The modern definition of ‘fast food’ evolved from years of innovation, experimentation, and entrepreneurial vision. Early fast food restaurants created a foundation that would develop over the decades to include a worldwide industry. The changing customer dining experience from simple hot dog carts to highly efficient American hamburger joints changed American dining culture permanently. This paper investigates the development of the first American fast food restaurants and the early stages of developing dining worldwide.
When Dining and Food Service Changed for the Better.
The Beginnings of the Fast Food Industry and It’s Innovation
Prior to fast food dining out involved waiting a long time for an experience. Customers would have to be seated, have a server take their order, and then wait for the entire meal to be prepared before they could eat anything. This experience can last anywhere from an hour to two hours.
What made fast food dining out different then the traditional dining out experience.
The fast food chain dining experience introduced the following
Speed: Customers could eat far sooner than they would experience in a traditional dining.
Simplicity: The menu was and always has been focused on items that can be prepared in seconds.
Affordability: The menu items were and always have been low cost to eat.
Efficiency: The fast food industry trains and jumps people into positions to act as people and can do the work of several people.
Consistency: Fast food providers aim to have the same taste and experience for the identical menu items regardless of geographic location.
These principles developed over time through the work of different business pioneers who understood that the American public preferred dining options that provided more speed and convenience.
The Precursors
Many different types of businesses prepared the way for the ultimate fast food restaurants:
Street Vendors: Urban workers needed quick food and simple snacks. Vendors selling hot dogs and sausages proved that affordable food served fast would sell.
Lunch Counters: The drug and department store lunch counter became popular. The counter would have stools where the patrons would sit and receive the meal. This concept was popularized by Woolworth’s.
Automats: The first American automat was Horn & Hardart located in Philadelphia in 1902. Customers would put coins into the machine and retrieve food from one of the many compartments. This removed the need for a wait staff and proved that self-service dining was a viable option.
Diners: Roadside diners became a place where quick meals could be obtained by travelers and workers. They were also converted railroad cars and compact restaurants that stressed speed and value over more formal dining.
White Castle: The Foremost Pioneering Fast Food Franchise
Innovative Business Model
In 1921, White Castle became the first franchised fast food hamburger chain with Billy Ingram and Walter Anderson in Wichita, Kansas. They created the prototype for most burger chains today.
Hamburger Industry Trust Issues
In the early 1900’s, hamburgers were seen as an unsafe and unhealthy food choice because of ground beef. The mass-produced ground beef in the meat packing industry led to food poisoning and unsanitary (at the time) and unsafe ground meat handling, causing an industry scandal. Upton Sinclair’s writings about the unsafe meat packing industry only added to this distrust.
The White Castle franchise made great efforts to overcome public distrust:
The Color White: The franchise used all white for their buildings and the founders’ white uniforms (to represent purity and being clean) and even the company name.
Stainless Steel: Provided a clean and safe environment.
Visible Kitchens: Customers were able to view the food preparation to render their food properly handled.
Uniform Appearance. Trust and familiarity were created with an identical layout for each White Castle.
Innovations That Changed Everything
White Castle was the first fast food chain to innovate several practices that have since become commonplace in the industry:
The Slider: White Castle’s unique small square burgers, which have holes punched in the patties, allow the burgers to cook quickly and evenly, making them the company’s signature product.
Standardized Buildings: White Castle was the first to use prefabricated parts to construct the same building at multiple locations, allowing them to become recognizable in any city.
Paper Products: White Castle was a pioneer in the use of paper packaging, which emphasized the convenience and importance of cleanliness.
Five Cent Menu: White Castle made burgers accessible to nearly everyone at five cents a piece. The slogan “Buy ‘em by the sack,” was a marketing tactic that encouraged customers to buy multiples.
Strict Standards: Each location was required to comply with the same guidelines for food prep, cleanliness, and customer interaction.
Lasting Impact
White Castle was the first fast food chain and was also the first to demonstrate that the combination of affordability, quality, and cleanliness would be embraced by the American public. Each fast food chain that followed White Castle was built upon its innovative practices.
The Starting Point of Franchising: A&W
The Birth of Root Beer
In 1919, Roy W. Allen set up a root beer stall in Lodi, California. His freshly made root beer was sold at 5 cents a cup. After seeing success, Allen began opening more locations.
In 1922, Frank Wright joined Roy Allen. They used their initials to brand A&W which became immensely popular.
A&W’s Groundbreaking Franchise System
A&W began franchising in 1925, making it the first restaurant chain to do so. Allen began selling the rights to the A&W name, the original root beer recipe, and the operational manual to the independent business owners.
This model of franchising came with multiple benefits:
Fast Growth: A&W was able to expand faster because they did not need to invest in every new store opening.
Local Ownership: Franchise owners were able to invest for their store’s success.
Resource Sharing: The parent company supplied the brand name, recipes and support, while the franchisee operated the restaurant.
Lower Financial Burden: The parent company was able to expand the location without paying for the new store.
Every major fast food restaurant, including McDonald’s and Burger King, expanded their business through the franchises first used by A&W.
The Drive-In Experience
The first true drive-in restaurant was A&W restaurants. Customers would remain in their cars, and carhops would deliver food and drinks to the windows. Drive-in restaurants tapped into and utilized the culture around cars, creating the automobile and fast food connection that persists today.
Menu Expansion
A&W restaurants also shifted the paradigm of a beverage stand. In their early years, the restaurants offered both soft drinks and root beer floats. They also added burgers, and hot dogs, quickly evolving into a fast food restaurant.
Howard Johnson’s: The Highway Pioneer
Humble Beginnings
Howard Deering Johnson, in 1925, borrowed money to purchase a small patent medicine store and a soda fountain in Quincy, Massachusetts. His recipe for ice cream was competitive and rich, with a higher than average butterfat content. Customers were drawn to the delicious product.
With 28 ice cream flavors to choose from when most shops offered vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry, Howard Johnson’s was able to draw from a wide pool of would-be customers and ice cream enthusiasts.
Building a Chain
Howard Johnson’s began to franchise in the 1930s. Even with the Great Depression, the chain was able to grow. The increased income offered to American families meant they could afford to relax and dine in the familiar atmosphere of Johnson’s restaurants.
Company guidelines were implemented for every location:
Signature Design: The orange roofs and blue accents of Howard Johnson’s restaurants were recognizable from the highway.
Standardization: Locations had the same menu and they had to follow the same cooking instructions.
Cleaning: Restaurants had to be spotless.
Staff: Employees were to be trained to provide the same service to every customer.
The Turnpike Connection
As Howard Johnson’s grew, so did the U.S. highways. Restaurants at turnpikes and highways had exclusive vendor contracts with the Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Ohio turnpikes.
This meant Howard Johnson’s became the go-to roadside restaurant for families on road trips. Parents appreciated the clean bathrooms and the same restaurant with a familiar menu.
Peak and Influence
In the 1960’s Howard Johnson’s became the largest restaurant chain with 1,000+ locations. The focus on standardization and locations at highways and franchising would be used for years to come in the development of fast food.
McDonald Brothers and the New Restaurant Concept
Initial Locations
The 1930s saw New Hampshire natives Richard and Maurice McDonald migrate to southern California in the hopes of entering the burgeoning film industry. Their Hollywood dreams quickly turned into setbacks and detours towards the food industry.
A hot dog stand was opened by the brothers in Arcadia in 1937. In 1940, they opened McDonald’s Bar-B-Q in San Bernardino, which also featured barbecue food items and drive-in carhop service.
The Good and The Bad
Bar-B-Q McDonald’s enjoyed great success with huge customer volume and profit. The brothers, however, were quite frustrated by several aspects of the business.
Labor Costs: Carhop wages created constant staffing issues.
Service: The varied menu required patrons to wait as food was being prepared.
Dishes: Cutlery, plates, and glasses created unnecessary costs and theft was a constant issue.
Teens: Family patrons were deterred by the presence of loud teen drive-in patrons.
The Game-Changing Move
The McDonald brothers made the drive-in industry transforming move in 1948, for the first time in history, they closed down a successful drive-in for an industry transforming redesign.
During the snacks shop’s re-establishment, the customers had the opportunity to experience several new elements. The shop’s menus had been significantly reduced, offering only the most basic selections. The menu thus consisted of hamburgers, cheeseburgers, French fries, milkshakes, and coffee (along with soft drinks). Customers had to place their orders by themselves and head to the kitchen window to pick up their food. Gone were the days of carhop and table service. The shop was also operating with a no-dish policy, which meant that customers were not served with any plates, glasses, or cutlery. Instead, food was packaged in disposable containers and served to customers as take-away. Fees charged to customers were also lowered. For example, hamburgers were being sold at the price of 15 cents, which was only about half of the price charged at competition establishments.
The Speedee Service System
The shop also had a reputation for completing orders very fast (in less than 30 seconds). To prove their point, the McDonald brothers named their approach to the new policy.
With respect to the approach, the McDonald brothers took a very unique and never-before-seen approach in relation to food preparation and service by means of the vast and effective structure of modern assembly lines. By means of precise and distinct divisions of labor, every individual in the kitchen had an assigned role. The truck patty cooker (who also served as the meat assembler and wrapper) was assigned one of the plastic utensils, and an additional truck patty cooker was assigned to one of the plastic utensils.
In addition to tailored plastic utensils, the truck patty cooker (who also served as the meat assembler and wrapper) was assigned one of the plastic utensils, and an additional truck patty cooker was assigned to one of the plastic utensils. This ensured that the same person was always fulfilling the same role. There was also a distinct structure for the kitchen and preparation area to enhance efficiency by minimizing motion and maximizing the number of available operating parts.
Quality Control
This included elements of quality control, which were included for the purpose of ensuring that every detail of preparation, cooking, and assembly was carried out with supreme consistency and control. The same precision was applied to the control of cooking temperatures, the control of the quantity of meat in a serving, and the control of the quality of meat, which constituted the ingredients.
Instant Success
The redesign of McDonald’s proved to be quite successful. Speed, low prices, and quality all contributed to the quick success. The redesign McDonald’s won over a large customer base, including families with kids, who appreciated the affordable meals and quick service. They soon attracted large crowds.
Other restaurant operators saw this success. They saw the potential and large success and many began to travel to San Bernardino to see the McDonald brother’s system and copy elements for their own.
Controlled Growth
The McDonald brothers, despite what seems like the obvious choice of fast and large growth potential, where quite content with their slow and steady growth. They ended up franchising a few locations, but were happy with just being profitable. Comfortable and content, they saw little opportunity for large expansion.
This was until a persistent milkshake mixer salesman began to show them the potential they were overlooking.
Ray Kroc: The Franchise Visionary
Impossible Business Man
At the age of 62, in 1954, Ray Kroc began selling Multimixer milkshake machines at Prince Castle. He had been a salesman for many years with little success and showed no sign of becoming a Business Legend.
Kroc’s curiosity was piqued when he found out a small restaurant in California had ordered eight Multimixers, meaning they would be able to make 40 milkshakes at a time. All the capacity was a mystery to him.
A Changing Encounter
Kroc went to San Bernardino to visit the restaurant of the McDonald brothers. What he saw struck him. He witnessed the restaurant’s unprecedented operational efficiency, the long lines, the happy customers, and he personally enjoyed the food, which he described as simple, yet delicious.
Then, he imagined McDonald’s restaurants in the hundreds, in the thousands, across the whole of America, and even overseas.
Becoming A Franchise Agent
Kroc was able to persuade the McDonald brothers to make him their sole franchising agent. In this agreement, he would be the one to contract new franchisees and manage the new franchise locations, while the brothers would retain the ownership of the operational system and the name of the business.
Kroc’s first McDonald’s franchise opened in Des Plaines, Illinois, on 15th April 1955. This restaurant served as a testing ground for Kroc’s operational methods and provided the first training for future franchisees.
Constructing the System
From the outset of his franchising efforts, Kroc emphasized control and standardization above all else:
Uniformity: Franchise owners were expected to adhere to the same uniform protocols for all aspects of food preparation and construction of buildings.
Operational Standards: Quality, Service, Cleanliness, and Value, known as the ‘Four Pillars’, served as the overriding policies of the company.
Management Training: Franchise owners, as well as all managers, were provided with extensive training on the various methodologies employed by McDonald’s.
Surveillance: Franchise owners were subject to monitoring by the company to ensure that compliance with company policies and procedures remained.
Professor of Hamburgerology
In the basement of the Elk Grove Village, Illinois McDonald’s, Kroc opened Hamburger University in 1961. This teaching facility employed a structured curriculum on restaurant operations to train franchise owners and managers in all aspects of the operation of a McDonald’s restaurant.
Unlike all of the other fast food operations, the Hamburger University training facility provided a higher level of professionalism. It served the purpose of giving the company a system to ensure that all of the new restaurants incorporated the uniformity that allowed McDonald’s branded restaurants to succeed.
Absolute Domination
Over the years, the relationship between Kroc and the McDonald brothers became increasingly adversarial. In 1961, for the sum of $2.7 million, Kroc bought the McDonald’s name and system from the brothers.
This deal gave Kroc full ownership of the brand and allowed him to proceed with his grandiose plans for expansion. The McDonald brothers’ original restaurant in San Bernardino was excluded from the deal, and they were ultimately forced to change the name when Kroc opened a rival McDonald’s across the street.
Other Early Fast Food Pioneers
Burger King
The same year Kroc founded McDonald’s, James McLamore and David Edgerton founded Burger King in Miami, Florida, in 1954. Initially called Insta-Burger King, the chain had a unique cooking system for flame-broiling hamburgers.
When McLamore and Edgerton bought the faltering company, they introduced the Whopper in 1957. At 37 cents, this bigger burger was a significant competitive advantage over McDonald’s smaller, cheaper menu items.
Burger King marketed itself as the better choice for customers wanting a more filling burger along with the unique flame-broiled experience that was different from McDonald’s griddle-cooked burgers.
Kentucky Fried Chicken
In the 1930s, Harland Sanders operated a gas station in Corbin, Kentucky. He served quick meals to passing motorists, and his fried chicken, cooked with a secret blend of 11 herbs and spices and a special pressure-cooking method, became a local sensation.
In 1952, at the age of 62, Sanders started the first stages of franchising his chicken recipe business. He started approaching restaurant owners to show them his method of cooking chicken. If they agreed to use Sanders’ recipe, they paid him a royalty of a nickle for every chicken sold.
Sanders is a recognizable person on his own, wearing a white suit, a black string tie, and having a white goatee. His own persona and image closely aligned him to the KFC brand, and showcased the impact of founder image branding.
Taco Bell
In the 1950s, Glen Bell started experimenting with restaurant ideas and selling tacos in California. He understood that there was potential in selling modified Mexican food in a fast food style.
In 1962, Bell opened the first Taco Bell in Downey, California. This fast food restaurant showed that the fast food business could operate outside of burgers and fried chicken. They were able to quickly and cheaply serve tacos, burritos, and a variety of other Mexican inspired food.
Taco Bell’s success was the first of many to come. It opened the doors for fast food to be offered at a lower price and at a quicker service time to more varied ethnic cuisines.
The Drive-In Era
Cars and Culture
Underworld II saw the rise and predominance of the automobile in American Culture. Families moved into the suburbs, highway road use surged, and car ownership became general. The first fast food restaurants used this fascination with the automobile to their own advantage.
Mechanics Of Operation
Drive-in diners allowed patrons to stay in their vehicles throughout the dining experience:
- Customers parked in designated parking spots.
- Wait staff, often young women on roller skates, came to take their order.
- Food was cooked in the restaurant kitchen.
- Wait staff delivered the food using trays that clipped to car windows.
- Customers consumed the food in their car.
- The wait staff returned to take payment and remove the food tray.
Notable Drive-In Franchises
Several franchises adopted the drive-in restaurant format:
Sonic: Established in 1953 in Shawnee, Oklahoma, as Top Hat Drive-In. The company changed ownership and name to Sonic and maintained the drive-in format, while most competitors moved to a different model.
Steak ‘n Shake: Established in 1934 in Normal, Illinois. It merged quality steakburgers and milkshakes served in a drive-in restaurant. Founder Gus Belt was known for quality by using a steak grinder in plain view of customers.
Dog n Suds: Founded in 1953. The chain served hot dogs and root beer at drive-in restaurants throughout the Midwest.
Drive-In Diners In The 50’s
From the 1950’s, drive-in diners became a place for teenagers and family gatherings. The drive-in restaurant’s carhop on roller skates became a timeless symbol of the era. The culture represented American prosperity, freedom of the road, and the relaxed dining culture.
Decrease of the Format
The decline of traditional drive-in restaurants started in the 1960’s due to the following reasons:
Increased Costs: Drive-in restaurants operating with carhops had to incur more labor costs.
Reduced Speed: Drive-in formats had slower services than walk-up windows.
Weather Issues: Rain, snow, and extreme weather made drive-in dining unreasonable.
Consumer Behavior: Customers began to prioritize speed over the drive-in experience.
Most fast food restaurants transitioned drive-through windows to replace the drive-in format.
Primary Breakthroughs of Earliest Fast Food
Assembly Line Kitchens
The McDonald brothers revolutionized the fast food industry by applying the principles of factory assembly lines to restaurant kitchens. This division of food preparation into smaller, repetitive tasks allowed operators to:
- Train staff quickly
- Ensure consistent quality
- Improve speed of production
- Decrease labor costs
- Reduce mistakes
This method spread throughout the entire food service industry and is still used today as the primary structure for fast food kitchens across the world.
The Franchise Model
Franchising let fast food chains grow without having to cover the full cost of building additional locations. The model served a number of different interests:
For Franchisors:
- Sped up growth without the need of a large economic input
- Ongoing royalty income from their franchisees
- Built their brand with numerous new locations
- Reduced costs from bulk buying and marketing
For Franchisees:
- Received proven concept and business model with less risk
- Improved odds of success because of prior brand recognition
- Benefitted from prior training and operational support
- Were provided tested recipes and procedures
Although A&W was the first franchised restaurant business, Ray Kroc was the first to adapt the model as a significant engine of growth that other chains rapidly.
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