Sonic Drive-In
Encyclopedia : S : SO : SON : Sonic Drive-In
Sonic Drive-In is an American fast-food restaurant chain that creates the famous drive-in diner feel of the 1950s, complete with carhops who often wear roller skates. Its memorable television ad campaign of the 1990s features 1950s throwback Frankie Avalon. During the early 1980s, Happy Days actor Tom Bosley was featured in their TV ads. The company itself is in its 52nd fiscal year, starting from its opening of (then-named) Top-Hat Drive-In in Shawnee, OK. They have recently started operating from a new headquarters building in the Bricktown district of Oklahoma City.
Some of the restaurant's fare includes Ched 'R' Peppers (a form of the popper), tater tots and various frozen treats. It is also known for its diverse drinks, such as Ocean Water (Sprite with blue coconut flavor added). Until their menu changed in 2005, Sonic had a "Brown Bag Special", consisting of 2 orders of french fries, soft drinks, and two single-patty cheeseburgers in a small brown lunch bag.
Because it is a drive-in, Sonic's sales tend be more seasonal with the plurality of sales coming during the summer. This also explains why it has not yet moved up to more northern U.S. states; however, in spring of 2006, Sonic opened its first locations in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Oregon, and Washington (Lancaster, Bridgeville, Medford, and Spokane, respectively). Despite its lack of presence in the northeast United States, Sonic advertises nationally.
In 2004, the company became more widely known by advertising in markets hundreds of miles from its nearest franchise. It commonly uses the slogan "Sonic's got it... others don't," as well as "It's not just good... it's Sonic good," implying a higher standard of quality than normal fast-food fare. While Sonic drive-ins once played general oldies music, as a reference to the niche's popularity in the fifties and sixties, they now play a station called "Sonic Radio" over XFM (similar to "Starbucks Radio") which plays an assortment of oldies and contemporary music, some rock and alternative and even Spanish and dance hits.
Not all of Sonic's restaurants are drive-ins; for example, the Sonic inside Winston-Salem, North Carolina's Hanes Mall is located in the food court on the upper level.
See also
- Superdawg, an original drive-in hotdog stand featuring carhop service located in Chicago, Illinois.
- Dog n Suds, a traditional drive-in chain in the Midwestern United States which offers a similar menu.
External links
- [Sonic Drive-In corporate site]
- [Slush44.com Sonic Drive-In's Teen site]
- [MakeTJDrink.com Interactive site featuring Pete & TJ of the '2 Guys' commercials]
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.