Business
Top 10 Surprising Facts About Fast Food Restaurants
We all love fast food, and there’s no reason to deny it. The salty, greasy delights served up by these quick-serve restaurants hit our pleasure zones as nothing else can. But we’re here to give you the Top 10 Surprising Facts About Fast Food that will make you think twice about going to your favorite restaurant.
10. The best time to visit isn’t when you think
When is the best time to visit a fast-food restaurant? Do you think the best time is when you’re so hungry you can’t stand it anymore? Yes that is a good time, however, we’re talking about what is the best time of day to go to a fast-food joint. Some of you might think the best time is to go during breakfast hours. After all, people perform their best first thing in the morning. Anyone who has eaten during the lunch rush knows that it can be a hectic time for both the workers and those who are in a hurry for a bite to eat. So, when is the best time to hit up a fast-food restaurant for some grub? The best time by far is seven in the evening. Yes, we’re talking about supper time. Why is suppertime better than lunch or breakfast? It seems that this is when the bulk of fast-food sales are made. Simply put, you’re more likely to get fresh food at seven than you are during any other time of the day. Anyone who has ever eaten at a fast-food restaurant during the hours that they aren’t busy knows the quality of the food can be questionable. That’s because the food isn’t as fresh as it is when they’re churning it out left and right for customers so hungry they’re ready to devour sauce packets.
9. Customers spend more at self-services terminals
What’s worse than waiting for what feels like forever at a restaurant where everything is supposed to be fast? The worst thing by far is having to stand in line for ages before someone takes your order. You can’t wait until they finally begin to ask you what you want. You’ve looked at the menu board countless times and already know what you want. Fantasies have already started to play out in your head about what you’re soon going to eat. The way you skip all the wait time is by heading on over to a terminal and placing your order there. There is no wait, and you don’t have to worry about the person getting your order wrong. Why do you think that your favorite burger joint has those terminals? Do you think it’s so they don’t have to pay cashiers to ring up your order? The real truth that the public hasn’t realized yet is, people spend more when using a terminal. You’re more likely to place bigger orders at a terminal than when speaking to a cashier. Could that be because you don’t feel guilty about being a glutton when placing your order on a machine? There’s no one to look at you strangely when you get that second order of fries that you know is a little too much. You don’t feel as guilty ordering dessert when there is no one shocked that you’ll have room for everything.
8. Your cold soda makes you hungry
We all know there’s nothing that goes better with fast food than soda. Did you know that cold drinks make you want to eat more? They do, and that’s why you can’t stop shoveling fries down your gullet while sipping on soda. Is that why your favorite burger joint has a wide variety of soda available? Well, it’s probably not the driving force. Though this fact of human nature is as such that it has to be in the back of their mind. The real reason why all of the fast-food chains sell soda is that the profit margins are super high. Who knew that bubbly sugar water was so cheap to make? The salt on fries also makes you thirsty. Those salty sticks of deep-fried goodness make you want to guzzle down soda. If you’re able to fight the temptation of the wonderful bubbly liquid, then get coffee. You’ll find yourself eating less food when drinking hot drinks. That doesn’t mean your burger is going to taste as good as it would when draining a couple of glasses of cola on the rocks. Who are we fooling? You’re going to pig out eating a ton and drinking as much soda as possible. Sure it makes you hungry, but it’s a one-two combination like no other.
7. Dave Thomas and Colonel Sanders were once on the same team
It’s hard to believe that these two fast-food titans were once working on the same team. Dave Thomas, who later went on to found Wendy’s, was working for a company that turned their restaurants into KFC chains. It was then that Dave and the Colonel were both working together to improve the KFC brand. Dave suggested that the Colonel should be in his advertisements, that they should put the chicken in a bucket, and that the sign should be a rotating bucket. All of these changes led to the success of KFC and turned the restaurant into a household name. Dave Thomas holds a special place in the hearts of fast foodies for so many reasons. No one was more wholesome or appeared to care more about his products. The same is true when the Colonel was in his advertisements. After working together and then drifting apart, their relationship never became a rivalry since both men were quite fond of each other. They understood that a person who was craving fried chicken wasn’t going to be persuaded by a burger. Each man carved out their own niche in the world of fast-food and was able to profit handsomely from it.
6. It’s all about that precious Cinnabon aroma
The people behind Cinnabon are smart as a whip. Have you ever noticed that you can’t escape the Cinnabon smell? Your nose knows when you’re near a Cinnabon long before the rest of you does. A big reason for that is the location of Cinnabon stores. They work hard to find places where their sweet delicious odor can float through the air with as little trouble as possible. Can that really be true? Yes, it is. That’s why you always see Cinnabon at shopping malls and in airports. They want you to be able to smell their delicious pastries baking and will do almost anything to make it happen. Cinnabon bakes cinnamon buns every 30 minutes. By making sure that there’s always fresh product being baked, they ensure the odor will tickle your nostrils. They also give restaurant owners specific instructions on the type of oven to use to maximize the amount of scent that goes throughout the area. They know that there’s a certain number of people who can’t resist the delicious smell that permeates from a Cinnabon. You don’t need to spend money on advertising when you have something that smells as delicious as what Cinnabon is baking.
5. The odd reasoning behind the McFlurry spoon
For those of you who live under a rock and don’t know what McDonald’s dessert menu is all about, we’ll tell you something that will rock your world. The McFlurry is McDonald’s answer to Dairy Queen’s Blizzard. Is a McFlurry as good as a Blizzard? We’re not going to touch that debate with a ten foot McFlurry spoon. Everyone has their favorites, and we’re not here to pick sides. Have you ever noticed how weird the spoon of a McFlurry is? Why do they give you such an odd spoon? The spoon is what they use to mix the ingredients of the McFlurry with. Using the spoon to mix up your McFlurry is ingenious since it eliminates most of the health hazards that would be associated with a mixer. It would be far too much work to have to clean the mixer every time someone orders a McFlurry. The solution of using the spoon as a mixer works since it’s disposable. There’s nothing to clean, and a fresh, clean spoon is used after every order. Now you know why the spoon is so odd when you order a McFlurry. The reason for the oddly shaped spoon wasn’t what you thought it was if you believed it was meant as a flavor enhancer.
4. Fast food restaurants are designed to make you hungry
Have you ever wondered why just looking at a McDonald’s makes you hungry? You feel so strange, getting hungry, just looking at the building. There’s a reason for that, and it’s quite surprising if you think about it long enough. The way McDonald’s is designed right down to the colors they choose is crafted in a way to make you hungry. How crazy is that? You don’t need to set foot in the place to crave their piping hot fries or delicious sandwiches. Looking at the building is enough to get you to want to pull out your wallet and place an order. Now you know why it’s almost impossible to walk by a McDonald’s without going inside. McDonald’s and other fast-food restaurants all use the same colors for a reason. Those colors make you feel hungry. You might think that it’s a far fetched idea that yellow and red make you want to open your mouth and shovel food inside it. Why else would these multi-billion dollar companies all use the same colors? They surely didn’t hire the same decorator. All of these companies have scientists that work for them that understand how the human brain works. They’ve devised a strategy to make you hungry when you don’t want to eat. Come on; you know you want that hot fudge sundae. Sure, you just ate supper, but you didn’t have dessert. Don’t you deserve a sweet treat after all you’ve been through recently? McDonald’s thinks you do, and that’s why they do everything possible to get you inside.
3. Fast food is a relatively new invention
What we think of fast food has only been around for about a hundred years. That’s not long, considering the length of time humans have existed. We humans have needed to fill our gut with something since time began. Fast food existed in some forms before what we think of it, but it had a terrible reputation. It was the food of festivals, fairs, and carts. Someone would pull a cart near where a bunch of people were working and sell sandwiches. The food wasn’t always the highest quality, but the hungry workers didn’t seem to care. All the workers wanted was something to calm their hunger pangs long enough so they could go back to running their machine back in the factory. White Castle is the first restaurant to change the way people think of fast food. They purposefully painted the building white so people would associate it with cleanliness. It’s important to realize that this was at a time when quick-service restaurants had a very bad reputation. Walter Anderson and Billy Ingram knew if they could get over the hurdle of the bad rap greasy spoons were receiving, that the public would buy anything they sold. They were right, and it was their hard work and dedication that created an entire industry almost overnight.
2. Subway’s foot-longs aren’t exactly 12 inches
You know you’re hungry when you balk at the idea of ordering a six-inch sub. Your growling stomach demands a foot long, and anything short of that is unacceptable. After deciding how long you want your sandwich to be, the next hardest part is what to order. Do you go with steak? Maybe you’re in the mood for something a little more Italian. If none of that suits your fancy, then you can go the route of their tuna sub. Some people on a diet may skip all that and go with the Veggie Delight. After you decide what type of sub to get, then you’ve got to choose between all of those toppings. All this time you thought you were getting twelve inches of a delicious sandwich. A lawsuit proved that sometimes Subway’s sandwiches were less than the foot-long they advertise. Sometimes the sandwiches were 11 inches in length. How would you feel if you knew your sandwich was an inch shorter than advertised? Would you have a nervous breakdown and cry in the restaurant? Maybe you’d stomp your feet like a child having a temper tantrum. If you’re sophisticated like today’s eaters are, you hire some fancy lawyers to sue the company. That’s what happens when you’re guts are growling, and you need every inch of sandwich possible to get through the day.
1. Something familiar with Wendy’s chili
Who doesn’t love to sit down to a bowl of Wendy’s chili? Do you put crackers in yours? There has to be at least one of you out there who loves to put so many crackers in your chili that they soak up all the liquid. Then again, there’s more than likely some of you who eat it as it is. No crackers for you, but maybe a squeeze or two of the hot sauce they give you in that little packet. The real adventurous people out there order their chili with onion and cheese on top. You know who you are. Did you know that the Taco Salad also has its world-famous chili? Wendy’s Taco Salad can give anything on Taco Bell’s menu a run for its money. Every delicious bite of Wendy’s chili is loaded with great tasting ground beef. Did you know that the ground beef used in their chili comes from their hamburgers? More to the point, it’s hamburgers that didn’t sell. You see Wendy’s grills up a ton of burgers to make sure everyone gets a sandwich that’s hot and fresh. The burgers that don’t sell get tossed into the chili. If you ever thought that the meat in Wendy’s chili tasted familiar, now you know why. The same beef used to make their great tasting sandwiches like the Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger is used to make chili. That’s why the meat tastes so good, and you feel so sad when you reach the bottom of the bowl of that Wendy’s chili.