Manufacturer: J. E. Heath Ltd., Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England
User: Chicken Delight
Distributor: Russell Food Equipment Ltd, Canada
Date range of maple leaf backstamp: 1960s-mid-1970s; specifically, plate: 1962; bread plate: 1963

{"arrow":"false","pagination":"true","speed":"1000","autoplay":"true","autoplay_speed":"2000","loop":"true","slide_to_show_3d":"2","slide_show_ipad_3d":"2","slide_show_tablet_3d":"1","slide_show_mobile_3d":"1","slide_to_scroll_3d":"1","auto_stop":"false","centermode_3d":"true","space_between_3d":"0","depth":20,"modifier":20,"img_rotate":0,"img_stretch":0}

{"animation_fancy":"zoom-in-out","transition_fancy":"fade","fancy_box_loop":"true"}

Notes: Per the company website, entrepreneur Al Tunick developed what was to be his Chicken Delight-style of cooking by using deep fryers he had purchased from a defunct restaurant. Till then, the site says, chicken had not been a candidate for fast food because of its relatively long cooking time by either pan frying, steaming, or oven roasting. "Tunic marketed his method through small take-out and delivery locations. As this was all happening near the end of the Korean War, many women were working outside the home and had no time to cook. The slogan 'Don't Cook Tonight … Call Chicken Delight' became a household phrase throughout North America.

"Chicken Delight quickly grew to more than 1,000 outlets throughout the United States and became the biggest fast-food company of its kind in North America.

"Then in 1958 a group of local businessmen in Winnipeg purchased the Chicken Delight trademarks and franchising rights for Canada and started the first store in Portage la Prairie.

"Winnipeg entrepreneur Otto Koch purchased his first Chicken Delight franchise in 1969. Seeing the potential of the chain in Canada, Koch built and acquired additional franchise locations and in 1976 bought Chicken Delight of Canada Ltd.

"By providing quality service and cleanliness, the Canadian operation prospered. This success led to Koch's acquisition of the U.S. and International arm – Chicken Delight International Inc. in 1979. For the first time the total Chicken Delight system was under one roof. Otto Koch passed away in December 2010 – but that wasn't the end for Chicken Delight."

As of 2024, there are at least a dozen Chicken Delights in Winnipeg and Headingley, Manitoba, Canada. Per the Wikipedia, as of 2019, there were six restaurants in the New York metropolitan area.

The dinner plate has the chain's full logo and slogan, with chicken wearing chef's toque and bib holding a drumstick on a plate, with CHICKEN DELIGHT … is so delightfully good. Smaller pieces featured the chicken by itself. Yellow glaze on white clay body. Erica was a trade name for J. E. Heath's hotel ware body.

Sources:
Chicken Delight website, Canada
Chicken Delight website, New York, USA
Newsday, Jan. 22, 1965
Wikipedia

Contributor:
Marge Barner: ID and photos