The Unfulfilled Dream of Lyle Menendez’s Chicken Wing Venture

Thirty-five years ago, a young former Princeton student stood outside Chuck’s Spring Street Cafe, beaming for a photo.

At 22 years old, Lyle Menendez had recently come into a significant inheritance. Passionate about the cafe’s chicken wings, he purchased the establishment in 1990 for $550,000.

Menendez envisioned expanding the local eatery into a national chain, targeting university towns from New Jersey to California. He described plans for a restaurant featuring a “Midwestern theme centered on health food and Buffalo wings.” Around that time, some family members felt he needed focus in his life, hoping the business would provide it, especially after the tragic murder of his parents months earlier.

He rebranded the restaurant as Mr. Buffalo’s and enlisted a friend to assist in managing and growing what he hoped would become a chicken wing empire. Explaining his decision to leave Princeton, he stated, “I would love to get the education, but I can’t justify postponing my dreams.”

However, Menendez’s ambitions unraveled when law enforcement—and later the public—discovered the horrifying truth about him and his brother.

In Beverly Hills, California, Lyle and Erik Menendez fatally shot their parents, Jose and Kitty, with shotguns. Authorities initially suspected greed as the motive, believing the brothers sought to gain access to a $14 million inheritance. Lyle was arrested just weeks after giving his interview, ultimately relinquishing control of Mr. Buffalo’s.