Restaurant Equipment and Supply for Springfield, Joplin and Southwest Missouri
Springfield has two big claims to fame in food and travel. In 1963, David Leong opened Leong's Tea House and served the first Springfield-style cashew chicken, fried chicken in a brown oyster-sauce gravy that is now found on menus all over town. And on April 30, 1926, the name "U.S. 66" was first proposed by telegram from the city's Colonial Hotel, which is why Springfield calls itself the Birthplace of Route 66. Andy's Frozen Custard, founded in Osage Beach in 1986, is headquartered here too.
West along the old highway, Joplin has its own long food history. Fred & Red's opened there in 1923 and was known for chili and spaghetti red, and Casa Montez has served Mexican food since 1965. Every Saturday, the Joplin Empire Market fills a 1907 building on East 4th Street with growers and makers from the region.
Since 2015, The Restaurant Warehouse has shipped to thousands of commercial kitchens in every state. Southwest Missouri orders ship from our Chicago warehouse, so Springfield and Joplin restaurants get the same low prices and freight delivery right to Springfield, Joplin, and kitchens across Southwest Missouri. The most common orders here are fryers, ranges, reach-in refrigerators, freezers, charbroilers, and draft beer coolers.
Springfield-Style Cashew Chicken Since 1963
David Leong was born in Guangzhou in 1920, served in the US Army in World War II, including D-Day, and came to Springfield in 1955 to cook at Lotus Garden. In 1963 he opened Leong's Tea House. To suit local tastes, he deep-fried the chicken instead of stir-frying it, then covered it in an oyster-sauce brown gravy and topped it with cashews and green onion. Shortly after the restaurant opened, vandals set off dynamite outside it, according to the State Historical Society of Missouri. Leong's Tea House closed in 1997. In 2010, Leong and his son, Chef Wing Yee Leong, opened Leong's Asian Diner in west Springfield. David Leong died in 2020, and the Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau says the dish has been served in Springfield since 1963.
Cashew chicken is a fryer dish first, so Chinese-American kitchens here lean on deep fryers with fast recovery, high-heat ranges for the gravy and fried rice, and stainless work tables for breading. Chicken by the case needs two-door reach-in refrigerators and freezers, and takeout counters add undercounter refrigerators near the line.
Joplin's Chili History, Casa Montez and Empire Market
Fred & Red's opened in 1923 at 10th and Main, moved to South Main Street in 1943, became known for chili, spaghetti red and tamales, and was reopened in 2016 by an owner who bought the original chili recipe. Casa Montez was founded in 1965 and marked 60 years in 2025; David and Cindy Amayo have run it since 1982, and staff name the cheese dip and soft tacos as the signatures. The Joplin Empire Market runs year-round on Saturdays from 10 am to 3 pm, in a building donated to the Downtown Joplin Alliance by Empire District Electric, and it holds a chili cookoff every January.
Chili and Mexican kitchens need ranges with room for stockpots, griddles for tortillas and tacos, and fryers for chips. Grill menus run on charbroilers over a chef base. Coffee shops need undercounter refrigerators for milk behind the espresso bar and countertop display cases for pastries.
Springfield Farmers Markets, Breweries and Route 66 Festival
The Springfield CVB lists three farmers markets in Springfield. The Greater Springfield Farmers' Market, described as the city's original, sets up at Battlefield Mall on Saturdays year-round and adds Tuesdays and Thursdays from April to October. The Farmers Market of the Ozarks runs Saturdays year-round at Farmer's Park on East Republic Road, and the C-Street City Market on Commercial Street runs Saturdays from April to December. Springfield Brewing Company opened downtown on Market Avenue in 1997, set up by Paul Mueller Co. as a showcase for its stainless brewing equipment, and it has been locally and family owned since 2011. Mother's Brewing Co. started pouring in 2011 in the former Butternut Bread bakery on Grant Avenue. Every August, the Birthplace of Route 66 Festival brings a car show, concerts and food vendors downtown, and the Ozark Empire Fair runs from late July into early August.
Brewpubs and taprooms need draft beer coolers, back-bar coolers, bar refrigeration, and ice machines that keep up through a hot August. Kitchens buying from the markets need reach-in refrigerators and sandwich prep tables, and festival and fair vendors build out with food truck equipment, griddles, and fryers.
Restaurant Supply Store in Springfield
We ship straight to your Springfield or Joplin restaurant. Most Southwest Missouri orders arrive in 1 to 3 business days from our Chicago warehouse, with free freight and free lift gate service. Will-call pickup in Chicago is available for verified restaurant businesses, but most kitchens skip the drive to Chicago and let us ship it. Most Southwest Missouri calls are for a fast replacement, like a fryer that quit in the middle of a cashew chicken rush or a reach-in that stopped holding temperature before a market Saturday. Others are full packages for a new cafe, Mexican restaurant, taproom kitchen or festival food truck. Tell us what you are cooking and how much space you have, and we will help you size the line.
Why Springfield Restaurants Buy From The Restaurant Warehouse
Every piece of new Atosa equipment we sell is run-tested for 24 hours at the factory before it ships. It carries Intertek's ETL Sanitation and cETLus listings, which certify it to the NSF/ANSI food equipment standards and US and Canadian safety standards that inspectors from the Springfield-Greene County Health Department and the Joplin Health Department look for. Refrigeration comes with a 3-year parts and labor warranty and a 5-year compressor warranty, gas cooking equipment comes with a 1-year parts and labor warranty, and extended warranties are available.
- Free freight on qualifying orders, no lift gate fees
- Built for scrappy startups, food trucks and independent kitchens
- Founder Sean Kearney answers calls, texts and email at (206) 419-5801 or therestaurantwarehouse@gmail.com
Serving Springfield, Joplin and Southwest Missouri
Springfield is our hub for Greene County, Jasper County and the rest of Southwest Missouri. Restaurants in Springfield and Joplin get the same equipment, free lift gate freight, and warranty, and they talk to the same team.
Springfield and Greene County
Springfield had 169,176 people in the 2020 census and is the Greene County seat. It is the home of Springfield-style cashew chicken, the Birthplace of Route 66 Festival every August and three farmers markets. Operators searching for a restaurant supply store in Springfield usually need a fast replacement, so we ship fryers, ranges, reach-in refrigerators, and draft beer coolers.
Joplin and Jasper County
Joplin had 51,768 people in the 2020 census and sits on historic Route 66. Its food history runs from Fred & Red's, opened in 1923, to Casa Montez, founded in 1965, and the Empire Market and its January chili cookoff downtown. Joplin restaurants order charbroilers, griddles, freezers, and undercounter refrigerators.
Springfield Restaurant Equipment FAQ
Do you ship restaurant equipment to Springfield?
Yes. The Restaurant Warehouse ships commercial restaurant equipment to Springfield and the rest of Southwest Missouri by freight, with lift gate delivery to your door.
Do you deliver to Joplin and the rest of Southwest Missouri?
Yes. We deliver across Southwest Missouri, including Springfield in Greene County and Joplin in Jasper and Newton counties.
How fast is delivery to Springfield?
Most Southwest Missouri orders arrive in 1 to 3 business days from our Chicago warehouse, depending on item availability and carrier routing. Contact us if you need equipment urgently.
Do you offer free freight?
Yes. Free freight is available on select models and qualifying orders. Contact us to confirm freight options for a specific item.
Do you charge lift gate fees?
No. We do not charge lift gate fees.
What types of restaurant equipment do you sell?
We sell commercial refrigerators, freezers, prep tables, griddles, charbroilers, deep fryers, ovens, ice machines, bar refrigeration, and food truck equipment, plus many other categories for professional kitchens.
Can I get help choosing the right equipment?
Yes. If you can't find what you need, call or email us and we'll help you source the right product for your kitchen.
Can I pick up my order?
Yes. Verified restaurant businesses can arrange will-call pickup at our Chicago warehouse. But why lose a day renting a truck, strapping it down and unloading it yourself? With free freight and free lift gate service, most Southwest Missouri orders arrive at your door or curb in 1 to 3 business days. Call (206) 419-5801 to set up either option.
North of the Ozarks, our Kansas City page covers Kansas City, Overland Park and Olathe, and our Columbia page covers Columbia, Jefferson City and Mid-Missouri.
Restaurant Equipment Across Missouri and the Midwest
The Restaurant Warehouse delivers commercial restaurant equipment across Missouri and the Midwest from our Chicago warehouse. Find the page for your region: