[4] Eventually, Don opened a retail outlet in Orange, California, naming it after his mother, gradually adding other food.

The business flourished until Don Callender died on January 7, 2009, due to complications resulting from head trauma sustained during a fall at home.

[10] On June 13, 2011, a total of 58 units were closed, including 31 Marie Callender's and 27 Perkins' due to bankruptcy restructuring (Chapter 11).

The type of cuisine served is mainly American, although many of the dishes are slanted towards styles of preparation that resemble Italian, Mexican, French, Cajun, or Chinese.

The interiors of the chain's earlier restaurants are decorated with antiques circa 1900, providing a theme that is reminiscent of Victorian England as well as early United States.

A 1945 graduate of Long Beach Poly High School, he joined the Merchant Marine for a brief tour at the end of World War II and then returned home to southern California.

[21] Callender died at age 81 in 2009 at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach,[24] due to complications resulting from head trauma sustained during a fall at his home over a year earlier.

[20][21][25] By 1948, twenty-one year old Don was working to expand the business by selling pies to restaurants in Long Beach and Orange County.

Eventually, Don ventured into the retail realm, opening his first outlet in Orange (at 574 N. Tustin St.) and naming it after his mother, Marie.

[23] With continued experimentation, he gradually expanded his inventory and added other menu items which would later become Marie Callender fare.