Fast food restaurants are everywhere, obviously. Because of that, sometimes it’s hard to remember that these mega-businesses used to be the mom-and-pop burger joints that they run out of business today.  Most of these mega-corporations started with a couple of patties, some special sauce and a lot of business acumen that now allow them to do what they do every day—try to take over the world!

Burger King—The original Burger King was founded in Jacksonville, Florida in 1953.  First called Insta-Burger King, the shop was modeled after the original McDonald’s store in California.  The concept of this shop, created by owners Keith J. Kramer and Matthew Burns, utilized a piece of machinery called the Insta-Broiler.  This broiler was so fast and efficient that the owners required that all of their franchises install it in their stores. The restaurant didn’t really take off as a chain, however, until Miami franchisees James McLamore and David R. Edgerton renamed it Burger King and expanded it to 250 locations by 1967. Burger King is the second largest burger chain in the world, following McDonald’s, and the fourth largest restaurant chain following Yum! Brands, McDonald’s and Subway.

Runza—This smaller chain has yet to hit the international market, with stores only in Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado and Kansas, but it will, because it is delicious. The first Runza Hut opened in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1949. This shop was popular with the college crowd, but didn’t expand to a second location until 1966. The restaurant’s first TV spot didn’t air until 1979, the year it also began franchising.  With the introduction of bigger and better restaurants, in 1980, the restaurant replaced carhops with drive-thrus.  By 1983, it had expanded to 20 restaurants. Runza celebrated its 60^th anniversary in 2009, owning more than 80 restaurants throughout the lower Midwest. 

Jack in the Box—The first Jack in the Box opened in San Diego in 1951, created by businessman Robert O. Peterson. This first restaurant had a drive-thru window with an intercom, and, because of the building’s small size, was mostly a pit stop for passing cars. A trademark (terrifying) jack-in-the-box sat on the restaurant’s roof.  In 1960, the restaurant expanded to Phoenix, and, three years later, opened in Houston and Dallas. By 1979, the restaurant had grown to more than 1,000 chain stores. In 2003, the Jack-in-the-Box Corporation acquired Qdoba Mexican Grill restaurants for a more "international" flavor.

Arby’s—Founded in Boardman, Ohio in 1964, owners Forrest and Leroy Raffel wanted to make a fast food chain that wasn’t based around hamburgers.  They named the restaurant Arby’s based on the initials of the partnership—R.B. or Raffel Brothers. They opened the restaurant with offerings of roast beef sandwiches, chips and soft drinks. The franchise took off in the 1970’s, with an expansion of 50 stores every year. By 1981, Arby’s had over 1,000 franchises. Today, Arby’s has gone global, with stores in Russia, Qatar, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. 

The next time you worry that your local mom-and-pop burger place might go out of business because of the sticky tables and tawdry window dressing—take heed! It will probably expand to Finland in the next few years.