Fast food restaurants are adding wine to their menus in a bid to boost sales.
Burgerville, a 39-unit chain in the United States' Pacific Northest, recently put wine and beer on the drinks list at one of its restaurants in Vancouver, Washington, a municipality close to Portland, Oregon.
'We wanted to create a different kind of dining experience', said Jeff Harvey, president of the chain.
'The guests have been surprised but very pleased with the idea'.
Burgerville plans to expand its wine offering to other locations across the country, while Denver-based Chipotle Mexican Grill has added beer and Margaritas to its drinks list.
'If you're trying to trade upon your image as a premium fast food restaurant, wine really fits with that image', says David Henkes of Chicago-based market research firm Technomic.
Starbucks announced plans in July to change the name of one of its Seattle stores – to 15th Avenue Coffee and Tea – and begin serving wine and beer.
This is not the first time wine and fast food have been combined.
Taylor's Automatic Refresher, a three-location chain in Northern California, is a pioneer in the so-called 'burgers and Burgundy' movement.
Founded by winemaker Joel Gott, the restaurant has been serving half bottles of Napa greats such as Shafer Vineyards with your onion rings for a decade.
Drinking wine out of a plastic cup was immortalized in the 2004 hit movie Sideways, when protagonist Miles cracks open his cherished 1961 Cheval Blanc in a fast food joint (pictured).
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Taylor's Refresher in northern California is today owned by Joel Gott, but he is not the founder. If my memory serves me correctly the chain was founded in 1947 or 1948 well before Joel Gott.
Michael Gelven
Call me jaded, but it's hard for me to get excited by this. In 1998 I walked into a Burger King in Nurnberg and had a Miller Genuine Draft with my Whopper - both off the menu. At the time, I thought it was pretty cool. In the context of this story, that experience illustrates how prudish the US is about alcoholic beverages.
Arthur Z. Przebinda
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