The contemporary Sears Imported Autos notion of fast food is associated with small, cookie-cutter-style restaurants with drive-thru windows for fast pick-up of hamburgers, French fries, chicken nuggets, and more. Fast food franchises are based on efficient production of massive amounts of food delivered within minutes of placed orders. You order from the comfort of your car—speaking into an outdoor display of the menu—and by the time you pull up to the window, a uniform-clad youth is handing you a sack of food.

Ancient eateries

The roots of this culinary behavior lie not in the grand opening of the first White Castle restaurant in Wichita, Kansas in 1921, but rather in ancient Rome. Bars called popinae served a limited menu of simple foods and wines to people of the lower classes, allowing them to “eat and run” or sit and socialize.

From this history springs the fast food eateries of today, including Burger King, McDonalds, and Kentucky Fried Chicken. The distribution of meals from local eateries didn't evolve as an alternative to cooking at home, but rather, cooking at home evolved as an alternative to local eateries.

Street food

Another form of fast food is “street food,” or the hand-held foods obtained from vendors hawking their wares on the city sidewalks. In modern society, the concept of mobile restaurants extends not only to the hot dog cart on the corner, but to the mobile food trucks as well. Not only are the patrons on the move, but so too are the restaurants.

Drive-thru windows

The contemporary delivery system of the drive-thru window is thought to have begun with Red’s Giant Hamburg in Springfield, Missouri in 1947. The first model of the drive-thru window as it is known today began in Columbus, Ohio in 1971, when Dave Thomas opened the second Wendy’s restaurant with the world’s “first modern-day Pick-Up Window,” according to the company's website. 

Fast food today and tomorrow

Today, the quality of fast food is called into question; the fat and sodium content is thought to contribute to obesity and other health issues. The fast food giants of the industry search for ways to lure the more health-conscious public back to its brightly colored bench seats and drive-thru windows.

Future food historians may look back on this time as the turning point for fast foods, in which menus expanded to include salads, veggie wraps, and grilled chicken sandwiches on whole grain breads. The fast food industry has a long history, and isn't likely to die out anytime soon. The menu simply changes to accommodate public demand, but the food is still served fast and hot.