Swensons' signature hamburger is the Galley Boy, a double cheeseburger prepared using two sauces,[1][2] and the restaurant also purveys 18 different milkshakes.

[1] Wesley T. "Pop" Swenson started selling hamburgers at Buchtel High School out of a station wagon in 1933.

Swenson sold the restaurant in 1949 to Robert Phillips, who began expansion in 1952 with a second location in North Akron on East Cuyahoga Falls Avenue.

[citation needed] On an episode of The Food Network's series Food Feuds entitled Beef Feuds, Swensons was pitted against the Skyway drive-in in the Akron suburb of Fairlawn for best double cheeseburger in the Akron area.

[10] Celebrity fans include Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney, actor Matt Lanter, and basketball player LeBron James.