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104-798: Taco Bell Corp. is an American multinational chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1962 by Glen Bell (1923–2010) in Downey, California . Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. The restaurants serve a variety of Mexican -inspired foods, including tacos , burritos , quesadillas , nachos , novelty, and speciality items, and a variety of " value menu " items. As of 2023, Taco Bell serves over two billion customers each year, at 8,212 restaurants, more than 94 percent of which are owned and operated by independent franchisees and licensees. PepsiCo purchased Taco Bell in 1978, and later spun off its restaurants division as Tricon Global Restaurants, which later changed its name to Yum! Brands . Taco Bell

208-494: A restaurant chain or franchise operation that provides standardized ingredients and/or partially prepared foods and supplies to each restaurant through controlled supply channels. The term "fast food" was recognized in a dictionary by Merriam–Webster in 1951. While the first fast-food restaurant in the United States was a White Castle in 1921 , fast-food restaurants had been operating elsewhere much earlier, such as

312-497: A $ 60 million settlement with the suppliers. They stated that it would go to Taco Bell franchisees and TGR would not take any of it. PepsiCo spun out Taco Bell and its other restaurant chains in late 1997 in Tricon Global Restaurants . With the purchase of Yorkshire Global Restaurants, the owners of A&W and Long John Silver's chains, Tricon changed its name to Yum! Brands on May 16, 2002. In March 2005,

416-430: A 400-square-foot (37 m) building about the size of a two-car garage, and was built with Mission-style arches that covered a walk-up window that served the original menu items: tacos , burritos , tostadas , Chiliburgers and frijoles , all for 19 cents each ($ 2 in 2023 dollars ). The first restaurant closed in 1986, while the building was saved from demolition November 19, 2015, and was moved 45 miles (72 km) to

520-619: A Facebook group in June 2010 to collect signatures on a petition that appeals to the Federal Reserve to produce more two-dollar bills . A large advertising push by Taco Bell had begun in late February 2011 in response to a consumer protection lawsuit filed against the company by an Alabama law firm. The promotion sought to counter allegations that the company falsely advertised the ratio of ingredients in its beef filling for its tacos. The spots featured employees and franchisees stating that

624-704: A Taco" promotion—if any player from either team stole a base in the World Series , the company would give away free tacos to everyone in the United States in a campaign similar to the Mir promotion, albeit with a much higher likelihood of being realized. After Jacoby Ellsbury of the Boston Red Sox stole a base in Game 2, the company made good on the promotion on October 30, 2007. The promotion has subsequently been offered in multiple World Series. Taco Bell sponsors

728-555: A Waffle Taco, I figured I would get with the times" set to the tune of " Old MacDonald Had a Farm "— another shot at McDonald's. On April 28, 2014, Taco Bell ridiculed McDonald's for its "out–dated muffins", in a breakfast campaign devised by Taylor. The advertisement stated the claim that the McMuffin belonged in 1984. In October 2014, Taco Bell launched the Pink Strawberry Starburst Freeze beverage for

832-482: A Zantigo location, $ 300,000, exceeded those for a Taco Bell store, $ 230,000, and the Louisville-based Zantigo was eager to challenge Taco Bell in the market. But by 1980, KFC had put expansion plans for Zantigo on hold in order to focus on its core Kentucky Fried Chicken business. Heublein was acquired by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in 1982. Following the 1985 takeover by Reynolds of Nabisco ,

936-604: A big presence in Japan, but local gyudon chains such as Sukiya , Matsuya and Yoshinoya also blanket the country. Japan has its own burger chains including MOS Burger , Lotteria and Freshness Burger . Notable Taiwanese fast-food restaurants include 85C Bakery Cafe , TKK Fried Chicken , and Bafang Dumpling. The major fast-food chains in India that serve American fast food are KFC, McDonald's, Starbucks, Burger King, Subway, Pizza Hut, and Dominos. Most of these have had to make

1040-400: A counter is available for purchasing French fries , beverages , krokets , frikandellen , kaassoufflés and hamburgers and other snacks can be bought from the automats . FEBO is one of the largest of such types of fast-food restaurants with automats. In addition to home-grown chains such as Supermac's , numerous American chains such as McDonald's and Burger King have also established

1144-594: A dollar. As of January 2024, the company featured 10 items. Fast food restaurant A fast-food restaurant , also known as a quick-service restaurant ( QSR ) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast-food cuisine and has minimal table service . The food served in fast-food restaurants is typically part of a " meat-sweet diet ", offered from a limited menu, cooked in bulk in advance and kept hot, finished and packaged to order, and usually available for take away , though seating may be provided. Fast-food restaurants are typically part of

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1248-401: A fast clip. Despite the success of their operation, the partners discovered that the design of the insta-broiler made the unit's heating elements prone to degradation from the drippings of the beef patties. The pair eventually created a mechanized gas grill that avoided the problems by changing the way the meat patties were cooked in the unit. After the original company began to falter in 1959, it

1352-1198: A few days later in Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood, followed by a location in San Francisco about a month later, located less than a block away from AT&T Park . In 2016, Taco Bell launched the Taco Bell Cantina flagship store located on the Las Vegas Strip . The 24-hour restaurant serves alcohol, unique menu items, and features a DJ . It was announced in August 2017 that the store would begin hosting weddings. Taco Bell Cantina currently has locations in San Francisco , Berkeley , Chicago (2 locations), Las Vegas , Austin , Fayetteville , Cincinnati , Cleveland , Atlanta , Newport Beach , San Diego , San Jose , Nashville , with plans to open soon in Somerville , Massachusetts. In March 2020, Taco Bell announced that it would be converting 3 of its suburban stores into Cantinas this year as part of

1456-639: A few locations, and previously maintained an office at 2516 Via Tejon in Palos Verdes , then at 2424 Moreton Street in Torrance before settling into Irvine more than 40 years ago in 1976 at 17901 Von Karman Avenue. In 1978, PepsiCo purchased Taco Bell from Glen Bell. Several locations in the Midwestern United States were converted from Zantigo , a Minneapolis , Minnesota -based Mexican chain, which PepsiCo acquired in 1986. In 1990,

1560-656: A franchise of the predecessor to what is now the international fast-food restaurant chain Burger King . McLamore had visited the original McDonald's hamburger stand belonging to the McDonald brothers; sensing potential in their innovative assembly line –based production system, he decided he wanted to open a similar operation of his own. The two partners eventually decided to invest their money in Jacksonville, Florida -based Insta-Burger King. Originally opened in 1953,

1664-409: A gamble and dive into the unknown. Due to the importance of consistency, most companies set standards unifying their various restaurant locations with a set of common rules and regulations. Parent companies often rely on field representatives to ensure that the practices of franchised locations are consistent with the company's standards. However, the more locations a fast-food chain has, the harder it

1768-490: A hybrid between counter-service typical at fast-food restaurants and a traditional table service restaurant. Catering trucks (also called food trucks) often park just outside worksites and are popular with factory workers. In 1896, the first self-service restaurant (the "Stollwerck-Automatenrestaurant") opened in Berlin's Leipziger Straße . Some trace the modern history of fast food in the United States to 7 July 1912, with

1872-500: A limited time. In August 2016, Taco Bell brought back its Pink Strawberry Starburst Freeze. In October 2015, Taco Bell launched a certified vegetarian menu. In August 2016, Taco Bell announced it would begin testing a mashup known as Cheetos Burritos at select Taco Bell restaurants On September 19, 2016, Taco Bell launched Airheads Freeze, a drink inspired by the candy Airheads White Mystery, and allow people to guess its flavor on social media. On September 15, 2016, Taco Bell introduced

1976-712: A lot of changes to their standard menus to cater to Indian food habits and taste preferences. Some emerging Indian food chains include Wow! Momo , Haldiram's , Faaso's and Café Coffee Day . Food habits vary widely across states within India. While typical idli and dosa is fast food in Southern India, in Maharashtra it is misal-pav , pav-bhaji , and poha . Further north in Punjab and Haryana, chole-bhature are very popular and in Bihar and Jharkhand litti-chokha

2080-582: A market shift due to the popularity of Chipotle Mexican Grill . The menu consisted of tacos with American fillings, and did not sell the food sold in Taco Bell restaurants, such as burritos. It was launched in Huntington Beach, California , in August 2014. U.S. Taco Co. closed on September 15, 2015, so the company could focus on its new similar Taco Bell Cantina concept, which featured special menu items and served alcohol. It opened its first location

2184-479: A midst of plummeting sales in Japan, McDonald's added a shrimp burger to the Japanese menu. The choice to introduce a shrimp burger was no coincidence, as a 1989 study stated that world consumption of shrimp was "led by Japan." In March 2010, Taco Bell opened their first restaurant in India. Because non-consumption of beef is a cultural norm in light of India's Dharmic beliefs, Taco Bell had to tailor its menu to

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2288-634: A new "fresh grill" concept, opening at least one Border Bell restaurant in Mountain View, California , on El Camino Real ( SR 82 ). Close to the time that PepsiCo spun off its restaurant business in 1997, the Border Bell in Mountain View was closed and converted to a Taco Bell restaurant which was still open in 2018. In September 2000, up to $ 50 million worth of Taco Bell-branded shells were recalled from supermarkets. The shells contained

2392-552: A pop-up hotel called "The Bell: A Taco Bell Hotel and Resort" for one weekend in August. Upon the announcement, the hotel was booked up in two minutes. Taco Bell announced plans to stay in its current corporate headquarters in Irvine until 2030. In 1992, Johnny Cash starred in a television commercial for Taco Bell's value menu. In 1993, Taco Bell was part of product placement for the movie Demolition Man and updated their currently used logo. In March 2001, Taco Bell announced

2496-451: A practice still found in chains such as Krispy Kreme . A clean atmosphere was only part of Kroc's grander plan which separated McDonald's from the rest of the competition and attributes to their great success. Kroc envisioned making his restaurants appeal to suburban families. At roughly the same time as Kroc was conceiving what eventually became McDonald's Corporation, two Miami, Florida businessmen, James McLamore and David Edgerton, opened

2600-860: A presence in Ireland. In 2015, a study developed by Treated.com was published in the Irish Times , which named Swords in County Dublin as Ireland's 'fast-food capital'. Bageterie Boulevard is a Czech fast food chain, headquartered in Prague, which began in 2003 with the opening of its first location in the Dejvice district. Today, the brand operates numerous restaurants in both the Czech Republic and Slovakia. American chains such as Domino's Pizza , McDonald's , Pizza Hut , and KFC have

2704-659: A promotion at home games for both the Portland Trail Blazers and the Cleveland Cavaliers in which everyone in attendance receives a coupon for a free Chalupa if the home team scores 100 points or more. In 2009, Taco Bell introduced a music video style commercial entitled "It's all about the Roosevelts" composed and produced by Danny de Matos at his studio for Amber Music on behalf of DraftFCB Agency. Featuring, Varsity Fanclub's Bobby Edner ,

2808-530: A promotion to coincide with the re-entry of the Mir space station . They towed a large target out into the Pacific Ocean, announcing that if the target was hit by a falling piece of Mir, every person in the United States would be entitled to a free Taco Bell taco. The company bought a sizable insurance policy for this gamble. No piece of the station struck the target. In 2004, a local Taco Bell franchisee bought

2912-764: A restaurant out of five cargo shipping containers for the Texas music festival, South by Southwest . Due to popularity, the franchise decided to move the restaurant to a lot in South Gate, California , and it opened to the public a year later. The restaurant features Taco Bell's full menu, with outdoor seating, a walk-up window, and a drive-thru, but no indoor seating unlike regular Taco Bell locations. Taco Bell announced plans in November 2017 to open 300 more urban and Cantina-style locations by 2022, with 50 to be located about New York City's five boroughs. In 2019 Taco Bell opened

3016-569: A result, they could produce hamburgers and fries constantly, without waiting for customer orders, and could serve them immediately; hamburgers cost 15 cents, about half the price at a typical diner . Their streamlined production method, which they named the "Speedee Service System" was influenced by the production line innovations of Henry Ford . By 1954, The McDonald brothers' stand was restaurant equipment manufacturer Prince Castle's biggest purchaser of milkshake blending machines. Prince Castle salesman Ray Kroc traveled to California to discover why

3120-426: A sense of reliability to their customers. This sense of reliability coupled with a positive customer experience brings customers to place trust in the company. This sense of trust leads to increased customer loyalty which gives the company a source of recurring business. When a person is presented with a choice of different restaurants to eat at, it is much easier for them to stick with what they know, rather than to take

3224-437: A short amount of time either in anticipation of upcoming orders (i.e., "to stock") or in response to actual orders (i.e., "to order"). Following standard operating procedures, pre-cooked products are monitored for freshness and disposed of if holding times become excessive. This process ensures a consistent level of product quality, and is key to delivering the order quickly to the customer and avoiding labor and equipment costs in

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3328-731: A similar idea to the Double Down and later that year the Naked Chicken Chips, which are chicken nuggets shaped like chips with nacho cheese. In July 2017, Taco Bell announced a partnership with Lyft in which Lyft passengers in Orange County, California , can request "Taco Mode" on their way to their destination from 9 PM to 2 AM, having a stop at Taco Bell. The program was cancelled after much negative feedback from drivers. On September 21, 2018, Taco Bell announced National Taco Day celebrating its global reach outside of

3432-403: A test run. In March 2016, Taco Bell introduced private beta testing of an artificial intelligence bot on the messaging platform Slack designed to take orders of select menu items from local Taco Bell locations and have the orders delivered. Taco Bell planned to have a wider roll-out of this functionality in the coming months. Previously, Taco Bell's hot sauces were only available in packets at

3536-421: A variety of genetically modified corn called StarLink that was not approved for human consumption. StarLink was approved only for use in animal feed because of questions about whether it can cause allergic reactions in people. It was the first-ever recall of genetically modified food (GMO). Corn was not segregated at grain elevators and the miller in Texas did not order that type. In 2001, Tricon Global announced

3640-511: A year and a half later. This location - now The Tamale Man - closed in 1975 when it moved across the street to store #1130 at 1619 W Carson St, which itself would close in the late 1990s and then subsequently be repurposed into Alfredo's Mexican Food. In 1967, the 100th grand opening took place at the location at 400 South Brookhurst in Anaheim , which was later replaced by a new restaurant at 324 South Brookhurst in 1993. The first location east of

3744-578: Is a fish and chip shop , which specializes in fish and chips and also other foods such as kebabs and burgers. Fish and chip shops are usually owned independently. Burger brands like Wimpy remain, although the majority of branches became Burger King in 1989. In the Netherlands , walk-up fast-food restaurants with automatiek , a typical Dutch vending machine, are found throughout the country, most notably in Amsterdam . In this automatic format,

3848-432: Is certain, however, is that White Castle made the first significant effort to standardize the food production in, look of, and operation of fast-food hamburger restaurants. William Ingram's and Walter Anderson's White Castle System created the first fast-food supply chain to provide meat, buns, paper goods, and other supplies to their restaurants, pioneered the concept of the multi-state hamburger restaurant chain, standardized

3952-413: Is for the parent company to guarantee that these standards are being followed. Moreover, it is much more expensive to discharge a franchisee for noncompliance with company standards, than it is to discharge an employee for that same reason. As a consequence, parent companies tend to deal with franchisee violations in a more relaxed manner. Many companies also adapt to their different local areas to support

4056-409: Is generally owned either by the parent company of the fast-food chain or a franchisee – an independent party given the right to use the company's trademark and trade name. In the latter case, a contract is made between the franchisee and the parent company, typically requiring the franchisee to pay an initial, fixed fee in addition to a continual percentage of monthly sales. Upon opening for business,

4160-653: Is highly processed and prepared on a large scale from bulk ingredients using standardized cooking and production methods and equipment. It is usually rapidly served in cartons, bags, or in a plastic wrapping, in a fashion which reduces operating costs by allowing rapid product identification and counting, promoting longer holding time, avoiding transfer of bacteria, and facilitating order fulfillment. In most fast-food operations, menu items are generally made from processed ingredients prepared at central supply facilities and then shipped to individual outlets where they are cooked (usually by grill, microwave, or deep-frying) or assembled in

4264-513: Is their staple fast food. Fast food In Pakistan varies. There are many international chains serving fast food, including Nandos , Burger King, KFC, McDonald's, Domino's Pizza , Fatburger , Dunkin' Donuts, Subway, Pizza Hut, Hardee's, Telepizza , Steak Escape and Gloria Jean's Coffees . In addition to the international chains, in local cuisine people in Pakistan like to have biryani , bun kebabs , Nihari , kebab rolls etc. as fast food. In

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4368-552: Is usually American fast-food chains expanding into Canada, Canadian chains such as Tim Hortons have expanded into 22 states in the United States, but are more prominent in border states such as New York and Michigan . Tim Hortons has started to expand to other countries outside of North America. The Pita Pit franchise originated in Canada and has expanded to the United States and other Countries. The Canadian Extreme Pita franchise sells low fat and salt pita sandwiches with stores in

4472-678: The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) won a landmark victory in its national boycott of Taco Bell for human rights. Taco Bell agreed to meet all the coalition's demands to improve wage and working conditions for Florida tomato pickers in its supply chain. After four years of boycott, Taco Bell and Yum! Brands agreed to make an agreement called the CIW-Yum agreement with representatives of CIW at Yum! Brands headquarters. Taco Bell began experimenting with fast-casual and urban concepts when it created U.S. Taco Co. and Urban Taproom in 2014 reflecting

4576-624: The Hot 'n Now chain was acquired. Taco Bell sold Hot 'n Now to a Connecticut company in 1997. In 1991, Taco Bell opened the first Taco Bell Express in San Francisco . Taco Bell Express locations operate primarily inside convenience stores, truck stops, shopping malls, and airports. Taco Bell began co-branding with KFC in 1995 when the first such co-brand opened in Clayton, North Carolina . The chain has since co-branded with Pizza Hut and Long John Silver's as well. In 1997, PepsiCo experimented with

4680-617: The Jewish Shabbat ; there is also a kosher McDonald's in Argentina . In Egypt , Indonesia , Morocco , Saudi Arabia , Malaysia , Pakistan , and Singapore , all menu items are halal . Many fast-food operations have more local and regional roots, such as White Castle in the Midwest United States, along with Hardee's (owned by CKE Restaurants , which also owns Carl's Jr. , whose locations are primarily on

4784-820: The Mississippi River - the 270th to open, store #258 - opened at 2050 East Main Street in Springfield, Ohio , on September 20, 1968. Original Taco Bells only featured walk-up windows without indoor seating or drive-thru service and former original Taco Bell locations still survive while having been repurposed, frequently as other Mexican restaurants. As of 2024, nine locations remain in the original Mission style as Taco Bell, all of which are in California, Arizona, Colorado and Hawaii. In 1970, Taco Bell went public with 325 restaurants. The corporate office has had

4888-712: The naming rights to the Boise State Pavilion in Boise, Idaho , and renamed the stadium Taco Bell Arena . Also, in 2004, Mountain Dew offered Taco Bell stores the exclusive right to carry Mountain Dew Baja Blast , a tropical lime flavor of the popular soft drink. In 2005, Taco Bell released the menu item called the Crunchwrap Supreme . In 2007, Taco Bell first offered the "Steal a Base, Steal

4992-472: The rap music style commercial shows a group of friends gathering change as they drive toward Taco Bell. The commercial represents Taco Bell's first foray into movie theater advertising, featuring the ad during the opening previews of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and Public Enemies as well as screens in some movie theater lobbies. On July 1, 2009, Taco Bell replaced 20-year sponsor McDonald's as

5096-506: The A.M. Crunchwrap, Cinnabon Delights, Breakfast Burrito, A.M. Grilled Sausage Flatbread Melt, Hash Browns, Coffee and Orange Juice. The ad–campaign, which began March 27, used twenty-five men who were named Ronald McDonald, a reference to the famous clown mascot of McDonald's . Another commercial advertisement for the Waffle Taco features the narrator singing, "I've been eating Egg McMuffins since 1984. But when I saw Taco Bell made

5200-839: The Burger King market found that this name was already a registered trademark to a takeaway food shop in Adelaide . Thus, the Burger King Australian market was forced to pick another name, selecting the Hungry Jack's brand name. Prior to this, the Australian fast-food market consisted primarily of privately owned take-away shops. In New Zealand , the fast-food market began in the 1970s with KFC (opened 1971), Pizza Hut (1974), and McDonald's (1976), and all three remain popular today. Burger King and Domino's entered

5304-703: The Cheddar Habanero Quesarito, a quesadilla shelled burrito. In April 2017, Taco Bell announced that it will begin testing the Naked Breakfast Taco in Flint, Michigan in mid-April. The breakfast taco, which uses a fried egg as the shell for potato bites, nacho cheese, shredded cheddar, and bacon or sausage crumble. In 2017, the company released the Naked Chicken Chalupa that uses a chalupa shell made from chicken, using

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5408-803: The Chilito, the Taco Burrito, and Chips 'n' Cheese. Of these, the Chilito was carried over by Taco Bell in former Zantigo markets and was promoted to a chain-wide item, later renamed "Chili-cheese Burrito". A new Zantigo chain, offering much of the original menu and under new ownership consisting of a former Zantigo manager and his brother, had opened three restaurants in Minnesota by 1996 and currently has four locations in Minnesota: Bloomington, Fridley, St. Paul, and Woodbury. The newest restaurant, an intact former Zapata/Zantigo structure,

5512-456: The Japanese fast food company Yoshinoya , started in Tokyo in 1899. Today, American-founded fast-food chains such as McDonald's ( est. 1940) and KFC (est. 1952) are multinational corporations with outlets across the globe. Variations on the fast-food restaurant concept include fast-casual restaurants and catering trucks . Fast-casual restaurants have higher sit-in ratios, offering

5616-509: The McDonald's Corporation's size to force suppliers to conform to this ethos. Other prominent international fast-food companies include Burger King, the number two hamburger chain in the world, known for promoting its customized menu offerings ( Have it Your Way ). Another international fast-food chain is KFC, which sells chicken-related products and is the number 1 fast-food company in the People's Republic of China. A fast-food chain restaurant

5720-788: The Philippines, fast-food is the same as in the US. However, the only difference is that they serve Filipino dishes and a few American products being served Filipino-style. Jollibee is the leading fast-food chain in the country with 1,000 stores nationwide. Most international fast-food chains like Subway, McDonald's, Burger King etc. are represented in major Russian cities. There are also local chains like Teremok specializing in Russian cuisine or having elements of it added into their menu. Saudi Arabia has many international fast-food chains including KFC, Burger King, McDonald's and many others. However,

5824-889: The Portland, Oregon area. Also, Whataburger is a popular burger chain in the American South, and Jack in the Box is located in the West and South. Canada pizza chains Topper's Pizza and Pizza Pizza are primarily located in Ontario . Coffee chain Country Style operates only in Ontario, and competes with the famous coffee and donut chain Tim Hortons . Maid-Rite restaurant is one of the oldest chain fast-food restaurants in

5928-405: The Taco Bell Corporate Office at 1 Glen Bell Way in Irvine, California and is currently stored intact on the corporate parking lot premises and known as "Taco Bell Numero Uno". In 1964, the first franchisee was purchased by former police officer Kermit Bekke. This location, located at 1654 W Carson Street in Torrance, California , had its grand opening on May 28, 1965. Bekke sold his franchise

6032-460: The US in 1955 (1974 in the UK). It has become a phenomenally successful enterprise in terms of financial growth, brand-name recognition, and worldwide expansion. Ray Kroc, who bought the franchising license from the McDonald brothers, pioneered concepts which emphasized standardization. He introduced uniform products, identical in all respects at each outlet, to increase sales. Kroc also insisted on cutting food costs as much as possible, eventually using

6136-402: The US will reach $ 142 billion in sales in 2006, a 5% increase over 2005. In comparison, the full-service restaurant segment of the food industry is expected to generate $ 173 billion in sales. Fast food has been losing market share to so-called fast-casual restaurants, which offer more robust and expensive cuisines. McDonald's , a fast-food supplier, opened its first franchised restaurant in

6240-560: The United States West Coast); Krystal , Bojangles' Famous Chicken 'n Biscuits , Cook Out , and Zaxby's restaurants in the American Southeast; Raising Cane's in Louisiana and other mostly Southern states; Hot 'n Now in Michigan and Wisconsin; In-N-Out Burger (in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Texas, with a few locations in Oregon) and Original Tommy's chains in Southern California; Dick's Drive-In in Seattle, Washington and Arctic Circle in Utah and other western states; Halo Burger around Flint, Michigan and Burgerville in

6344-408: The United States, to be celebrated in 20 countries. In January 2019, Taco Bell nearly doubled its television advertising spending to US$ 64 million. In September 2019, Taco Bell revamped its menu for the fall season. In July 2020, Taco Bell announced the Grilled Cheese Burrito. The burrito is a recurring menu item that occasionally reappears for a limited time. In January 2021, Taco Bell announced

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6448-528: The United States. Founded in 1926, their specialty is a loose meat hamburger. Maid-Rites can be found in the midwest - mainly Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, and Missouri. International brands dominant in North America include McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's , the number three burger chain in the USA; Dunkin' Donuts , a New England –based chain; automobile oriented Sonic Drive-In 's from Oklahoma City ; Starbucks , Seattle-born coffee-based fast-food beverage corporation; KFC and Taco Bell , which are both part of

6552-486: The chain announced it was expanding its test market of "Waffle Tacos" to ≈100 restaurants in Fresno, California , Omaha, Nebraska , and Chattanooga, Tennessee , beginning on August 8 of that year. The Waffle Taco included scrambled eggs, sausage, and a side of syrup. It was the top–selling item during breakfast hours at the five Southern California restaurants where they had been test–released earlier in 2013. The breakfast menu started on March 27, 2014. Other items include:

6656-447: The chain itself. In February 2014, Taco Bell made its hot sauces available at grocery stores, sold in bottles. These would be followed by further grocery store products including chips in May 2018 and shredded cheese in 2019. In September 2016, Taco Bell opened a pop-up in New York City in the SoHo, Manhattan area called the Taco Bell VR Arcade. Taco Bell and VR fans could demo PlayStation VR , games, and food. In 2016, Taco Bell built

6760-423: The company app. For the cost of $ 10, a customer can order one of seven different tacos each day for 30 consecutive days. In 2023, the company test-marketed a vegan Crunchwrap Supreme in Los Angeles, New York, and Orlando to gauge the potential of a national roll out. Bon Appétit tested a vegan Crunchwrap alongside a non-vegan Crunchwrap purchased at the store in midtown Manhattan and said "the differences between

6864-430: The company had purchased almost a dozen of the units as opposed to the normal one or two found in most restaurants of the time. Enticed by the success of the McDonald's concept, Kroc signed a franchise agreement with the brothers and began opening McDonald's restaurants in Illinois. By 1961, Kroc had bought out the brothers and created what is now the modern McDonald's Corporation. One of the major parts of his business plan

6968-454: The company usually spends on an advertising program. The various campaigns came shortly before the company began its official response to the suit in the United States District Court for the Central District of California and were designed to bring public opinion into their camp. Various analysts stated that the company would have been better off using a grass-root campaign that involved in store advertising and other non-broadcast media. The suit

7072-494: The country to deal with the demand. Automats remained extremely popular throughout the 1920s and 1930s. The company also popularized the notion of "take-out" food, with their slogan "Less work for Mother". Most historians agree that the American company White Castle was the first fast-food outlet, starting in Wichita, Kansas in 1916 with food stands and founding in 1921, selling hamburgers for five cents apiece from its inception and spawning numerous competitors and emulators. What

7176-440: The day, namely breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner. Siu mei is offered throughout the day. Dai pai dong and traditional Hong Kong street food may be considered close relatives of the conventional fast-food outlet. Zantigo Zantigo was founded in 1969 as Zapata by Marno McDermott, who would later be the co-founder of another Mexican chain, Chi-Chi's . In 1974, McDermott sold Zapata to Heublein , owners at

7280-464: The design. Collaborative design techniques, such as rapid visualization and computer-aided design of restaurant kitchens are now being used to establish equipment specifications that are consistent with restaurant operating and merchandising requirements. In the United States, consumers spent about $ 110 billion on fast food in 2000 (which increased from $ 6 billion in 1970). The National Restaurant Association forecasts that fast-food restaurants in

7384-591: The dietary distinctions of Indian culture by replacing all of the beef with chicken. By the same token, completely meatless options were introduced to the menu due to the prevalence of vegetarianism throughout the country. Multinational corporations typically modify their menus to cater to local tastes, and most overseas outlets are owned by native franchisees. McDonald's in India , for example, uses chicken and paneer rather than beef and pork in their burgers because Hinduism traditionally forbids eating beef. In Israel some McDonald's restaurants are kosher and respect

7488-470: The existing Zantigo stores were in better locations or in better physical condition than nearby Taco Bell locations. So, most Zantigo locations were rebranded as Taco Bell and the nearby Taco Bell stores closed. This led to the Taco Bell chain adopting many of the distinctive architectural details of the Zantigo design into new Taco Bell restaurant buildings. Zantigo had several unique menu items, including

7592-679: The fast-food partner of the NBA . Taco Bell and the NBA agreed on a 4-year deal allowing them to advertise on ABC , TNT , and ESPN , and NBA-themed promotions. On July 21, 2009, Gidget , the Chihuahua featured in Taco Bell ads in the late 1990s, was euthanized after suffering a stroke. She was 15 years old. 2009 commercials for the "Frutista Freeze" frozen drink feature Snowball , an Eleonora cockatoo noted for his ability to dance to human music. In an effort to promote its $ 2 Meal Deals, Taco Bell started

7696-522: The filling has always been a mixture of 88% beef and various spices and binders and nothing else. The ad followed several full-page print ads in the New York Times and other newspapers that featured the headline "Thank you for suing us." Additionally, the chain added a new social campaign using Twitter and Facebook . The company invested heavily in the campaign, spending more than $ 3 million ( USD ) putting out its message—about 20 percent more than

7800-528: The founders and owners of the chain, Keith G. Cramer and his wife's uncle Matthew Burns, opened their first stores around a piece of equipment known as the Insta-Broiler. The Insta-Broiler oven proved so successful at cooking burgers, they required all of their franchises to carry the device. By 1959 McLamore and Edgarton were operating several locations within the Miami-Dade area and were growing at

7904-525: The franchisee oversees the day-to-day operations of the restaurant and acts as a manager of the store. Once the contract expires, the parent company may choose to "renew the contract, sell the franchise to another franchisee, or operate the restaurant itself." In most fast-food chains, the number of franchised locations exceeds the number of company owned locations. Fast-food chains rely on consistency and uniformity, in internal operations and brand image, across all of their restaurant locations in order to convey

8008-716: The front counter or drive through in real time. Wireless systems allow orders placed at drive through speakers to be taken by cashiers and cooks. Drive through and walk through configurations will allow orders to be taken at one register and paid at another. Modern point of sale systems can operate on computer networks using a variety of software programs. Sales records can be generated and remote access to computer reports can be given to corporate offices, managers, troubleshooters, and other authorized personnel. Food service chains partner with food equipment manufacturers to design highly specialized restaurant equipment, often incorporating heat sensors , timers, and other electronic controls into

8112-411: The go" and often does not require traditional cutlery and is eaten as a finger food. Common menu items at fast-food outlets include fish and chips , sandwiches , pitas , hamburgers , fried chicken , french fries , chicken nuggets , tacos , pizza , and ice cream , although many fast-food restaurants offer "slower" foods like chili , mashed potatoes , and salads . Modern commercial fast food

8216-501: The individual stores. Because of commercial emphasis on taste, speed, product safety, uniformity, and low cost, fast-food products are made with ingredients formulated to achieve an identifiable flavor, aroma, texture, and "mouth feel" and to preserve freshness and control handling costs during preparation and order fulfillment. This requires a high degree of food engineering . The use of additives , including salt, sugar, flavorings and preservatives , and processing techniques may limit

8320-540: The larger Canadian cities. Other Canadian fast-food chains such as Manchu Wok serve North American style Asian foods; this company is located mainly in Canada and the US, with other outlets on US military bases on other continents. Harvey's is a Canadian-only burger restaurant chain, present in every province. Australia's fast-food market began in the late 1960s and early 1970s, with the opening of several American franchises including KFC (1967), Pizza Hut (1970), and McDonald's (1971), followed by Burger King . However,

8424-589: The largest restaurant conglomerate in the world, Yum! Brands ; and Domino's Pizza , a pizza chain known for popularizing home delivery of fast food. Subway is known for their sub sandwiches and are the largest restaurant chain to serve such food items. Quiznos a Denver-based sub shop is another fast-growing sub chain, yet with over 6,000 locations it is still far behind Subway's 34,000 locations. Other smaller sub shops include Blimpie , Jersey Mike's Subs , Mr. Goodcents, Jimmy John's , Potbelly Sandwich Shop , Penn Station , and Firehouse . A&W Restaurants

8528-592: The local customers. Strategic applies to the specific characteristics of the franchise that will change from the basic format followed by all to fit in the local area. For the most part, someone visiting a McDonald's in the United States will have the same experience as someone visiting a McDonald's in Japan. The interior design, the menu, the speed of service, and the taste of the food will all be very similar. However, some differences do exist to tailor to particular cultural differences. For example, in October 2005 during

8632-447: The look and construction of the restaurants themselves, and even developed a construction division that manufactured and built the chain's prefabricated restaurant buildings. The McDonald's Speedee Service System and, much later, Ray Kroc 's McDonald's outlets and Hamburger University all built on principles, systems and practices that White Castle had already established between 1923 and 1932. The hamburger restaurant most associated by

8736-424: The majority of their stores of this – leading to numerous complaints on its social media accounts and news sites from disappointed consumers who were unable to obtain the new taco. On July 23, 2013, Taco Bell announced they were discontinuing the sale of kids' meals and accompanying toys at all of their U.S.–based restaurants by January 2014. Some outlets ceased their sale as early as July 2013. On August 6, 2013,

8840-571: The market later in the 1990s. Australian pizza chains Eagle Boys and Pizza Haven also entered the market in the 1990s, but their New Zealand operations were later sold to Pizza Hut and Domino's. A few fast-food chains have been founded in New Zealand, including Burger Fuel (founded 1995), Georgie Pie (founded 1977, but closed 1998 after falling into financial trouble and being bought out by McDonald's) and Hell Pizza (founded 1996). The United Kingdom's signature type of fast-food restaurant

8944-459: The most popular fast-food restaurant of Saudi Arabia is Albaik . Saudis regard Albaik as better than KFC. In Hong Kong, although McDonald's and KFC are quite popular, three major local fast-food chains provide Hong Kong-style fast food, namely Café de Coral , Fairwood , and Maxim MX . Café de Coral alone serves more than 300,000 customers daily. Unlike western fast-food chains, these restaurants offer four different menus at different times of

9048-517: The needs of the customers. Sometimes it is necessary for a franchisee to modify the way the restaurant/store runs to meet the needs of local customers. As referenced in Bodey's "Localization and Customer Retention for Franchise Service Systems" article, J. L. Bradach claims that a franchise will either use the tactical or strategic local response. Tactical applies to accounting for hiring of personnel and suppliers as well as financial decisions to adapt to

9152-425: The new company, RJR Nabisco , divested itself of many businesses. In 1986, KFC was sold to PepsiCo for $ 850 million. Since Pepsi already owned a national Mexican food chain, Taco Bell , the decision was made to close or convert all existing Zantigo restaurants, of which there were 82 as of the October 1, 1986 announcement. The conversion was complete by late 1987 and the Zantigo name disappeared. In many cases,

9256-412: The nutritional value of the final product. A value meal is a group of menu items offered together at a lower price than they would cost individually. A hamburger, side of fries, and drink commonly constitute a value meal—or combo depending on the chain. Value meals at fast-food restaurants are common as a merchandising tactic to facilitate bundling , up-selling , and price discrimination . Most of

9360-657: The opening of a fast-food restaurant called the Automat in New York. The Automat was a cafeteria with its prepared foods behind small glass windows and coin-operated slots. Joseph Horn and Frank Hardart had already opened the first Horn & Hardart Automat in Philadelphia in 1902, but their "Automat" at Broadway and 13th Street, in New York City, created a sensation. Numerous Automat restaurants were built around

9464-513: The public with the term "fast food" was created by two brothers originally from Nashua, New Hampshire . Richard and Maurice McDonald opened a barbecue drive-in in 1940 in the city of San Bernardino, California . After discovering that most of their profits came from hamburgers, the brothers closed their restaurant for three months and reopened it in 1948 as a walk-up stand offering a simple menu of hamburgers, french fries , shakes , coffee, and Coca-Cola , served in disposable paper wrapping. As

9568-566: The recycling company TerraCycle, aiming to reduce the environmental pollution. In August 2021, Taco Bell announced the Crispy Chicken Sandwich Taco. On April 18, 2022, Taco Bell announced that Mexican Pizza will return to its menu on May 19, after having previously been discontinued in November 2020. On January 6, 2022, Taco Bell launched a digital taco subscription service called the Taco Lover's Pass through

9672-499: The return of potatoes to the menu after a brief discontinuation in August 2020 in efforts to streamline processes in their restaurants in response to the COVID-19 pandemic . In addition to the potatoes, the company had announced plans to expand their vegetarian menu by introducing Beyond Meat as a plant-based vegetarian customization option. In April 2021, Taco Bell said that it will start reusing hot sauce packets in partnership with

9776-452: The tacos were made. He took what he had learned and opened a new stand in 1951. The name underwent several changes, from Taco-Tia through El Taco, before settling on Taco Bell. Glen Bell opened the first Taco Bell in 1962 at 7112 Firestone Boulevard in Downey, California . Currently, there is a Taco Bell location across the street at 7127 Firestone Blvd, in Downey. The original location was

9880-434: The time of KFC . (Zapata's home Mexican food product line was renamed Ortega at this time.) In 1976, the chain of Zapata Mexican fast-food restaurants was renamed Zantigo. The chain grew rapidly in this period. Television ads for Zantigo featured a Mexican-American narrator with an accent who ended the commercials with the tag line, "Zantigo – you'll be back, amigo." In 1977, it was reported that average annual sales for

9984-473: The time they can be upgraded to a larger side and drink for a small fee. The perceived creation of a "discount" on individual menu items in exchange for the purchase of a "meal" is also consistent with the loyalty marketing school of thought . To make quick service possible and to ensure accuracy and security, many fast-food restaurants have incorporated hospitality point of sale systems . This makes it possible for kitchen crew people to view orders placed at

10088-414: The two were also genuinely difficult to discern." On August 18, 2014, Taco Bell launched a new value menu called Dollar Cravings . Replacing the old Why Pay More menu, Dollar Cravings currently contains thirteen food items all priced at a United States dollar . It was renamed "Cravings Value Menu", when prices were increased on some of the items. In April 2019, they introduced a "loaded nacho taco" for

10192-449: Was created by celebrity chef Lorena Garcia , and featured the addition of: Black Beans ; Cilantro Rice; Citrus & Herb Marinated Chicken; and Cilantro Dressing. The Cool Ranch Doritos Taco , became available to order on March 7, 2013. Shortly before its release, Taco Bell launched a promotion advertising that fans could get the new flavor at its stores a day early if they "just asked" on March 6. However, they neglected to inform

10296-405: Was eventually withdrawn, and the company continued its advertising response by publicly requesting an apology from the suing firm of Beasley Allen. Analyst Laura Ries, of marketing strategy firm Ries & Ries, stated she believed Taco Bell's latest response was a mistake. She commented that reviving memories of a suit that the majority of the public had forgotten after the initial burst of publicity

10400-539: Was founded by Glen Bell , an entrepreneur who first opened a hot dog stand called Bell's Drive-In, in San Bernardino, California , in 1948. Bell watched long lines of customers at a Mexican restaurant called the Mitla Cafe, located across the street, which became famous among residents for its hard-shelled tacos . Bell attempted to reverse-engineer the recipe, and eventually the owners allowed him to see how

10504-402: Was originally a United States and Canada fast-food brand, but it is currently an International fast-food corporation in several countries. In Canada the majority of fast-food chains are American owned or were originally American owned but have since set up a Canadian management/headquarters locations such as Panera Bread , Chipotle Mexican Grill , Five Guys , and Carl's Jr. Although the case

10608-568: Was purchased by McLamore and Edgerton who renamed the company Burger King. While fast-food restaurants usually have a seating area in which customers can eat the food on the premises, orders are designed to be taken away, and traditional table service is rare. Orders are generally taken and paid for at a wide counter, with the customer waiting by the counter for a tray or container for their food. A " drive-through " service can allow customers to order and pick up food from their cars. Nearly from its inception, fast food has been designed to be eaten "on

10712-536: Was the wrong strategy from Taco Bell. In March 2012, Taco Bell teamed up with Frito-Lay and created the Doritos Locos Tacos, which is a taco with a Dorito Nacho Cheese flavored taco shell. In May 2012, Taco Bell released a drink named Mountain Dew A.M, a mixture of Mountain Dew and orange juice. On June 6, 2012, Taco Bell announced it would be testing a new "Cantina Menu" with upscale items in their Kentucky and California restaurants. The new menu

10816-410: Was to promote cleanliness of his restaurants to growing groups of Americans that had become aware of food safety issues. As part of his commitment to cleanliness, Kroc often took part in cleaning his own Des Plaines, Illinois outlet by hosing down the garbage cans and scraping gum off the cement. Another concept Kroc added was great swaths of glass which enabled the customer to view the food preparation,

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