Why This Woman Celebrated Her 102nd Birthday at White Castle
She was even inducted into the exclusive Cravers Hall of Fame.
— -- Celebrating a 102nd birthday is cause for serious celebration, and so this birthday girl chose her favorite spot: the local White Castle.
“The burgers are consistently cooked through the same way every time, and with the onions on that tiny bun they are delicious,” Madeleine Turpan, of Massapequa, N.Y., told ABC News. “You can always depend in them being delicious.”
Turpan has been going to White Castle for over 70 years as a special treat to herself, so when it came time to marking this milestone, she didn’t have to think twice before choosing “the Castle,” as she calls it.
“We go to the White Castle in Massapequa about twice a week,” Turpan’s nephew Gene Nifenecker told ABC News. “She doesn’t want McDonalds, Wendy’s, Burger King. They don’t exist. It’s just the Castle.”
After frequenting the local Castle for so long, the restaurant decided to throw her a 100th birthday party two years ago. And to make it even more special this time around, they inducted Turpan into the Cravers Hall of Fame, a club reserved for the most avid of White Castle fans.
“They said, ‘We think she’s the oldest person who eats White Castle. How about if we induct her into their Hall of Fame?’” Nifenecker said. “At 102, what other special events can happen in your life? You’re inducted with Alice Cooper into the Cravers Hall of Fame. She was just delighted, and it turned into a really gracious thing and a great event. She’s all razzle dazzled.”
A dietician when she was younger, Turpan turned to the Castle over the years when she wanted a special treat.
“Her father was an executive chef at the original Waldorf [Hotel in New York City], so great food has always been in her French heritage,” Nifenecker explained. “And so with that being said, fast food is not a thing normally she would eat, but she likes the consistency of the hamburger and speed of the meal. She always has just a hamburger, French fries and a black cup of coffee. Except sometimes I’m bad and bring some red wine that she enjoys, too.”
At 102, Turpan is certainly entitled to a glass, especially at a birthday celebration.
"My birthday was very, very special. I never expected such attention,” Turpan said.