. Good quality, friendly, awesome food. 2 things though… they DO now take credit cards. Not debit cards, but if you can use it as a credit card you may.
Also, (I have lived in this town all of my 57 years on earth) and it is a staple in our town.
But, please notice when you go in there… all teenagers. Hard working, polite, well mannered, intelligent teenagers! I notice it every time! Kudo’s to the owner for his discernment!
I happened to look this up today, because I’m taking my daughter and 3 grandkids there tonight! And I’m never disappointed! This post is not for the locals because they know how good it is.
It’s if you are just passing by!

Everybody knows about Route 66 because of the song, but the rest of the old U.S. Route system seems to be pretty much forgotten these days. Sure, you can head Southwest from Buffalo faster on the I-​90 than you can on U.S. Route 5 or U.S. Route 20, but in my opinion, there are benefits to taking the side roads. One of the benefits to taking Route 20 is Sullivan’s.
We had noticed that the parking lot is never empty (which is a good sign), and had tried to eat there a few weeks ago, only to learn that they only take cash: not credit, not debit (and almost certainly not Bitcoin). This time, we had the necessary, and it was well worth the visit. My turkey burger was probably the best I have ever had anywhere, my sweetie’s haddock was as good as Troll’s on a good day, the salads were great, and the service was friendly without being intrusive. The curly fries were good, but everything else was so great that the fries suffered in comparison.
We noticed a lot of people coming in just for the ice cream, although we didn’t sample it on this visit.
I’ve said before that Dunkirk/​Fredonia has a lot of tourism potential, but most of the fast food joints along Bennett Road (NY Route 60) are kind of lacking when it comes to service. Sullivan’s is definitely worth going off the beaten track to find, and is my new favourite eatery en route between my place and my sweetie’s.

Ok — let’s set the record straight — this place is NOT fine dining — it is THE place for the best milkshakes and ice cream around though!
I’ve read talk about great burgers — they are good — great fries — they are good — great service — they are good — great prices — they are good. Everything about this place is good and it’s been good day after day — year after year and they’ve never drifted below or above being really good.
If every seat in the place is taken you’d have a hard time finding a parking place. Typically parking isn’t an issue though. If you run out of cash — stop somewhere else and get more, because no matter how hungry you are and no matter how good they are — they don’t accept any form of credit!
The place is normally pretty clean — though I’ve been there when tables have been a bit on the sticky side. There have also been times when there might have been one too many flies buzzing around. But overall — unless you’ve really hit a off day for the Sullivan — you will enjoy your trip here.
I do agree that it would be extremely nice if they’d incorporate an outdoor patio — but then again — they’ve have even a bigger issue with parking — so I really think they have to keep on doing what they’ve been doing for many years and that’s putting smiles on people’s faces and inches on their waistlines!
This place could get my five star rating if they accepted credit cards or lowered their prices. Another thought might be a drive-​through as sometimes I just want a good milkshake on my way to breakfast!

Sullivan’s is one of the top places I’m going to miss when I move away. The owners are super friendly and the food is great. It makes you feel like you went through a time warp, to a time when credit cards didn’t exist and people weren’t complaining about gas prices.
The food prices are good for what you get. Quality and quantity. The curly fries are excellent and a small order gets you a crispy, heaping pile. I’ve tried several things on the menu, from the garden burger to the italian sausage to the grilled chicken sandwich and more, and I have never been disappointed. They also offer a homemade hot sauce, which was made for the hot dogs I believe, but you can get it on anything and I highly recommend it.
If you’re in the mood for dessert, Sullivan’s also has ice cream and giant milkshakes. The ice cream comes in hard scoops or soft serve and they usually have a new flavor of soft serve every so often. Beware of the milkshakes, because a small actually comes in a pretty large cup and the medium and large are basically tubs. But they are soo good. You can mix flavors too! Go for the peanut butter banana.
Also, every single employee seems to be always doing something. Right after customers leave their tables, they are there thoroughly wiping them down (including the benches!) and sweeping the floors.
I hope this place stays in business forever. I will continue to visit it every time I come to Fredonia.
I do also think they should get an outdoor patio. That would be the perfect touch!

This is one of those restaurants that literally hasn’t changed since 1972. It’s like stepping in to a time warp.
I visit the area fairly frequently from the west coast, and typically eat here just about every single day of the trip. The been on weck is pretty good, and dirt cheap. The curly fries are tasty, and the ice cream and shakes are heavenly. Love this spot.

Best ice cream in Chautauqua County ! Great burgers-​the Sully Burger comes with lettuce and tomato-​ask them to toast the roll. They cut real potatoes for French Fries ! Yummo !

Went to this place on a tip while visiting some friends at SUNY Fredonia. They had never heard of the place, and it was obvious why. The prices in this joint are too steep for the bare-​bones basic food they offer. They even were charging extra to add tomato to a burger when we went. Who can respectably do that? The burgers were no better than a frozen backyard barbecue pack and they came with your typical shack fries. No one of the four I went with were satisfied, and these were college kids who are never picky about anything.

Whenever we run up to Walker’s Fruit Farm for wine making juice and supplies, we make sure to stop at Sullivan’s for lunch! They have so many great items you don’t often see, like grilled polish sausage and grilled Italian sausage. And, of course, being Western NY, beef on weck!
The fries are crisp and not greasy, the service is fast and friendly.
Order and pay at the counter, then find a seat and the staff will bring your order to your table.
Go here.

The absolute best burger and shake shack in Chautauqua County. Family owned and operated for many years; incredible curly fries and grill fare. Oh, and the «large» shakes are truly enormous.