As Chubbys flips its final Cambridge Street burger we talk cheesy chips, T-shirts and more - Dirty Stop Outs

As Chubbys flips its final Cambridge Street burger we talk cheesy chips, T-shirts and more

Chubbys takeaway on Cambridge Street

When Chubbys opened its doors for the first time in 1980 the nearby Limit club on West Street was only two years old. The eatery served its customers for the duration of the nightclub’s 13-year tenure - right up to its last night in 1991.
The Limit – which celebrates the 30th anniversary of its closure next year – is just one of a plethora of after-dark venues the legendary takeaway has seen off.
Josephine’s – which opened in 1976 and was only yards from the door of Chubbys – provided a steady stream of hungry customers from the day the eatery opened until the day the nightclub shut.
The Human League hadn’t even released ‘Dare’ when the eatery cooked its first burger and Def Leppard – fresh from early performances at the likes of the nearby Wapentake, would release their debut ‘On Through the Night’ album the same year as Chubbys first opened their doors.
The eatery has been a virtual given for generations of party animals for forty years – and this month marks the end of an era as the march of change calls time for the business at the present location.
They’re having to make way for the Heart of the City II regeneration project.
Will they return? Thousands of people hope they do.
Chubbys has been a bit of an enigma since the day it opened.
Unveiling a late-night takeaway couldn’t have been further from the career path of owner Mehran Behizad. Iranian-born – he first came to Sheffield in 1973 to study industrial design at the then polytechnic.
But he met his Sheffield-born wife and decided to stay in the UK to raise a family.
The Iranian Revolution of 1979 ruled out any return to his homeland at that time so he made the decision to set up Chubbys with various business partners. He later became the sole owner.
Chubbys has had its fair share of favourite recipes amongst punters. Some were deemed special due to their downright simplicity.
Their ‘sexy burger’ became an urban legend.
Why was it sexy? For the simple reason it came with nothing on! Genius!
And obviously there has been the Chubbys cheese sauce.
One regular remembered: “I only had to look at my shirt the morning after to know I’d visited Chubbys. If I had it would be covered in cheese sauce!”
Sheffield has had its fair share of late-night eateries down the decades but few match Chubbys for staying power and resilience. Their closure announcement just a few days ago was treated with dismay by many. They said: “After 40 years we are very sad to inform you that Chubbys will be forced to close from Monday, August 31 due to the proposed redevelopment of Cambridge Street.
“We hope to relocate as soon as possible - please keep a look-out on Facebook for updates.
“Thank you all for your custom, loyalty and support over the past 40 years. We look forward to seeing you in the future.”
In the meantime – if you want to keep the good name of Chubbys flying - they gave their blessing to our fab new T-shirts that celebrate their four decades on Cambridge Street.

 

 

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