Fast Food: Then Vs Now

WatchMojo

This industry has changed dramatically over the years. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’ll be discussing the in-and-outs (see what we did there?) about Fast Food: Then vs. Now.

Transcript

00:00 ♫ That's what it's all about ♫

00:02 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we'll be discussing the ins and outs

00:06 (see what we did there?)

00:07 about fast food, then versus now.

00:09 ♫ That's what a hamburger's all about ♫

00:14 [♫ "Fast Food" by The Cranberries ♫]

00:16 Opinions differ as to what was exactly the very first fast food restaurant.

00:20 Self-service, cafeteria-style dining can be traced back to places like Berlin, Germany,

00:25 and the automats in Philadelphia and New York.

00:27 "They don't have caviar. The manager has offered me elderberry jam."

00:33 However, the traditional fast food experience that we recognize today

00:37 was pioneered by the White Castle hamburger chain

00:39 that initially centralized their service in the Wichita, Kansas area.

00:42 "There was only one hamburger man in town. He sold little square pure beef hamburgers."

00:48 White Castle didn't only pioneer selling hot and ready-made food to their customers, however.

00:52 [♫ "Come on in, order a meal" ♫]

00:55 They also served as the prototype for a streamlined ecosystem

00:58 of fast food supply that serviced the demand.

01:00 Founders Walt Anderson and Billy Ingram knew that branding was key.

01:04 ♫ White Castle ♫

01:06 Soon, the menu, appearance, and aesthetic of a White Castle meal

01:10 were codified within the public consciousness.

01:13 Other franchises would follow in their wake,

01:15 excited to buy into this new world of fast food self-expression.

01:18 "The family can have as few or as many as he wants."

01:22 This is one of the reasons why not only Americans, but people all over the world

01:26 seem to possess such personal relationships with fast food restaurants.

01:29 ♫ "Everybody loves a taste of Taco, Taco, Taco Bell!" ♫

01:34 You're probably thinking right now about which one of the chains

01:36 we're going to discuss as your personal favorites.

01:38 You also likely have a go-to meal already laid out in advance.

01:41 It may seem like hyperbolic insanity to label the fast food landscape as a cultural utopia,

01:46 but the 2019 article from Smithsonian Magazine

01:49 underlined how we all congregate at this altar of convenience on a daily basis.

01:53 A Taco Bell or McDonald's dining room that's intrinsically devoid of classism.

01:58 ♫ "Have it your way, have it your way!" ♫

02:02 Speaking of McDonald's, the 2016 film The Founder dramatized the life of Ray Kroc

02:07 and the company's expansion into its current status as an international fast food giant.

02:11 McDonald's didn't get there by accident,

02:13 and it helped pioneer an assembly line delivery system for their meals that still employ today.

02:18 The original McDonald's drive-in utilized the sort of car-hop service

02:21 we currently see at retro-style chains like Sonic.

02:24 "Here you are."

02:25 They also served barbecue.

02:26 Eventually, however, the McDonald brothers, pre-Kroc,

02:29 streamlined their operation by utilizing disposable food containers

02:32 and simplifying their menu to burgers, fries, desserts, and beverages.

02:36 Before long, life working at a McDonald's franchise became an assembly line

02:40 of preparing customers' orders as quickly, efficiently, and sheeply as possible.

02:45 "The fries, what about 'em?"

02:47 "They're 5% too crisp."

02:49 McDonald's abandoning of the drive-thru model

02:52 didn't mean that this way of delivering fast food to customers was dead, however.

02:56 Far from it.

02:57 After all, there's a reason why so many older movies

03:00 utilized that classic Americana image of the drive-thru

03:03 in such a nostalgic and rose-tinted fashion.

03:05 A Texas chain of restaurants known as The Pig Stand

03:08 popularized drive-in dining as far back as 1921,

03:11 while Red's Giant Hamburg is largely seen today as the first drive-thru restaurant.

03:16 This latter innovation allowed speed, cut costs,

03:19 and imbued the industry with a fire to see exactly which new chain

03:23 could automate and facilitate their orders the quickest.

03:25 "I told you we had time for lunch."

03:27 The fast food industry, as a result of innovations like the drive-thru,

03:30 had nowhere to go but up as the 1950s moved into the 60s, 70s, and 80s.

03:35 "Take it home by the box, bucket, or barrel."

03:38 Options sprung up around the world from Burger King and KFC

03:41 to Taco Bell and Wendy's.

03:43 With this explosion came franchise opportunities,

03:45 as well from suburban neighborhoods to the inner city.

03:48 ♪ Ain't no reason to go anyplace else ♪

03:52 The idea was that this was a ready-to-go, can't-fail business model

03:56 that could assist in lifting up marginalized communities

03:58 while giving these neighborhoods a sense of community.

04:00 Whether this is unrealistic or not is up for debate,

04:03 and this utopian scenario has admittedly been counterbalanced by accusations

04:07 that the infiltration of fast food restaurants has contributed to the creation of

04:11 food deserts in those very same communities.

04:13 ♪ I'm the marvelous, magical Burger King ♪

04:16 ♪ I can do most anything ♪

04:18 Indeed, not everyone was happy to see big fast food connect so strongly with consumers' diets,

04:24 and it wouldn't be long before additional criticisms with regard to nutrition would come into play.

04:28 "How many?"

04:30 "How many's the question?"

04:31 There are conflicting reports as to whether or not the fast food served today is more or less healthy.

04:36 For example, a 2015 study from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Tufts University

04:41 displayed that modern amounts of salt, saturated fats, and calories

04:45 changed little between the years 1996 and 2013.

04:48 That same study singled out the phasing out of trans fats as a positive trend within the industry.

04:53 Other studies don't necessarily tell the same story.

04:56 One that was published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

05:00 and cited by Time magazine, cast a wider net with its data.

05:04 This study compared 10 different fast food chains in three separate years,

05:07 1986, 1991, and 2016.

05:11 Their findings saw significant rises in caloric counts across the board

05:15 and pointed at growing portion sizes as a partial contributing factor.

05:19 This was, despite the fast food industry's diversification with regards to offering foods that were perceived,

05:24 at least within an advertising context, as healthy.

05:27 [clip]

05:54 We're seeking out that dopamine of our childhood,

05:59 of getting that happy meal with our parents at the end of the week.

06:01 Why would we want the taste of that food to change?

06:04 [clip]

06:07 It could be argued that food labeling has curbed this emotionally-based eating approach

06:11 since actually seeing those calories and fat grams in front of us

06:15 may give us collective pause before we hit the drive-thru.

06:17 However, fast food in the modern day could also be, at least partially,

06:22 defined by its willingness to go all in with crazy and outlandish ideas.

06:26 Doritos Locos Tacos, Halloween Whoppers, the KFC Double Down,

06:30 [clip]

06:33 the YouTube landscape is littered with food reviewers trying the latest experiments from all of these fast food companies.

06:39 [clip]

06:41 It feels so far removed from the fast food culture our parents and grandparents enjoyed back in their day.

06:46 After all, some of our elders will likely recall living without a refrigerator or microwave,

06:51 making the advent of quick and convenient fast food something of a revelation.

06:55 [clip]

06:58 The same goes for those chains of casual sit-down restaurants like Applebee's or Chili's.

07:02 [clip]

07:05 Many of us probably remember the excitement level of our parents when a new Outback Steakhouse arrived in town.

07:11 This was, despite the fact that Outback didn't exactly invent the steak,

07:14 they were selling the sizzle, and folks bought in.

07:17 After all, it was something new.

07:19 [clip]

07:22 And new is the proverbial carrot on a stick that fast food companies always seem to be chasing.

07:26 Except, maybe dip said carrot in some cake batter and put it between two fried donuts.

07:31 [clip]

07:34 Fast food today is a place of two extremes, the id of sugar, fat, and calories,

07:38 versus the ego of cooked-to-order burgers and a lack of genetically modified ingredients or high fructose corn syrup.

07:44 [clip]

07:48 There's a place for both sides, as well, evidenced by the fact that fast food is still very much a big business.

07:54 [clip]

07:55 If Morgan Spurlock's 2004 documentary "Super Size Me" attempted to shame the public into denouncing fast food,

08:02 it didn't work.

08:03 [clip]

08:05 Yet, the aforementioned article from Smithsonian Magazine featured an interview with author Adam Chandler,

08:10 where he spoke of the potential of cultural divides between places like Texas and New York City.

08:14 Chandler told Smithsonian that he didn't feel it was polarizing to eat fast food in Texas,

08:19 whereas opinions might differ in a place such as Brooklyn.

08:21 [clip]

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08:41 We may tell ourselves we deserve fast food, or that it's a guilty pleasure that we enjoy once in a while.

08:46 This will probably never change.

08:48 Fast food, by its very nature, is a place of both worlds.

08:51 On one hand, the industry and its options are changing on a daily basis,

08:55 staying competitive and trying to predict what the customer base will want next.

08:59 Then again, it can change too much,

09:02 because then it risks losing what brings us all to the table in the first place, the food we want to eat.

09:06 [clip]

09:11 What do you think about fast food?

09:12 How do you think your relationship with eating on the go differs from the relationship

09:16 your parents or grandparents had when they were young?

09:18 Let us know in the comments.

09:20 [clip]

09:23 Did you enjoy this video?

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09:32 [clip]

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