14 Facts About Sonic That Will Make You Appreciate The Fast Food Joint Even More

by N/A, 10 years ago | 2 min read

You may have made lots of stops here, but there's more you need to know than just how good the mozzarella sticks are.

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1. It used to just be a root beer stand.

Troy Smith, the founder of Sonic owned many different restaurants. He started a root beer stand that he added a car-to-kitchen intercom system to after seeing it at another restaurant. This ended up being his most successful restaurant.

2. It was almost called "Top Hat."

The root beer stand was called "Top Hat." Smith wanted to keep the name, but his lawyers told him it was already trademarked.Â

3. The name comes from the restaurants fast service.

Sonic's slogan is â€œService at the Speed of Sound."

4. The first franchise deal had an odd addition.

Sonicâ€™s first formal franchise agreement gave Smith and his business partner a penny for every logo-stamped burger bag that was used.Â

5. Sonic HQ has a drive-in restaurant.

6. The men from the commercials are improv actors.

Peter Grosz used to write for The Colbert Report and currently writes for Late Night with Seth Meyers. T.J. Jagodowski has appeared in Â the movies Stranger Than Fiction, Oz the Great and Powerful, and Get Hard.

7. They advertise 168,894 drink combinations.

8. Sonic and Dr. Pepper host an car hop competition every year.

The Â winner gets $1000 and an paid tried to the Sonic National Convention.

9. Employees submit some of the drink combos.

Sonic HQ had employees submit combinations in 2011 and received more than 600 ideas.Â

10. Cherry Limeade is a best seller.

Sonic sells enough cherry limeades to fill 50 Olympic-sized swimming pools every year.Â

11. 1,000 new locations will be opening in the next 10 years.

12. One location even has a beach.

Sonic Beach, in Florida, has a patio, T.V.s and a beach. It's also the only location that serves alcohol.

13. Some locations have adult playgrounds.

The playgrounds are complete with batting cages, volleyball courts, playgrounds and more.

14. Frankie Avalon was once a Sonic spokesperson.