Duane Roberts

Duane R. Roberts, the California food entrepreneur and hotelier credited with creating one of America's first mass-market frozen burritos and reviving the Mission Inn Hotel & Spa in Riverside, California, died Saturday, November 1, 2025. He was 88. His wife, Kelly J. Roberts, said he passed peacefully in his sleep, surrounded by family.

Roberts began working as a teenager in his family's company, Butcher Boy Food Products. Butcher Boy initially sold frozen hamburger patties to fast-food restaurants, like one of the original McDonald's locations, but Roberts was looking to help the company branch out in the 1950s.

When an employee suggested a burrito, Roberts wasn't familiar with the food item, as Mexican food staples were still gaining a foothold in the U.S. at the time. But he loved tacos and enchiladas, so he was game for trying a new Mexican dish. He spent two days experimenting in his kitchen, ultimately developing a beef and bean burrito that could be frozen and then deep fried by fast food restaurants.

The product wasn't patented, but it scaled quickly. Butcher Boy ultimately produced more than a million burritos daily, and brought in $80 million in annual sales, before the family sold the business in 1980.

After food manufacturing, Roberts turned to real estate and hospitality. He bought the shuttered, once-grand Mission Inn in downtown Riverside and led a seven-year, $55 million restoration, reopening the historic landmark in 1992. The restoration preserved the Mission Inn's architecture and helped anchor a broader revival of Riverside's historic core.

Local and regional organizations later recognized the couple's preservation work. In 2024, Historic Hotels of America honored Kelly and Duane Roberts with the Steward of History and Historic Preservation Award.

At the Mission Inn, the couple introduced signature events, including the Festival of Lights, Pumpkin Stroll, and other seasonal celebrations, drawing visitors to downtown Riverside.

Roberts is survived by his wife, as well as his stepchildren, Doug Reinhardt and Casey (Reinhardt) Brown.

By Legacy News Staff

(Image: Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)