Big Orange

Big Orange may refer to:

Gibeau Orange Julep

The Gibeau Orange Julep restaurant (also known colloquially as OJ or The Big Orange) is a roadside attraction and fast food restaurant in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The building is in the shape of an orange, three storeys high, with a diameter of forty feet.

History

The restaurant was started by Hermas Gibeau in 1932 to serve his trademark orange drink, Gibeau Orange Julep, similar but not identical to that of Orange Julius. In 1945, Gibeau built an orange concrete sphere two storeys high to house his restaurant. It is believed Gibeau intended to live in there with his wife and children.

The restaurant and its orange sphere were rebuilt larger and further back from the roadway when it was widened as the Décarie Expressway in 1966. Its shell consists of plastic segments that were ordered from a local pool manufacturer, and the whole building is illuminated from the outside in the evenings.

For a time, the Julep was noted for rollerskating waitresses, but customers today order food in the more conventional fashion of a fast food restaurant. Food can then be taken away or eaten at one of a number of provided picnic tables. The restaurant operates 24 hours a day during summer and reduced hours in winter.

Big Orange (South Australia)

The Big Orange is one of a number of Big Things to be found in Australia, and is located near the Riverland town of Berri in South Australia. Standing at 15 metres in height, with a diameter of 12 metres, it is the biggest of the "big fruit" in Australia, and incorporates a cafe, souvenir shop, function room, lookout and a 360 degree mural within the structure. Opened in 1980, the landmark has at times struggled to find commercial success, changing hands in 2000, 2006 and again in 2008. Nevertheless, it has been described as the "most defining icon of the region".

History

The Big Orange was conceived by Bronte Coombe, Ven Chubb and David Marshall. The three invested $145,000 into the venture in the mid-1970s, and the Big Orange opened on 14 January 1980. At the time it was claimed to be the "largest sphere in the southern hemisphere", and Bronte Combe is quoted as stating that it was the only big thing at the time that had a business conducted from within it.