What is the Country with the Most Drive-Through Restaurants?
- The first city where McDonalds put a drive-through is in Sierra Vista in Arizona. It was established in 1975 for the purpose of providing soldiers a means to buy food without getting out of their vehicle. At that time, and even up to today, US soldiers are not allowed to step outside their vehicle to buy anything if they are wearing their fatigue uniforms. This McDonalds restaurant closed shop in 1999 and a new one was built.
- The first drive-through in Europe was in Ireland in 1985. It was an McDonalds fast food restaurant
- The first drive through in California was not a McDonald’s restaurant. It was a small fast food joint called In N Out in Baldwin Park, and it opened more than 60 years ago
- Drive- through restaurants is considered the bane of healthy eating. Restaurant owners are accused of encouraging obesity and pollution with the idle cars running and no one bothering to walk a few feet to buy food
- Last year, California decided to ban new drive-through restaurants because it was given the name “haven for fatty foods”
- Right now, Baldwin Park in California has more drive-through restaurants than convenient stores, fine dining restaurants, and grocery stores by a ratio of 6 is to 1
Interestingly, drive through restaurants has started a craze where now there drive through banks, liquor stores, postal service, coffee shops, and dairy shops selling milk and cheese. One can even buy medicines and get a marriage license through a drive-through in Las Vegas. Have you also heard of a funeral home that has a drive-through for visitors who would like to pay their respects but would rather not get out of their car? There is such a place called Compton’s in Southern California that has this option.
The convenience of having several drive-through restaurants in one city is now being questioned because of the high prices of about it either. fuel and the fact that a line can cause a lot of smoke pollution. But so far, not many are up in arms about it either.