Flash Past Episode 27
Episode 27 finds Steve and Dan flashing to the history of fast food restaurants. Quick and dirty is good when it comes to a lot of things… should food be one of them?
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Show Notes
A lot of people believe that fast food originated with the giant, McDonald’s but they’re wrong. The first fast food restaurant was White Castle which was founded in 1921. In the early days of the hamburger people believed the ground beef to be spoiled meat and floor sweepings. White Castle came along and tried to change this opinion. The name inspired trust and suggested quality and the building, painted white, reinforced this facade. Additionally, you could see the whole food-making process from beginning to end in a White Castle restaurant.
In 1932 White Castle’s southern cousin Krystal came along and it wasn’t until 1940 that the McDonald brothers opened their doors. Though they weren’t the first on the scene they definitely perfected the fast food assembly line process and have since been imitated by myriad other restaurants.
1941 brought us Carl’s Jr. and it wasn’t until 1960 that its brother, Hardee’s, came along. Other contenders looking for your fast food dollars are Jack in the Box (1951), Burger King (1953), Arby’s (1964) and Wendy’s (1969).
Other types of fast food restaurants include chicken places like KFC, Church’s and Popeye’s. There are also fish restaurants like Captain D’s and Long John Silver’s. Mexican food (kind of) came onto the scene in the form of Taco Bell and there are even sandwich shops like Subway and Quizno’s.
There is debate over what the qualifiers are for a restaurant to be considered fast food… are French fries a requirement? Taco Bell doesn’t have them and they’re definitely fast food. Have a listen and let us know what you think.
Last weeks Question:
Q: Who was the first US president to get a pilot’s license?
A: Dwight Eisenhower got his pilot’s license in 1939.
Flash Past Trivia Question
q: In what decade did the double drive through debut?
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