History of Fast Food Essay

unshakable intellectual nourishment has been a growing phenomenon for since its introduction in 20th century. The changes in American culture pushed the fast nutrient industry into a staggering growth atomic number 18na and wipe out changed the way consumers purchase and eat forever. The fast-food industry that now extends throughout the world has its roots in the United States. Fast-food restaurants are often regarded as emblematic of a smart global culture, tho the industry has indisputably been shaped by its American origins. (Leidner 8).Fast victuals has developed from being a widget to a necessity, widened the financial gap and became an international phenomenon. The branch drive-in restaurant, Royce Haileys shit Stand in Dallas, Texas, was undetermined in 1921, and offered pulled pork BBQ and introduced Texas Toast. As one southern fan of Royce Haileys pig stand put it Folks went hog wild when the first Pig Stand opened in Dallas in 1921. Agile car hops leaped ont o running boards of Model-Ts to deliver curb service to a generation on the go.It was the get on with of the automobile, and Pig Stands multiplied across America swift than you can say soooo-eeee. It took the Great Depression of the 30s to s menial The Pig down. (Sowa). Drive-in services were not in truth popular at this measure because automobiles were dearly-won and few and far between during the Great Depression. Then nearly three decades later the drive-in restaurant enjoyed a degree of success during the 1950s. Drive-ins celebrated the cultural importance of the automobile and Drive-in restaurants proved (to be the) most popular, places where carhops served customers directly in their parked automobiles (Young, and Young 29).This convenience which enabled raft to order their food and eat it in the open air without having to unbuckle their seatbelts changed American fast food forever (Woloson). Car hops, as they were overly called, became familiar congregation centers for teenagers as well (Woloson). The rise of the fast food restaurant would not have been possible without constant changes in American culture. The 1950s brought about American lifestyle changes. With the end of the war Americans had saved money and moved to the suburbs.For the first time in history middle class get hitched with women with women with children were entering the work force. Married women comprised the majority of the growth in the female work force throughout the 1950s, and between 1940 and 1960 there was a 400 percentage increase in the number of working mothers by 1960, women with children under the age of eighteen accounted for nearly one-third of all women workers(Coontz 161). The working women and the decrease of free time may be a direct contributor to the growth of the fast food industry.The development of an affordable automobile and the simultaneous governmental support of sweet road systems physically reinforced this cultural melding, enabling car owners, es pecially, to go to places they had never been before. There was a boom in the tourist industry in the 1950s and 1960s. The key to the expansion of tourism demand was the rise in disposable incomes in the 1950s and 1960s. (Beauregard 225). Travelers, who once went by rail, boat, or horse, were now base faster by car. Consumers began to value things such as speed and convenience as part of their trips.Fast food restaurants began making their food faster and faster and Americans love the convenience of letting someone else do the cooking, especially when they are vacationing (Bijlefeld, and Zoumbaris 51). As travelers not only did they need affordable and reliable places to beat they needed quick, convenient, and inexpensive eateries. The need for fast, reliable, affordable, and convenient food, along with an increasing acceptance among Americans of more fast pace culture, led to the rise of the fast food industry.Fast food restaurants sprang up in both urban areas and along the nat ions postgraduateways in record numbers after the introduction of the fast food phenomenon known as McDonalds. The first fast food restaurant (was) opened by the two McDonald brothers in 1937 in Pasadena, California. Their established restaurant had experienced high demand at specific times (for example, workers lunchtimes) and they responded with a circumscribed menu (burgers) and were able to serve large numbers at high speed and low price.The assembly line procedures, with food preparation and serving made into childly repetitive tasks, combined with a specialized division of labor for each stage, have been recognized as constituting the first fast food factory (Beardsworth, and Keil 120). This enabled people to get their food faster and set the standards for the future of the fast food industry. As the McDonalds chain grew and other chains started to sprout up people began to accept the new culture of food service. The working-class food held largely in disrepute.The gaining f ar-flung popularity of fast food made it a staple food in diets of many Americans diets. The most successful of these stands quickly multiplied, taking advantage of the growing popularity of this new fast food and applied industrial principles of standardization to its development. McDonalds is considered the first fast food restaurant and recognized the potential of this relatively fast and simple food. The organization of McDonalds created standardized methods in its production.The history of ashen castle dates back to the 1920s is seen as the first and most influential restaurant chain (White stronghold). White palace is credited for beginning the franchise system that inspired many (Woloson). White Castle set standards, began standardization of the cooking line, and created the first restaurant which duplicated the original. In retrospect it can be said that White Castle was the start and set high standards for all the other franchise restaurants in the United States. The ham burger fulfilled economic as well as cultural needs for inexpensive food.Although there was not a food deficit during the great depression food was expensive and affordable food options like the local hamburger stand was a blessing. By the end of 1930, White Castle had sold over 21 million hamburgers and then by the end of 1937, this number had increased to over 40 million (Woloson). Fast food began to profit a steady incline towards the end of World War II. Franchises were not unique to the 1950s they had been around since the early decades of the twentieth century, patronized by a public increasingly used to and insistent upon the supposed reliability and trustworthiness of branded goods(Woloson).White Castle, A & W Root beer, and Howard Johnsons, were some of the first and most successful restaurant franchises. Although it took the ideals of postwar culture to wholly support the fast-food franchise it laid the foundations for the companies to make billions of dollars. In 1955 R ay A. Kroc, a Chicago Milkshake salesman, discover the McDonalds restaurant in California and saw a goldmine. He partnered with the McDonalds brothers, opening 228 franchises by 1960. Kroc happily bought out the McDonalds shares of the company in 1961.Kroc, an astounding entrepreneur, wanted to make the customers to identify with the restaurant and make it seem homey. By 1988, McDonalds had opened its ten thousandth restaurant and today there are over 30,000 McDonalds restaurants worldwide (History of Franchising). Krocs success lay in his approach not specifically to cooking individual food items, but in conceiving of his franchise operation in its entirety (Woloson). The methods and success of McDonalds Franchises have set a tone for the fast food industry.Although White Castle was the first restaurant that encouraged carry-out for those customers on the go the restraint developed standard floor plans and architectural designs that could be easily duplicated and set these standa rds for others in the industry (Woloson). McDonalds uniform restaurants, kitchens, dining rooms, and methods of standardized cooking techniques set this great restaurant apart and distinguish it from the other fast food restaurants. Ray Kroc had some aspiration with the introduction of popular fast food restaurants such as Taco Bell, Wendys, and Burger King.One may say ethnic food could be considered a literary genre for the fast food franchise system, Taco Bell originated in 1962 and was the first ethnic franchise restaurant, paving the way for many more. Wendys, specializing in bigger, better, and more expensive hamburgers and introduced the first drive-thru windows at their restaurants, which were so popular that Burger King and McDonalds had to follow suit(Woloson). As an industry fast food will continue to grow, change, and aline to the needs of the culture around it.Expanding to international markets the fast food industry offers cultural acceptable products. Multinational fast-food chains have now become home base names, and in terms of sales and units tend to dominate national markets. Indeed, the industry is becoming more internationalized with brands like Burger King being bought by the British international Diageo and McDonalds has recently bought a stake in Pret a Manger. However, some of the largest brands in this sector are still American-owned, such as McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, and wimpish(Royle and Towers 3).One great concept is international fast food chains often support the local economy, buying local products, but sticking to the kindred well known recipes to get desired results. The fast food franchise of the 20th century has set and defined a world-renowned concept of the way people order, eat, and enjoy the food that they purchase. The fast food industry is one of enormous power and economic strength. Fast food restaurants represent Americas cultures and, in many ways, how other cultures strive to be like America.