U.S. Census Bureau Daily Feature for July 24: National Drive-Thru Day

WASHINGTON, July 24, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

NATIONAL DRIVE-THRU DAY

Profile America — Monday, July 24th. Today is National Drive-Thru Day, following closely on National Junk Food Day. Today's occasion celebrates not so much the menu, but the popularity of restaurants that serve customers on the go. The first such service is believed to have been at Red's Giant Hamburg on Route 66 in Springfield, Missouri, in 1947. At the time, drive-in restaurants were very popular. The serving staff — some even on roller skates — brought food to stationary cars, with the meal set on a tray attached to the car. Today, drive-throughs are a feature of many of the more than 224,000 fast food restaurants in the United States, which employ over 3.5 million people, and generate more than $185 billion in sales each year. Profile America is in its 21st year as a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau. 

Sources:
Drive-Thru Day/accessed 4/27/2017: http://daysofyear.com/national-drive-thru-day/ 
First drive-through/accessed 4/27/2017: http://time.com/money/3478752/drive-thru-fast-food-fast-casual/ 
Spread of drive-through and drive-in/accessed 4/27/2017: www.history.com/news/hungry-history/fries-with-that-a-brief-history-of-drive-thru-dining 
Limited service restaurants/Economic Census/NAICS 722211: http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ECN/2012_US/00CBDG2//naics~722211

Profile America is produced by the Center for New Media and Promotion of the U.S. Census Bureau. Statistics and accounts drawn from cited non-Census sources are employed for illustrative or narrative purposes, and are not attested to by the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Audio" in the "Library" pull-down menu). 

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau

Related Links

http://www.census.gov