In 1982 Knoxville, Tennessee hosted a World's Fair emphasizing Energy. In keeping with the energy theme of the Fair, Petro's Chili & Chips® was originally named "Petroleum Belly", then shortened to "Petro Belly", then abbreviated to "Petro®." A delicious blend of

tex-mex flavors, Petro's is the only southwestern fast-food concept of its kind. Originally served in a Frito bag with chili and toppings, the Petro was an instant hit with fairgoers. Initially the labels "Regular," "Premium," and "Super Premium" were used to describe the sizes of the Petro’s®, also in keeping with the energy theme. At the 1984 World's Exhibition in New Orleans, Petro's enjoyed an encore performance. Meanwhile, in Knoxville, loyal fans were pining away for the taste they had come to love during the Fair. Behind the development of Petro's Chili & Chips are brothers, Dale and Keith Widmer, who returned to Knoxville and opened their first permanent Petro’s location in the food court of West Town Mall. There they proudly continued the energy-based tradition with the menu including the Regular, Premium, Super Premium and Unleaded Petro’s along with and Petro Additives, but opted to serve their Petro in a "barrel" instead of the nostalgic bag. From the beginning, Petro's has been received with rave reviews by customers; the uniqueness, made-to-order fresh taste and presentation being the key ingredients to their success. The fresh taste, appearance and professionalism of the operation have been a refreshing alternative in the crowded quick-service market. A focus on customer service has been instrumental to their continued success. During the mid-80s, Petro's found its niche in mall food courts; expanding into Knoxville, Nashville, Chattanooga and Johnson City, Tennessee. In 1992 Petro’s began to offer franchises. "We were slow and conservative about expanding via franchising," acknowledges Petro's president, Dale Widmer. "We wanted to get the systems and controls in place before we went to franchising." In 2001 Petro’s opened up in the basketball arena at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and has since expanded into additional locations at the University’s Neyland Football Stadium Today, Petro's is getting ready to expand its unique concept with a new, exciting franchise expansion program and will continue to look to expand its concept into new venues: strip centers, free-standing restaurants with drive-thrus, university campuses, airports, mall locations and theme parks. "It's important that we partner with quality operators that run quality stores in the right locations," says Dale Widmer, “although Petro's has been slow and cautious in growth to this point, we are now ready to roll out our concept in a controlled, but more aggressive manner.”

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