You know what it’s like to dip your hand into a printed paper bag for a single fry as you pull out from the drive-thru window. You can name your favorites from the local restaurants and you indulge on days when home-cooked meals aren’t on the menu. Fast food offers a convenient way to get a hearty meal but it wasn’t always so readily available. Today, Americans consume fast food one to three times each week (even though nutritionists advise against this frequency).
According to the National Library of Medicine, Americans spent $8 billion on fast food in 1970. That number skyrocketed to over $110 billion in 2000. What started as a few key offerings in small shops has evolved in unprecedented ways, with McDonalds now holding an irrevocable degree of power in the food supply throughout the country. Whether you regularly indulge it or avoid it like the plague, there’s no question that fast food has changed the economic landscape of the nation. (Check out the most popular fast food chains in all 50 states.)
To compile this list of the oldest fast food items ever, 247 Tempo reviewed restaurant websites, which outline the history of each store, and highlight their original menu items.
Soda Water
- Restaurant: Payne’s Soda Fountain & Sandwich Shop
Located in Scottsboro, AL, this restaurant dates back to the 1800s. William Henry Payne, a compounding pharmacist, opened his drug store in 1869. His drug store soon became popular because of the refreshing sparkling soda water he served for a nickel. Over the years, the restaurant evolved to include sandwiches and remains a cornerstone of the town.
Nathan’s Famous Original Hot Dog
- Restaurant: Nathan’s Famous
This 100% halal Australian beef hot dog is what started the whole Nathan’s Famous craze in 1916. Its simplicity is what made it stand out then and now (you’re free to dress it up according to your preferences as this restaurant chain is still alive and well today). The original location was a hot dog stand on Coney Island. Nathan Handwerker, equipped with his wife’s secret recipe, started the stand that would evolve impressively over the next century.
Orangeade
- Restaurant: Nathan’s Famous
It’s like a lemonade, except it incorporates orange juice, sweetener, and water for a delightful, tangy beverage that tantalizes your taste buds and quenches your thirst. In 2020, just over 100 years later, Nathan’s Famous was revamped with a sleek, New York City loft-style look and an innovative, upgraded menu.
Root Beer Float
- Restaurant: A&W
The A&W chain was founded in 1919. It started as a small stand that served root bear floats and grew into an international restaurant chain with various food and beverage offerings on the menu. Roy W. Allen opened the stand in Lodi, CA. He partnered with Frank Wright, which is how the name “A&W” came about. Today, A&W immediately renders thoughts of root beer.
Original Slider
- Restaurant: White Castle
White Castle was founded in 1921. This family-owned business created the first American burger. This original burger was small and square-shaped. At the time of their inception, these burgers were only five cents each. Made with a 100% USDA beef patty along with onions and pickles, this original burger earned the name “slider,” and in 2014, earned the title of “Most Influential Burger of All Time” by Time Magazine.
Fried Chicken
- Restaurant: Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC)
Harland Sanders, who lived in Corbin, KY in 1930, started his fried chicken kitchen to feed those who were passing through. He spent nine years refining his recipe, which incorporates 11 herbs and spices. The technique for preparing and cooking the chicken has remained, even as KFC has expanded to over 24,000 locations throughout the world.
Cheeseburger
- Restaurant: McDonalds
McDonalds can’t claim that they created the first American burger, but one of its first popular menu items include a cheeseburger. At the time, the cheeseburger cost only 19 cents. The restaurant was founded in 1940 by two brothers: Richard and Maurice McDonald. Later, they partnered with Ray Kroc, a successful businessman who catapulted the business.
French Fries
- Restaurant: McDonalds
Still a favorite for many today, McDonalds’ original menu also included their crunchy, golden French fries. They cost 10 cents when the restaurant first opened and were paired with cheeseburgers for an all-American meal. Though McDonalds was founded almost two decades after White Castle, the fast-food chain has far surpasses its number of locations, with over 40,000 restaurants found throughout the world.
Soft-Serve Cone
- Restaurant: Dairy Queen
When Dairy Queen first opened in 1940, one of the first menu items included a soft-serve cone, which cost five cents. It was called “the cone with the curl on top.” Two years prior, the soft-serve inventors, J.F. McCullough and his son, Alex McCullough, hosted an event at an ice cream shop in Kankakee, IL to debut their soft-serve creation. Seeing the success of the event, they moved forward with opening the first Dairy Queen Store in Joliet, IL.
Original Chicken Sandwich
- Restaurant: Chick-fil-A
In 1946, Truett Cathy opened a diner in Atlanta, GA but it wasn’t named Chick-fil-A. It was the Dwarf Grill. That’s where the original chicken sandwich was born with a simple recipe that included a toasted butter bun and two pickles enveloping a seasoned, boneless chicken breast, breaded and pressure-cooked in refined peanut oil.
Premium Coffee and Donuts
- Restaurant: Dunkin’ Donuts
Dunkin’ Donuts started out as Open Kettle in 1948, a restaurant that focused on serving premium coffee along with donuts. However, he met with executives and together they decided to rename the restaurant in 1950. Since then, the menu expanded to include donut holes, frozen beverages, breakfast sandwiches, and more.
Animal Style Burger
- Restaurant: In-N-Out
In-N-Out first opened in 1948 with a simple menu of burgers, cheeseburgers, fries, and bottled soda. Harry Snyder opened the restaurant along with his wife, who handled accounting for the business. The animal style burger was popularized by customers and officially added to the menu in 1960. It incorporates a mustard-cooked beef patty, lettuce, tomato, pickles, spread, and grilled onions.
Fried Pie
- Restaurant: Whataburger
Burgers were already in existence when this fast food restaurant opened. But the founder, Harmon Dobson, saw an opportunity to do it better. He wanted his customers to take a taste and respond, “What a burger!” So, he opened Whataburger in 1950, using never-frozen beef and an oversized five-inch bun. By 1962, the menu had expended to include fried pies, which are sweet desserts that have been offered in different flavors, including cherry, lemon, and strawberry.
Hard Shell Taco
- Restaurant: Jack in the Box
The traditional taco emerged from Mexico but Jack in the Box offered its own rendition at 25 cents each in the 1950s. The first restaurant location opened in 1951 and quickly became known as “The best burger joint famous for its tacos.” These hard shell tacos include ground beef, American cheese, shredded lettuce, and taco sauce.
Onion Rings
- Restaurant: Sonic
If you’ve been to a Sonic location, you know the menu is varied, offering a range of food choices, including hot dogs, hamburgers, French fries, soda, and shakes. The original menu in the 1950s also incorporated the “Sonic Famous” onion rings, which were described as “crisp, golden brown delicious.” The setup is different than other fast food joints because it’s not sit-in or drive-thru, rather more of a drive-in.
Whopper
- Restaurant: Burger King
Founded in 1964, Burger King would eventually become “the second largest fast food hamburger chain” found throughout the globe. The original Whopper incorporates a sesame seed bun, a flame-grilled beef patty, mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, sliced onion, and ketchup. However, you can always requests extras like jalapeños, bacon, and American cheese.
Pizza Supreme
- Restaurant: Pizza Hut
Two brothers opened this fast food spot in Wichita, KS, in 1958. The original menu was not nearly as fancy with a range of offerings, including desserts, the way it is today. The original menu identifies several one-topping pizza options, all of which started with mozzarella cheese. Options included green pepper, onion, mushroom, pepperoni, and anchovy. You could also get a pizza supreme, which incorporated multiple toppings or add extra ingredients for a customized pizza. It cost 10 cents per topping on small pizzas and 20 cents per topping on large pizzas.
Crazy Bread
- Restaurant: Little Caesars
This pizza store was founded by Mike and Marian Ilitch in 1959. The original store offered spaghetti, chicken, shrimp, fish, and, of course, pizza. The restaurant’s offerings changed over the years and in the early 1980s, Crazy Bread was introduced. It’s sliced fresh dough topped with butter, garlic, and parmesan. It’s oven-baked until it’s golden brown and served as individual breadsticks.
Burrito
- Restaurant: Taco Bell
Inspired by Mexican food, Glen William Bell opened this restaurant in 1962. The restaurant went public in 1970 with over 300 restaurants. The original menu included tacos and several options, including the burrito, which was priced at 19 cents originally. Other items on the menu at the time included frijoles, chili burgers (which eventually became Bellburgers), and tostados (which became tostadas). For the burrito, you had two options: either red or green.
Roast Beef Sandwich
- Restaurant: Arby’s
Brothers Forrest and Leroy Raffel founded Arby’s in 1964. The original menu was simple and included roast beef sandwiches along with potato chips and a couple of soft drink options. The sandwich included a toasted specialty roll, a savory spread, sliced roast beef, sliced mushrooms, crispy onions, and Swiss cheese. Since then, the menu has changed to include other additions, and in 2022, the restaurant added a Wagyu steakhouse hamburger to its menu for a limited time.
Submarine Sandwich
Fresh submarine sandwich with ham, cheese, bacon, tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and onions on wooden cutting board
- Restaurant: Subway
This quick service restaurant opened in 1965, when a 17-year old asked a nuclear physicist for advice on paying his college tuition. Fred DeLuca partnered with Dr. Peter Buck to open the first location in 1965. The original menu offered several combinations. You start with a split Italian roll and fill it with sliced meats, vegetables, condiments, and cheese. The appeal of Subway has been that unlike other fast food restaurants, the ingredients aren’t fried; rather, you can select from a range of fresh vegetables to incorporate in your sandwich.
Deep Pan Pizza
Cheesy Pepperoni Pizza Pull
- Restaurant: Domino’s
This shop was previously called DomiNick’s in 1960 when it was first founded. It was the only one. Five years later, two brothers purchased the restaurant and renamed it. Since 2008, Domino’s has added new items to the menu, including oven-baked sandwiches, penne pasta, and the chocolate lava crunch cake. However, it started off with only two dough sizes. In 1989, due to competition, Domino’s rolled out the deep pan pizza, which offers a chewier, cheesier pizza experience.