US Restaurant Chain Origins Trivia Quiz

Answer: San Bernadino, California

Although popular lore tells of the "first" McDonald's restaurant opened in Des Plaines, Illinois in 1955, the very first McDonald's restaurant ever was actually opened in San Bernadino, California by the chain's founders, Dick and Mac McDonald, in 1940. The Des Plaines location was the first restaurant franchised to Ray Kroc, the man who gained fame (not to mention obscene riches!) by transforming the brand into the huge global phenomenon the chain became. That Des Plaines location was actually the ninth McDonald's restaurant in existence at the time. (First day register receipts in Des Plaines were $366.12!)

Ray Kroc later bought out the McDonald brothers' interest in their existing restaurants, making him sole owner of the McDonald's brand prior to the company going public in 1965. The original San Bernadino location is now a museum, as is the Des Plaines location. The McDonald's company today comprises over 31,000 locations in 120 countries! There is a McDonald's in every continent on earth except for Antarctica. Oak Brook, Illinois is the present-day company headquarters.

Answer: Atlanta, Georgia

Founder S. Truett Cathy opened the Dwarf House Grill in the Atlanta suburb of Hapeville, Georgia in 1946, where he developed the chicken sandwich that eventually became famous as the Chick-Fil-A sandwich. This location is still in operation today. However, the first "Chick-Fil-A" restaurant opened in 1967 at the Greenbriar Mall in Atlanta, paving the way for the modern American food court. Chick-Fil-A is now the second-largest chicken-based restaurant chain in the United States, second only to KFC. As of 2006, Chick-Fil-A had over 1,300 locations in 37 states.

Answer: South Salt Lake City, Utah

As unbelievable (and wrong!) as it seems, the world's first Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant opened in South Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1952! Colonel Harland Sanders perfected his "secret recipe" and served his first pieces of chicken in 1930 at his gas station/restaurant in Corbin, Kentucky, which was NOT named "Kentucky Fried Chicken." It was named the "Sanders Court and Cafe." Some might cry foul (or fowl!) and semantics, but when Colonel Sanders decided to franchise his chicken restaurant concept, the first to open a franchise under the name "Kentucky Fried Chicken" was Pete Harman in South Salt Lake. That was in 1952, and is the first official "Kentucky Fried Chicken" restaurant. Colonel Sanders' original franchise agreement had him being paid five cents for each piece of chicken sold! "Kentucky Fried Chicken" was officially re-named "KFC" in 1991 to combat health-conscious anti-frying sentiment.

In April, 2007 the company began naming newly-opening restaurants "Kentucky Fried Chicken" once again, and current plans are to continue this trend. KFC is today the largest chicken-based restaurant chain in the world, with more than 14,000 locations in over 80 countries.

Answer: Clearwater, Florida

The first Hooters restaurant opened in 1983 on Gulf-to-Bay Blvd. in Clearwater, Florida, located in the Tampa Bay Region. The overall concept, including beer, wings, burgers and the now-famous "Hooters Girls," has remained intact from this first restaurant, which is still in operation today.

In 1984, Robert Brooks bought expansion and franchise rights, and went on to expand the company to about 435 locations in 46 U.S. states and 22 other countries. Billed as "delightfully tacky, yet unrefined," the huge popularity of Hooters remains firmly rooted in its all-female waitressing staff, and their trademark uniform of tight tank-top shirt and orange short-short pants.

Answer: Tampa, Florida

The first Outback Steakhouse was opened in March, 1988 in Tampa, Florida. Curiously, the Australian-themed restaurant served American food, not Australian fare. In fact, none of its three founders, Tim Gannon, Chris Sullivan and Bob Basham, had ever even been to Australia! This Tampa location, on Henderson Blvd., is still in operation today and the company maintains its worldwide headquarters in Tampa.

The company has grown to become one of the largest casual steakhouse chains in the United States, with about 900 locations in 47 states and several other countries.

The company has since expanded its reach by introducing new concepts and restaurants, including Carabba's Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill, Fleming's Fine Steakhouse, Roy's Restaurants, Lee Roy Selmon BBQ and Cheeseburger in Paradise.

Answer: Avondale, Georgia

The first Waffle House opened in Avondale, an Atlanta suburb, in 1955. Its short-order efficiency, "always-open" 24-hour convenience and "corner grill" ambiance fueled a rapid growth. Today, the familiar yellow Waffle House sign is nearly unavoidable on a car trip of any distance in the southern U.S.

In fact, "count the Waffle Houses" has emerged as a favorite car-trip game, where participants try to most closely guess how many Waffle Houses will be passed on a trip. Today, the company operates over 1,700 restaurants in 25 states, mostly in the south.

It has been estimated that since its founding in 1955, Waffle House has served 442,451,500 waffles and 1,527,602,959 eggs!

Answer: Columbus, Ohio

Founder Dave Thomas opened the first Wendy's in downtown Columbus in November, 1969. The chain is named after Thomas' daughter, Melinda "Wendy" Thomas, with "Wendy" being a nickname given to her by her brothers and sisters. Prior to founding Wendy's, Thomas had spent years under the tutelage of none other than Kentucky Fried Chicken founder Colonel Harland Sanders (Thomas also bears the status of "Kentucky Colonel").

In fact, it was Thomas who designed the once famous chicken-bucket sign for the KFC chain. Sadly, this original location, which served as both restaurant and museum, closed its doors in March, 2007.

The museum artifacts were moved to company headquarters in Dublin, Ohio. The third-largest burger chain in America, Wendy's operates over 6,600 restaurants in 34 countries.

Answer: Downey, California

Founder Glen Bell (hence the name Taco "Bell") began with three mexican restaurants named "Taco Tia" before opening the first Taco Bell in Downey in March, 1962. The first franchised Taco Bell opened its doors in 1964. Today, the chain consists of over 5,800 locations worldwide.

While not true "Mexican" cuisine, but rather an Americanized version of Mexican themes, Taco Bell is nonetheless wildly successful. It is estimated that Taco Bell sells over 2 billion tacos and 1 billion burritos each year! A part of the huge Yum! brand fast-foods conglomerate owned by PepsiCo, Taco Bell is the best performing brand in a stable that includes KFC, Long John Silvers, Pizza Hut and A & W.

Answer: Wichita, Kansas

Brothers Dan and Frank Carney opened the first Pizza Hut in Wichita with a $600 loan from their mother. The first franchise unit opened a year later in Topeka. Pizza Hut went public in 1970, and in 1977 was acquired by PepsiCo, which still controls it as a part of its Yum! brand restaurant subsidiary. Now the world's largest pizza chain, Pizza Hut operates over 34,000 locations in 100 countries.

Answer: Bridgeport, Connecticut

Subway began in Bridgeport in 1965, when college student Fred DeLuca borrowed $1,000 from his friend Dr. Peter Buck to open a sandwich shop. Originally called "Pete's Super Submarines," it was later re-named "Pete's Subway" before being further shortened into today's simple "Subway." The fastest-growing franchise in the world, Subway has exploded into a worldwide phenomenon that encompasses about 28,000 locations in 87 countries. In fact, there are more Subway locations in America than there are McDonald's locations!