Fast-food restaurant
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A fast-food restaurant is a restaurant characterized by food which is supplied quickly after ordering and by minimal service. Food purchased may or may not be eaten quickly as well. Often this food is referred to as fast food. In response to increasing backlash against "fast-food", the industry has been trying to move the public away from the term "fast food" over the past five years, shifting to the term quick service restaurant (QSR for short). QSR has not, however, been seen used in regular speech.
The food in these restaurants is commonly cooked in bulk in advance and kept hot, or reheated to order. Many fast-food restaurants are part of restaurant chains or franchise operations, which ship standardized foodstuffs to the individual restaurants from central locations. There are also simpler fast-food outlets, such as stands or kiosks, which might or might not provide shelter or chairs for customers (for the UK, see also below).
Because the capital requirements to start a fast-food restaurant are relatively low, particularly in areas with non-existent or little enforced health codes, small individually owned fast-food restaurants are common throughout the world.
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Overview
Within the United States, fast-food restaurants have been losing market share to so-called fast casual restaurants, which offer somewhat better and more expensive foods (e.g. Subway). In 2002, the McDonald's Corporation posted its first quarterly loss. Due to this cultural shift towards healthier better quality foods McDonalds and Burgerking most notably have started to move towards selling healthier alternatives such as Salads and Deli style sandwiches in an effort to match the demand of a changing society and also as a response to ongoing lawsuits against the companies.
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The bill arising due to an increase in lawsuits aimed at fast food chains by people who claimed that eating fast food MADE them obese, basically disasociating them selves from any blame for eating the products.
Because of this reliance on monoculture, on foodstuffs purchased on global commodity markets and on its displacement of local eating habits, the fast-food industry is seen by many as destroying local styles of cuisine. It is often a focus of resistance (e.g., José Bové's bulldozing a McDonald's which made him a folk hero in France, or the "MCSHIT (http://www.mcshit.co.uk/)" campaign in the UK).
For these reasons and more, the Slow Food movement seeks to preserve local cuisines and ingredients, and directly opposes laws and habits that favor fast-food choices. Among other things, it strives to educate consumers' palates to prefer the richer and more varied local tastes of fresh ingredients harvested in season.
Although fast-food restaurants are often seen as a mark of modern technological culture, they are probably as old as cities themselves, with the style varying from culture to culture. Ancient Roman cities had bread-and-olive stands, East Asian cultures feature noodle shops, flat bread, and falafel are characteristic of the Middle East.
In the United Kingdom, while fast-food restaurant chains are now common, the British tradition of take-away foods such as fish and chips and steak and kidney pie with mash remain popular. Closer to the end of the 20th century, these have been joined by take-away outlets selling ethnic or pseudo-ethnic foods such as Italian, Chinese, and Indian. For more on foods in the UK, see British cuisine.
Modern fast-food restaurants
Although pioneered in the United States, fast food is a worldwide phenomenon. The following is a list of restaurants, arranged according to country of origin. In many cases, these will be franchised beyond a single country.
Australia
- Chicken Treat
- Crepe Cafe
- Donut King
- Eagle Boys Pizza
- Hungry Jack's (actually Burger King, but known as "Hungry Jack's" due to a trademark dispute)
- Red Rooster
- Wendy's Ice Cream
Brazil
- Bob's http://www.bobs.com.br
- Burgão http://www.burgao.com/
- Habib's http://www.habibs-fast-food.com.br
Canada
- Coffee Time
- Country Style
- Deluxe French Fries (Maritimes)
- Edo Japan
- Greco Pizza (Maritimes)
- Harvey's
- Made In Japan Teriyaki Experience
- Mr. Sub
- Mrs. Vanelli's
- New York Fries
- Pizza Delight
- Pizza Nova
- Pizza Pizza (Ontario)
- Pizza Shack (Maritimes)
- Quizno's
- Robin's Donuts
- St-Hubert
- Swiss Chalet
- Tim Hortons (fast casual restaurant, owned by Wendy's)
- Valentine [[1] (http://www.valentine.qc.ca/|http://www.valentine.qc.ca/)] (website in French)
- White Spot (BC)
China
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hong Kong
- Café de Coral
- Chaan-tengs - local fast food
- Jollibee
- Maxim's
- Oliver's Super Sandwiches
Iran
Ireland
Israel
Italy
- Autogrill on the Italian network of Autostrada freeways
- Brek
- Chef Express in trains and train stations
- Ciao
- Pizzarito & Pastarito
- Spizzico
Japan
- Becker's
- Chikuji Gindako
- CoCo Ichibanya
- Dom Dom Hamburger
- First Kitchen
- Freshness Burger
- Kozozushi
- Kyotaru
- Lotteria
- Mos Burger
- Pepper Lunch
- Sukiya, "Beef bowl"
- Tenya
- Yoshinoya, "Beef bowl" http://www.yoshinoyausa.com/
Malaysia
Mexico
South Africa
Spain
- Pans & Company
- Pêle-Mêle
- Rodilla
- Telepizza[2] (http://www.telepizza.es)
- Telericatorta
Sweden
United Kingdom
- Great British Burger
- Gregg's
- Harry Ramsden's
- Mr D's
- Pret a Manger
- Wimpy http://www.kzwp.com/lyons/wimpy.htm
United States
- A&W http://www.awrestaurants.com
- Atlanta Bread Company http://www.atlantabread.com/
- Arby's http://www.arbys.com
- Arctic Circle http://www.arcticcirclerest.com/
- Arthur Treacher's
- Backyard Burger
- Baja Fresh http://www.bajafresh.com/
- Baskin-Robbins
- Blimpie
- Bojangles'
- Bun Boy
- Burger King http://www.bk.com/
- Burgerville, USA (Oregon and Southwest Washington Only) http://www.burgerville.com/
- Captain D's http://www.captainds.com/
- Carl's Jr. http://www.carlsjr.com/
- Charley's Grilled Subs http://www.charleyssteakery.com/
- Checkers Drive-In (also called Rally's Drive-In) http://www.checkers.com/index.asp
- Chick-fil-A http://www.chickfila.com
- Chipotle Mexican Grill http://www.chipotle.com/
- Church's Chicken http://www.churchs.com/
- Cinnabon http://www.cinnabon.com
- Culver's
- Dairy Queen (Brazier) http://www.dairyqueen.com
- Del Taco http://www.deltaco.com/
- Dick's Drive-In (Seattle)
- Domino's Pizza
- Donatos Pizza http://www.donatos.com/
- Dunkin' Donuts http://dunkindonuts.com
- Fazoli's http://www.fazolis.com/
- Fatburger http://www.fatburger.net
- Foster's Freeze
- Hamburger Stand with Der Wienerschnitzel http://www.wienerschnitzel.com/
- Hardee's
- Home Run Inn Pizza (Chicago) http://homeruninnpizza.com
- Hot Dog on a Stick http://www.hotdogonastick.com/
- In-N-Out (Arizona, California and Nevada) http://www.in-n-out.com/
- Jack in the Box
- Jim's Burger Haven (Colorado Only)
- Johnny Rockets
- KFC http://www.kfc.com/
- Krispy Kreme Donuts
- Krystal http://www.krystal.com/
- Little Caesar's
- Long John Silver's http://www.longjohnsilvers.com/
- McDonald's
- Moe's Southwest Grill http://www.moes.com/
- Nathan's Famous http://www.nathansfamous.com/
- Panda Express http://www.pandaexpress.com/
- Panera Bread http://www.panera.com/
- Papa John's Pizza
- Pioneer Chicken
- Pizza Hut
- Popeye's Fried Chicken http://www.popeyes.com/
- Qdoba Mexican Grill http://www.qdoba.com/
- Quizno's http://www.quiznos.com/
- Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers http://www.raisingcanes.com/
- Roy Rogers Family Restaurants
- Rubio's (mainly California)
- Runza Restaurants http://www.runza.com/
- Sbarro
- Schlotzsky's http://www.cooldeli.com/
- Shakey's Pizza
- Sonic Drive-In http://www.sonicdrivein.com/
- Sonny's Real Pit Bar-B-Q
- Steak n Shake http://www.steaknshake.com/
- Submarina
- Subway
- Taco Bell
- TacoCabana http://www.tacocabana.com/
- Taco Johns http://www.tacojohns.com/
- Taco Mayo
- Taco Tico
- Taco Time
- Tastee Freeze
- The Hat (So. California)
- Tim Hortons (New York, Michigan, Maine, Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia)
- Togo's Eateries http://www.togosspeedlunch.com/
- Tommy's (Southern California only)
- Una Mas!
- Wendy's http://www.wendys.com
- Whataburger
- White Castle http://www.whitecastle.com/
- Wienerschnitzel http://www.wienerschnitzel.com
- Winchell's Donuts
Fictional
- Big Kahuna Burger in the movie Pulp Fiction and also several other of Quentin Tarrantino's films.
- McMeatie's is a McDonald's spoof in the popular Nickelodeon cartoon, Invader Zim.
- Burger Barn in the movie What's Eating Gilbert Grape?. A major event in the small fictional town of Endora, Iowa, is the arrival of the prefabricated restaurant.
- Burger Meister (http://www.sluggy.com/daily.php?date=981130) is a chain of fast-food restaurant in the webcomic Sluggy Freelance
- Burger World in Beavis and Butthead and The Steve Harvey Show.
- Good Burger, featured in Nickelodeon's TV show All That, and a feature film known as Good Burger.
- Ninja Burger is a fictional Internet fast-food restaurant run by ninja.
- Krusty Burger is a chain of fast-food restaurants in the Simpsons TV show.
- Mooby's is in Kevin Smith's series of films.
- WacArnold's, the typical McDonald's clone seen in Chappelle's Show.
- WcDonald's in Cowboy Bebop, Inuyasha, and various other anime.
- McDowell's, a McDonald's clone in the Eddie Murphy film, Coming to America.
- Krusty Krab, the fast-food restaurant where SpongeBob SquarePants works and home of the Krabby Patty.
- Doublemeat Palace is the fast-food resturant where Buffy Summers works in the sixth season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
- Kenntucky Schreit Ficken (literally: Kenntucky Screams F**k) is the fast-food restaurant in many sketches of the German comedy show RTL Samstag Nacht
Fast-food chains which have disappeared
- Burger Chef [3] (http://web.archive.org/web/20030425145203/http://www.burgerchef.com) (link from a former site located at the Internet Archive)
- Burghy incorporated in McDonald's Corporation Italia
- Griff's Hamburger's
- Red Barn Burger and Fried Chicken chain in California. Had television and print advertisements staring puppets that were close in design to those on Sesame Street. Chain vanished in the mid to late 70's. Many barnlike structures, housing independent Fast Food restaurants still remain in S.F. Bay Area.
- Doggy Diner San Francisco based chain of diner style fast food restaurants. Last one went out of business in 1996. The giant fiberglass cartoon dachshund head from the last store was recently made a San Francisco Historical Monument.
Corporations
See also
- Fast food
- List of restaurant chains
- List of reference tables
- Slow Food
- Cuisine
- McDonaldization
- Eric Schlosser: Fast Food Nation (Houghton Mifflin, 2002, hardcover, 288 pages) (ISBN 0395977894)
- Eat-Out Choice At Home (http://www.googul.net/modules/zmagazine/article.php?articleid=16)
- Super Size Me: Morgan Spurlock http://www.supersizeme.com/de:Fast Food