The Kelvinator Foodarama “before”:
The Kelvinator Foodarama “after”:
Inside “before:
Inside “after”
Close up of what’s for breakfast:
After seeing Greg and Tammy’s fabulous retro red farm house kitchen remodel, there was call to see more of the Kelvinator Foodarama refrigerator. I had been planning it — already had the “before” shot of the behemoth before Greg repainted it with auto body “safety red.” But then Greg sent more photos and Oh My Gosh, look at this refrigerator. I had no idea. It is gorgeous inside. I waaaaaant that Breakfast Bar. I ask Greg what is the model year and he writes:
Pam I think it’s a 1953 model. It was very complete when we got it, Breakfast bar, juice containers, 4 of 6 original ice trays, banana bin. The only major thing missing was the saran wrap holder. The refrigerator trays roll out, the metal freezer shelves actually have the cooling tubes attached; it will freeze ice cubes in 20 minutes.The original owner from Altoona, Pa, a lady named Belle, took great care of this classic. We consider ourselves caretakers of this fabulous Kelvinator Foodarama!
Am attaching more interior pics. Please include the one with our 14-year old, Shane. He would be thrilled!
Tks!
Well, tks, to you, Greg!
Wanna see –> a later model Foodarama? It’s pretty cool too.
Patrick C. and Helen S., what do you think?: Is the Foodarama more elusive – hence desirable — than a built-in Revco???
More Retro Renovation Foodarama trivia: The Foodarama gets a call out in the big New York Times story all about our blog! 
OH! I LOVE that fridge! Especially the breakfast bar! SOOO cool! Thanks for being the new caretakers of this awesome fridge Greg & Tammy! (and for sharing all the pics with us!
Holy cow! Seeing the “before” and “after” is just nuts! What a difference and what an amazing job you did with this fridge. You don’t often think about a fridge being beautiful, but this one is truly gorgeous.
Sigh!! Gotta love the dancing lady in the commercial – so perfectly 1950′s! The fridge, sorry… Foodarama is amazing, it’s a shame the modern ones are so well thought out. What a great piece of living history, thanks for sharing.
My heart stopped and my husband had to resuscitate me.
(Hi, Shane!)
This is gorgous! One day I hope to own a rad retro fridge like this one!
I was instantly taken with the fridge! I even re-posted the pic to my FB page.
But I have to wonder why Kelvinator stopped making the FoodaRama? Any busy home today would love one.
Shhhh you’re making my new fridge jealous.
All of the new shiny technology have nothing on this! Show me a fridge built today that has a chrome-clad ‘Breakfast bar’, built-in juice containers, a saran wrap holder, and miscellaneous compartments for butter and cheese. What an awesome fridge!
My husband is going to flip his lid when he sees this! My lid has already been flipped. Perhaps you could send someone over to clean up the head-flipping mess.
So inspiring! Great job!
I think you must be a genius to be able to restore that beautiful refrigerator. I am amazed. (and…you have a very handsome son!)
Interesting how short the refrigerator is. Belle from Altoona must have been a meticulous homemaker!
Thank you SO much for sharing this. I had posted the other day begging you to show the inside – wow wow wow!!!! You all could charge admission to look at that thing.
Good looking showman at the bottom, too.
Thats about the coolest fridge I’ve seen in a long time! Nice job on the resto!!!
Everyone has already said “wow” and “amazing”, but I just have to add another “WOW”. What an incredible find!
Oh, my. Oh, my, my, my.
WOW!!
The foodarama looks great! I love that shade of red, just a great job restoring it. I am so impressed that the juice containers are still with the fridge. It was obviously a treasured appliance and i’m so glad to know that it will continue to be. I’m so jealous though, i want a Foodarama!
That is just amazing! Especially the breakfast bar part and how it displays the eggs. We have just GOT to get the flash back into manufacturing. I swear, it would perk us up as a nation. Great restoration too. Absolutely perfect.
This refrigerator surely is one of the most cool items to be featured on retrorenovation.com. Applause to Greg and Tammy for having the vision to see what that fridge could become, and then making it happen.
Speaking of Foodarama — it appears that the very cute Shane is wearing a T-shirt with an outline of West Virginia on it (or that shape could be a bluegill, I can’t say for sure.) Its West Virginia-like appearance gives me the opportunity to ask if Greg and Tammy, or anyone else, remembers a chain of fast-food restaurants back in the 60s called BBF — Burger Boy Food-O-Rama. There were BBF restaurants in the Ohio/WVa/Ky area. As a very special treat, my parents would take us to the Portsmouth Ohio BBF for food that was very much like McDonald’s food.
Here is a link to a little story on BBF, with a photo of a very 60s looking restaurant:
http://columbusrestauranthistory.com/restaurant/BBF.htm
I just love words like Foodarama and Food-O-Rama.
The Food-A-Rama is one of the BEST vintage appliance to own EVER!
Unfortunately, they aren’t real plentiful, and can be pretty expensive unless you buy (and get lucky) from a nice original owner.
antiqueappliances.com had one on their site and I think it was $9,000 restored price – it’s now listed as sold.
http://www.antiqueappliances.com/products/kelvinator/1953_kelvinator_food_o_rama.htm
I almost bought one from a couple in Oregon and they wanted $3,000 for theirs – great original condition and still worked, but alas I could not create enough space in my kitchen width wise to make it work.
Congrats to Tammy & Greg for saving, restoring, and loving this refrigerator!!!
OMG! A dedicated bacon compartment? They just don’t make them like they used to.
There’s a bacon compartment?! Wow, this refrigerator is awesome. I’ve never seen anything like it! I love the little egg holders and all of the original containers. So cool.
Gregg you did a beautiful job. I have a car I’d like you to paint.
Did the lady say 11 cu. ft. ? I’d need two of them.
Have Mercy!
I am in serious, serious lust. Banana keeper? Breakfast bar? We feed raw to our dogs, and those dispenser chutes in the freezer door would be perfect for the individual meals we make up. Greg’s paint job is just beautiful, too. Congrats to you both!
One thing I can’t figure out is where the saran wrap dispenser was.
Just figured it out by looking at the other link! It goes right above the bananas. So cool.
what brilliant compartmentalization; just lovely.
“What a dream of a kitchen-come-true/ What a wonderful setting for you/ and what makes it greater?/ It’s a Kelvinator/ most modern, most useful, most YOU.”
That SONG! love love love.
Too flippin cool!!!!
I’m pretty sure I just had a “special moment.”
Wow…. WOW! Wow.
Incredibly amazing restoration! What a beautiful job and what an amazingly cool refrigerator. And a special bacon drawer? Geeze Louise, hold me back. We recently installed an under-counter fridge (6 cu. ft.) in our very tiny kitchen, and while we’ve adapted quite well and are very happy with it, it was hard not to get just a little jealous of this fridge. Such fabulous efficiency in 11 cu. ft. … a wee thing compared to most modern fridges. This one is so incredibly well laid out, I can’t imagine it not meeting a family’s needs.
I love how the commercial calls it a “food keeper” rather than refrigerator. Don’t buy any other food keeper until you’ve looked at a Kelvinator! love it! Such great imagination and creativity back then.
Tammy & Greg, you are so awesome to share your project with us! And Pam is awesome for posting it!
That is one red hot appliance. For it to be in such good shape and still running is a credit to the owners of the companies from that time. There was a very different mind set then. Companies took pride in their high quality products and it shows in this long lasting fridge. Unlike most of the companies today that practically build in components to fail, so that we have to keep replacing them. Their bottom line seems to be profit driven not pride driven. I’m not blaming the employees as the attitude is top down. Maybe we the consumers are to blame for excepting it. Long live Vintage. LOL
Drool!!!!! I am so jealous of your fantastical 1953 fridge! It is a work of art
I am soooo jealous!!!! What an amazing refrigerator and what an amazing job you guys did restoring it!!!!! I would love that so much – I would invite company over just to show them my fridge.
It has a BACON drawer!!! I’ve died and gone to appliance heaven. LOVE.
That is truly gorgeous! I’m so jealous!
Thanks for the great old commercial, Pam. I think Brini Maxwell has watched it a time or two for inspiration.
pretty darn fabulous.
What a fabulous job of restoration!!! Hat’s off to you!!! Thank you for including the “before and after” photos. What awesome design . . . the Kelvinator Foodarama is truly a full-service appliance. It’s style is deserving of restoration.
Fabulous fridge!!
simply WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAW !!!!!!!!!!!
Wow! That fridge is EPIC. Love the breakfast bar, how cool/amazing/gorgeous is that?
Holy Moley… we have that fridge!!! It took me 4 years of negotiating… 1987-91, to acquire it. Then I put it in a kitchen I’d just painted tomato soup and cream colors and it was so big in white that it overwhelmed the room so a friend who did faux finishes for big bank walls and such like came over and we painted it to look like cave painting in Lascaux, except more like an outy instead of an inny if you will. NOT KIDDING! I have carried that fridge up and down loft stairs in Old City, Philadelphia. It is now in our rear shed. I swear I will take pics to send in! Never thought I’d see another.
Forgive… I should have started that overly excited rant with cheering Greg & Tammy’s amazing results. You are remarkable!
I didn’t know I could fall in love with a refrigerator…love at first sight!
I went weak there for a minute. What a beauty!
I don’t think I’ve ever felt refrigerator lust before. Wow!
I am in LOVE! It’s perfect.
Does anyone know what the original 8 colours were? I am tired to death of only having my choice of white, black, and stainless. But what were those other colours?
I’d love to know what original ones there were.
The red looks brilliant in their kitchen.
I sort of wonder about green for mine though.
Have you looked at Big Chill refrigerators? You can most definitely order one in green, any shade of green, or any other color for that matter. They’re not Kelvinators but they would add a nice retro feel to any kitchen.Their ad pops up on this site quite often but here is the link in case you need it: http://www.bigchill.com
The Big Chills look awesome, but they’re so darn expensive.
Hi all Retro fans. We were really bowled over by all the nice comments. Thanks! We thought the fridge was cool, just neat to see others did too! There were so many comments & questions, thought I would try to address at least a few.
The year-I was told it could be as early as a 1953. A related post from Patrick leads me to believie it’s a 1955.
The 1950’s “Flash”. It was designed, built and bought by the “Greatest Generation” when America was at it’s best. It has style, durability and functionality that todays stainless items w/electronic gizmos can’t come close to.
The 11cu ft- several thought this was small compared to modern stuff. All that 11 cu ft is very useable. Tammy loves the appearance, but the functionality just as much. We had a monster Kenmore side by side and it doesn’t come close to what the Foodarama will hold.
The Resto- It is was what they call in the vintage car world, a “light restoration”. The inside was very well preserved; didn’t do anything but clean it. Even the original seals were still good. Put on a new power cord. Did not disassemble the handles, or emblems. Those items are really hard to find & I was scared to death to break anything. Just carefully taped up. Fixed some dents incurred in previous moves, primered and painted with PPG Safety Red basecoat/clearcoat.
We are from West Virginia and I loved the “Big Boy” restaurants growing up. Thought they turned into Shoneys?
Why they stopped making the Foodarama? I think it grew more narrow as time went on and it just became too much like the other side by sides. I think I saw an ad for one from the early 1970’s?
Eight original colors in 1955; Bermuda Pink, Spring Green, Fern Green, Dove Gray, Sand Beige, Laguna Blue two yellows; Buttercup & one I couldn’t read off an old ad, (attached below). Have seen maybe one original color other than white. In the 1960’s Kelvinator ads showed lots of different colors and finishes you could get on a Foodarama.
Hadn’t mentioned to Pam, but her post on that later Foodarama is what really spurned our search. Tammy LOVED that thing. As TappanTrailerTammy? noted they are really hard to find, (wonder why, low production, or lower quality than the ‘50’s?) Anyway we looked high and low and eventually found and fell in love with Belle’s Foodarama.
Thanks to all!
Here are a couple links;
A 1955 ad that Patrick posted previously
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-1955-Kelvinator-Foodarama-Refrigerator-Freezer-Cute-Little-Girl-Print-Ad-/360443829995?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item53ec205eeb#ht_2806wt_879
This one is cool. Hover your cursor over each part of the fridge and it will bring up a highlight about each feature.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/miehana/3300111148/
Thanks Greg! Woot! I do love the look of Big Chills suggested upthread but ($$$) and not as cool as the Foodarama it’s sort of like putting a fiberglass classic kit on a Camry, you know?
Woot, I love knowing the original colours. (and TWO shades of green…!) Red is a pretty sexy hotrod choice though!
Just the name alone–Foodarama–is awesome! “Honey, can I get you anything from the Foodarama?”
They don’t make ‘em like this anymore. Too bad. That thing’ll be around for generations. Spic n Span clean up job on it.
This would be a 1955……..no foodarama’s in ’53
What an amazing and beautiful work of kitchen art! I’d like one in turquoise please to match my other appliances if you please……please? Pretty please? Thanks to Greg and Tammy for showing us another facet in the beautiful diamond of vintage appliances.
Dear Robyn, We are about to put ours up for sale. You can have it painted in whatever turquoise matches your other appliances exactly! We will be shooting some pictures of it over the next week.
Todd
The Grand Review
Ardmore, PA
Great job – it looks sweet! Too bad you couldn’t get your milk in a glass quart!
As promised, here is our Kelvinator Foodarama up on eBay…
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150855859971
Crazy!
I adore this refrigerator! Is the small side the freezer?
Be still my heart!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-2-Door-Foodarama-Kelvinator-/190712833813?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c675ee715#ht_501wt_1397
There are several of these for sale on ebay right now. The one above has just a few hours left but there were others. Maybe somewhere to find one of your own.
Good luck,
Mary
Hi-
I’m not sure anyone is still using this blog, but I am looking for a Kelvinator Foodarama. I live in NY but am willing to travel or ship. Would love to own one of these for our kitchen! Please let me know if anyone knows of any for sale. Thanks!