33 Fast-Food Tales to Wash Down With an Elbow-Length Soda
Gather ‘round the drive-thru, children
![33 Fast-Food Tales to Wash Down With an Elbow-Length Soda](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/0/3/2/1004032_320x180.jpg)
Because this list is one degree of separation from the food itself, these facts shouldn’t give you a stomachache. But they will definitely give you a brainy ache, since the knowledge within them could make that info sponge pulsate against your skull. Sounds delicious, right?
![McDonald's 1940 HAMBURGERS - McDonald's BY agree CRACKED.COM Beginning as McDonald's Barbeque, the owners quickly realized hamburgers were outselling the BBQ at the drive-in restaurant.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/9/1001189.jpg)
![White Castle 1921 Castle 5t White Castle 5 eler Established in 1921 HAMBURGERS Buy em by the Sack CASTL GRACKED COM White Castle was the first American fast-food chain. Hamburgers were 5 cents and quickly served to exact specifications, which would later be copied by other chains.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/8/1001188.jpg)
![KFC 1952 New الله CRACKED.COM After varied careers, Colonel Harland Sanders began selling food out of his gas station in 1930. It wasn't until the invention of the pressure cooker in 1939 where he perfected his quickly fried chicken with 11 herbs and spices. In 1952, he franchised the business.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/6/1001186.jpg)
![Subway 1965 *Petes SUBWAY Ril KITCHEN CRACKED.COM Fred DeLuca was 17-years-old when his family friend Dr. Peter Buck gave him a $1000 loan to open a sandwich shop to help fund his college. It was originally called Pete's Submarines.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/7/1001187.jpg)
![Burger King 1953 CRACKED.COM Inspired by McDonald's, the founders bought the rights to the Insta-Broiler, a special grill, which inspired their resturaunt's name Insta-Burger King. It was franchised the following year.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/5/1001185.jpg)
![Starbucks 1971 CRACKED.COM The three founders were college friends who were instructed how to roast by Peet's Coffee and Tea founder. The company's name was picked out from Moby Dick...it almost was named Pequod.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/4/1001184.jpg)
![McDonald's delivery trucks in the UK run on grease from McDonald's fryers. through traffic - follow the freshness, M That's been the case for more than a decade, and it's thanks to grease recovery units (GRUs) installed at every UK McDonald's restaurant. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/3/1001183.jpg)
![Dinner Baskets turned fast food workers into waiters. BURG KING CRACKED.COM In 1992, Burger King introduced an option to make their overworked staff deliver your meal right to your face and all but baby-bird it to ya.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/2/1001182.jpg)
![Krispy Kreme (accidentally) supports the Klan COLOURING TUESDAY 18th February, 12:00pm - 5.00pm KKK WEDNESDAY CRACKED.COM In 2015, a Krispy Kreme location in the UK planned a week of fun family events, including a Wednesday dedicated to the unfortunately named Krispy Kreme Klub.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/1/1001181.jpg)
![In Hong Kong, McDonald's has an upscale restaurant called McDonald's Next. The color scheme is black and white, the decor is glass and metal, and there's even table service in the evening. But they offer all the usual menu items. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/8/0/1001180.jpg)
![The McDonaldland characters aren't original -- they're just ripoffs. C McDonald's lifted everything from H.R. Pufnstuf, one of the most popular kids' TV programs in the '70s. It was so brazen, McDonald's got sued. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/9/1001179.jpg)
![If you ask Ronald McDonald where burgers come from, he says they're grown. According to a former Ronald McDonald, the story for kids was that hamburgers grow in a patch and then they just get plucked. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/8/1001178.jpg)
![One McDonald's restaurant has arches that aren't golden, but turquoise. N M It's in Sedona, Arizona, and it's turquoise because the town has rules that ensure no buildings clash with the natural scenery surrounding it. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/6/1001176.jpg)
![McDonald's had a no women hiring policy until the late '60s. Even then, the owner demanded female employees be flat-chested and not work the grill since they didn't have the stamina for intense labor. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/7/1001177.jpg)
![There are only four Chicken McNugget shapes. They are the Boot, the Ball, the Bow-Tie, and the Bell. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/5/1001175.jpg)
![Taco Bell is named after its founder, Glen Bell. TACO BELL Не was a California entrepreneur who first owned a mini golf course and a hot dog stand. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/4/1001174.jpg)
![Arby's is a play on RB for Raffel Brothers, the founders. Arby's ROAST Beer Sandwich IS DELICIOUS. Arbyis Leroy and Forrest Raffel almost named it Big Tex. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/2/1001172.jpg)
![Subway has the most locations of any fast food chain. SUBWAY REGUTER 13H OPEN SUB na With 43,800 stores in 110 countries, it beats out McDonald's and Starbucks. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/3/1001173.jpg)
![The swirl on top of Dairy Queen's ice cream is trademarked. As a former DQ employee, I can testify there's an artform to get it looking nice. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/1/1001171.jpg)
![Dave Thomas regretted naming Wendy's after his daughter. Не said, I should've just named it after myself, because it put a lot of pressure on . NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/7/0/1001170.jpg)
![Houston Police used Whataburger order numbers to mark crime scenes. WHATABURGER WHATABURGER. 67 33 They were told to stop in 2017 after an image went viral. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/9/1001169.jpg)
![Dairy Queen 1940 DAIRY QUEEN CRACKED.COM In 1938, to test a new soft serve technology, Sherb Noble of Sherb's ran a deal of all-you-can-eat ice cream for 10 cents. In 1940, Noble opened a Dairy Queen, that specialized in soft-serve.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/8/1001168.jpg)
![Pizza Hut 1958 PIZZA HUT CRACKED.COM Brothers Frank and Dan Carney borrowed $600 from their mom to open a pizzeria. They came up with the name Pizza Hut because their sign only had room for 8 letters.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/2/1001162.jpg)
![Dunkin' 1948 Dunkin Dounto ORIGINAL DUNKIN' LOCATION - ESTABLISHED 1950 CRACKED.COM William Rosenberg opened a donut shop originally called Open Kettle. Donuts were five cents while coffee was 10 cents.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/5/1001165.jpg)
![Wendy's 1969 WENDY'S WHO OLD OLD FASHIONED FASHIONED HAMBURGERS CRACKED COM After working for years at KFC, Dave Thomas wanted a mascot for the hamburger chain he was opening. His daughter Wendy's name worked the best so he took a photo and the business began.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/6/1001166.jpg)
![Chipotle 1993 Chipolle CINEMA GRAPHICS THE ULTIMATE POSTER SHOP CRACKED COM GOILL Steve Ells was working as a chef when he opened a burrito stand as a low-risk investment to support his dream of a full-scale restaurant. Не got a loan of $80,000 from his dad.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/7/1001167.jpg)
![Little Caesars Little Caesar's 1959 PIZZA TREAT CHICKENFISHSHRIMP CARRY OUTS-DELIVERY CRACKED.COM INUTE Mike and Marian llitch spent their life savings opening Little Caesar's Pizza Treat. Their original menu included chicken, fish, shrimp, and hot dogs.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/4/1001164.jpg)
![In the '70s, the Filet-0-Fish briefly had a mascot. PhilA.O'Fish TM says: For a surprisingly good taste... AA TM His name? Phil А. O'Fish, of course. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/3/1001163.jpg)
![There's a McDonald's in Guantanamo Bay. - McDonald's BILLIONS AND BILLIONS SERVED coonald's ! DRIVE-THRU Yup, that military base. There's also a bowling alley, a kickball league, and a water slide. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/1/1001161.jpg)
![In the '60s, McDonald's was going to abandon their famous arches but... McDonald's Restaurant McDonald's McDonald's ons KOREA WENT a design consultant told them to keep them as Freudian symbol of a pair of nourishing breasts. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/6/0/1001160.jpg)
![A woman being held hostage used the Pizza Hut app in order to receive help. 50.00 THANKS FOR YOUR ORDER The - and DELIVERY TRACKER WERE MAKING YOUR ORDER OF MIC the 200M MADE QUASTIC When her captor let her use a phone to order a pizza, she included Please help. Get 911 to me in the comments. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/9/1001159.jpg)
![Every waist-expanding fast food item we love is thanks to a food scientist named Tom Ryan. Не invented Jif Peanut Butter, Pizza Hut's dou- ble-stuffed pizza, the Mc- Griddle, McDonald's fruit & yogurt parfait, Smashburg- er, the Meat-lovers Pizza and McDonald's entire Dol- lar Menu. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/8/1001158.jpg)
![The first doughnut machine was made in 1920 to meet the demand following WW1. Adolph Levitt, a Jewish refugee who came to America fleeing czarist Russia, designed the ma- chine and began selling fried doughnuts from his Harlem bakery in New York City. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/7/1001157.jpg)