Take a nostalgic look back at classic fast-food chains.
Fast food restaurants have been feeding the United States for decades, a popular choice for families as an easy and inexpensive meal. While the decor and restaurant chains have changed, hamburgers and roast beef are still popular options. Here are seven fast food restaurants you might’ve visited during America’s golden age of dining:
A&W
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In 1919, Roy W. Allen opened a root beer stand in Lodi, California. Three years later, he partnered with Frank Wright, who had been an employee at the original stand. (That’s how A&W got its name.) In 1925, Allen began selling franchise locations, and A&W is widely considered to be the first franchise restaurant chain in America. It also introduced the world’s first bacon cheeseburger in 1956. The fast food chain, famous for serving root beer in frosted mugs, had its most popular years in the 1960s and 1970s. A&W still exists in the United States, but has many fewer locations than in its heyday.
White Tower Hamburgers
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Only five years after White Castle first opened, White Tower Hamburgers began in 1926, copying the same menu and castle-like architecture. White Castle sued White Tower for trademark infringement and won, forcing White Tower to change to an Art Deco style. White Tower Hamburgers was at its most popular in the 50s; there are no locations left today.
Red Barn
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Founded in Springfield, Ohio, in 1961, Red Barn was known for its red, barn-shaped buildings, cartoon “Hungry” mascots, and the slogan, “When the Hungries hit, Hit the Red Barn.” The chain was dismantled in the ’80s after corporate restructuring, but it — and its red barns — are still remembered fondly. “Spicy, crispy skin on them chicky bits!” one Redditor wrote. “The last surviving building in my area came down for a new gas station recently. Farewell, yummy memories!”
Blimpie
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Blimpie began in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1964 serving deli-style submarine sandwiches. It hit its peak in the 1990s with around 2,000 locations worldwide. There are still some locations left, mostly in New Jersey. “Last Blimpie roast beef sub I had…. Was in Mineral Point WI. So so much better than the competition at that time,” wrote a Redditor. “Unique and well balanced. Miss them.”
Rax Roast Beef
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Rax Roast Beef was founded in 1967 in Springfield, Ohio, building its identity around freshly sliced, made-to-order roast beef. It was originally called JAX Roast Beef, but was renamed in 1977. Popular in the 1980s, there are only six locations left now. “Their kid’s meals came with an alligator shaped cup,” wrote one fan. “It was the 80’s, so it probably leached all kinds of carcinogens into the drink, but I used to love going there when I was a kid.”
Arthur Treacher’s
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Arthur Treacher’s Fish & Chips began in Columbus, Ohio, in 1969. One of the three men who founded it might sound familiar: Dave Thomas, who also founded Wendy’s. The three entrepreneurs purchased a traditional fried fish recipe from a longtime fish and chip shop in London and named the restaurant after a British character actor named Arthur Treacher. The chain’s popularity skyrocketed and hit its peak in the late 1970s. But after a buyout in 1979, the new owner switched from cod to pollock, which was cheaper, and the backlash was the beginning of the end for Arthur Treacher’s. Only four standalone restaurants remain.
Roy Rogers
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Roy Rogers was a fast food chain known for roast beef, burgers, fried chicken, and its famous Fixin’s Bar, where customers could customize their sandwiches. It was most popular in the 1980s, with the majority of its restaurants in the Eastern United States. Roy Rogers was sold to Hardee’s in 1990 but was rebooted in the early 2000s, and there are a few dozen locations spread across the Mid-Atlantic region.
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