The Fonz makes a surprise lunch stop at Idaho Falls sandwich shop

IDAHO FALLS – It was a happy day for employees at a local sandwich shop when Henry Winkler walked through the door.

In a Tuesday afternoon Facebook post, The Sandwich Tree at 500 West 17th Street in Idaho Falls posted a photo of several employees with the Emmy-award-winning actor.

“Look what famous guy came to see us!!!” the post reads. “So thankful and proud of my team!!!”

Employee Miranda Whitehead, who is pictured in a gray shirt in the photo on the right next to Winkler, tells EastIdahoNews.com the 80-year-old most known for his role as Arthur Fonzarelli “The Fonz” in the 1970s sitcom “Happy Days,” stopped by for lunch. He came in with his wife, Stacey Weitzman, and a friend around 1:30 p.m.

Whitehead says there was a crowd of customers and they didn’t realize it was him until he paid for his meal.

“We were busy at the time and when he came and paid, my co-worker was like, ‘That’s Henry Winkler!'” Whitehead says.

Whitehead says he was there for about 30 minutes. She isn’t sure why Winkler was in town, but says most customers left him alone while he was eating. At some point, one lady asked Winkler if she could take a photo with him.

When he was done eating, Whitehead says he agreed to take photos with anyone in the restaurant who wanted one.

“He was very nice about it,” says Whitehead. “It was pretty cool!”

Whitehead says they’re planning to frame the photo they took with him and display it in the restaurant.

Shortly after posting it on Facebook, Ryan King of Idaho Falls responded in the comments that his dad, Bryan King, met him at the Idaho Falls Regional Airport before his stop at The Sandwich Tree.

Bryan says Winkler landed in Idaho Falls as he was catching a flight out of town. The two crossed paths in the terminal and Bryan asked Winkler if he could take a photo with him.

“I asked him why he was here and he said he was here to do some fishing on the Snake River,” Bryan says. “He’s a super nice guy.”

Winkler posted several photos of the trip on X, including some of his monster catches.

“Hello,” Winkler wrote in a June 29 post above a photo of him holding a large trout.

“So cold in June,” he wrote in a separate post that same day.

“Mr (sic) cutthroat … hello this Tuesday,” Winkler posted on June 30. “Mr brown makes my afternoon.”

That same day, The Lodge at Palisades Creek posted a photo montage on Facebook of some of Winkler’s catches in recent years.

“Henry Winkler celebrating another round of great fishing, good laughs, and a bunch of wonderful memories from all the trips past,” the post says. “Too many great moments to fit in the post cards, but here’s to many more!”

This isn’t Winkler’s first time visiting eastern Idaho. During a 7 Questions with Emmy interview in 2023, Winkler said he loves fishing in Swan Valley and has been known to frequent restaurants in Idaho Falls. Watch it in the video above.

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In a 2022 interview with GQ, Winkler praised the The Lodge at Palisades Creek for its “rustic” look, “delicious food” and “wonderfully run” establishment.

Winkler often goes fishing with late night host Jimmy Kimmel in Swan Valley. Kimmel, host of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” on ABC, owns a luxury fly-fishing lodge in the area.

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He told GQ that he and his wife often eat there when they visit eastern Idaho.

“Stacey and I have dinner there once every trip,” Winkler said. “Last year I fished with Jimmy in the boat at his lodge. He loves it. He’s a great fisherperson. I think he was turned onto it by Huey Lewis and the News.”