Killer Brownies® Deserve a Gold Star

All about the Killer Brownie® x Gold Star Chili partnership, featuring the Kitchen Sink Fudge Brownie.

We are proud to be partners with Gold Star Chili and offer our gourmet brownies to Cincinnati chili lovers! This partnership strikes the perfect balance of sweet and savory, punctuating a meal with a decadent dessert. 

We first offered the individually wrapped Chocolatier fudge brownie as a dessert item for Gold Star customers. Today, consumers can spot the Kitchen Sink Fudge Brownie on the menu—it’s a perfect single-serve treat that boosts incremental sales and tastes great with a coney!

In this blog post, we’ll dive into the history of Gold Star Chili, our partnership, and why Killer Brownies® are a great fit for Gold Star customers.

The Beginning of Gold Star Chili

“[Gold Star] was founded by my father and three of his brothers,” Gold Star CEO Roger David said. “It’s been an awesome journey for my entire family, and we’re really, really proud of where we are.”

The Daoud brothers founded Gold Star Chili in 1964. Back then, the restaurant was called Hamburger Heaven and was known for its hamburgers and “heavenly” sauce. As one of the only restaurants on the East Side of Cincinnati serving Cincinnati–style chili, the Daoud brothers wanted to create a recipe that would make their chili unique. 

The brothers’ childhood had a large impact on their chili recipe. They recalled going with their mother to the spice market in her native country, Jordan, and remembered how carefully she chose the most flavorful spices for her recipes. Drawing on that memory, they sought out the best suppliers and adjusted their original chili recipe until they all agreed they had created something truly unique.

“Our product is spicy,” Roger said. “[It’s] not so spicy that you’re going to have to be cautious, but it definitely has a lot of flavor to it.”

The new chili recipe became an instant success, and in 1965, they changed the restaurant's name to Gold Star Chili. 

The Gold Star & Killer Brownie® Partnership

Gold Star has a strong commitment to quality. Every menu item is made with careful attention to ingredient quality and held to strict standards in order to ensure that customers will love every item they order. We hold the same values at Killer Brownie®. 

Killer Brownie® strives to create the highest-quality products possible, and that starts with our ingredients. We source premium ingredients like sustainably sourced cocoa and butter with no added hormones. Partnering with Gold Star allows us to bring our gourmet brownies to their customers and elevate their dining experience with an indulgent dessert. 

“When we look at organizations to partner with, we look at a few different things,” Roger explained. “The first thing [we look for] is the quality of the product and how well it marries to our menu, our price points, and the quality of our products…[and] we feel like there’s a real nice chemistry with Killer Brownie®.” 

Killer Brownie & Gold Star Customers

Individually wrapped Killer Brownies® are the perfect punctuation to a Gold Star order. Combined with the savory chili, these brownies offer customers a rich and indulgent dessert to balance their meal. Additionally, Killer Brownies® are made with premium ingredients, so customers know they aren’t compromising quality when they order dessert. 

Don’t want to sit down to enjoy a Gold Star meal and dessert? Customers can take the brownies to go! Individually wrapped Killer Brownies® is the epitome of grab-and-go convenience; consumers can easily enjoy a brownie straight from the packaging, providing a single-serve dessert in the palm of their hands.

Now Available at Gold Star Chili

The Kitchen Sink Fudge Brownie is now available at all Gold Star Chili locations! It features a layer of rich blonde brownie mixed with rainbow sprinkles and topped with M&M’s® and mini chocolate chips that is baked atop a layer of decadent fudge brownie.

After a savory Gold Star meal, Killer Brownies® are great to share with friends and family.

“The first time I had a Killer Brownie® was up in Dayton, OH,” Roger recalled. “I loved it so much that I bought a bunch, and I brought it all back down to my kids and my family, and it was a huge hit!”

In addition to being a shareable, kid-friendly dessert offering, Killer Brownie® has sparked genuine moments of joy with Gold Star customers, such as showcasing a “secret menu hack” on social media. Customers were surprised to learn that they could order a Gold Star milkshake and a Killer Brownie® and ask the server to mix the brownie into the shake. It quickly grew in popularity amongst Gold Star fans, with several customers in the comments expressing their desire to try it for themselves. 

The Killer Brownie® and Gold Star partnership is based on shared values and a strong desire to create memorable moments through premium products. The Kitchen Sink Fudge Brownie is a gourmet dessert that compliments Gold Star’s rich and savory chili, offering customers the sweetest end to a tasty meal. 

We are proud to offer our brownies to Gold Star customers, and we look forward to continuing to spark moments of joy with them through dessert!