Where's Wendy of "Wendy's"?

[Jinx]

Does Dave's daughter now run Davco, the parent co (IIRC) of Wendy's restaurants? If not, where is she today? Funny, but she never seems to age on those signs! :D
- Jinx

[CandidGamera]

Warning : Secondhand information.

Dave Thomas was not the owner of the Wendy's corporation at the time of his death - I believe it is a publically owned company, but I may be wrong about that.

My aunt, apparently, has met the actual "Wendy" many years back, and at that time, "Wendy" owned and operated some sort of dress boutique, as I recall.

[Dewey Finn]

Her real name is "Melinda Lou." She and her siblings own some Wendy's franchises in Ohio (near the location of the original restaurant). Davco is not the parent company, but instead is a large franchisee (possibly the largest).

[bouv]

For some strange reason I could have sworn she was deceased.

[Dewey Finn]

The information I provided is from a BusinessWeek article of about a year ago, so it's possible that she died since then.

[kelly5078]

The was an ad some years ago in which D.T. referred to "my daughter Wendy," and there was a very attractive brunette in the shot. Was that really her?

[melondeca]

Wendy's always holds a special place in my heart because it is as close to a claim to fame as my family will ever achieve.

My grandma was a real estate agent who sold Dave Thomas a piece of property for his first restaurant and my dad went to school with "Wendy".

I get excited over the little things in life.




My mom also went to school with Dwight Yokum but that is not nearly as cool.

[Elza B]

Her real name is "Melinda Lou." She and her siblings own some Wendy's franchises in Ohio (near the location of the original restaurant). Davco is not the parent company, but instead is a large franchisee (possibly the largest).

Where is the first original restaurant in Ohio?

Ava

[CandidGamera]

Where is the first original restaurant in Ohio?

Ava

I've alternately heard Dayton, and Columbus.

I've seen the one in Columbus - it's nice. Two stories.

I suspect one is the first Wendy's, and the other is the first Wendy's *Franchise*.

[melondeca]

Where is the first original restaurant in Ohio?

Ava

Dublin, OH a suburb of Coumbus

[audiobottle]

Two stories? Are you serious? I like Wendy's and all, I find it to be far superior to McDonalds for instance, but two stories? Who needs two stories of fast food restaurant? What could possibly take up two stories? I really am curious about this.

[CandidGamera]

I've heard rumros of a McDonald's that is likewise two stories tall.

But indeed, the Wendy's in question has two floors - I haven't been there in a while, but it's in the heart of downtown Columbus, walking distance from the City Center mall and the Convention Center.

[Lute Skywatcher]

Two stories? Are you serious? I like Wendy's and all, I find it to be far superior to McDonalds for instance, but two stories? Who needs two stories of fast food restaurant? What could possibly take up two stories?I've only seen two story fast food joints where large crowds are to be expected. Manhattan and the Georgetown section of DC, for example. I couldn't figure out the need for the two story McDonald's near here though until I realized that there are nearly a dozen hotels in this neighborhood, and hotels mean tour groups.

[PigBoy]

I've alternately heard Dayton, and Columbus.

I've seen the one in Columbus - it's nice. Two stories.

I suspect one is the first Wendy's, and the other is the first Wendy's *Franchise*.
The one in downtown Columbus is the original restaurant. The Wendy's website says the first franchise was in Indianapolis. Sadly, we in Dayton don't own any significant part of early Wendy's history as far as I know.

As for the restaurant having two stories, perhaps it's because of the historical displays, such as video kiosks showing "Where's the beef" commercials? I have not been there in a long time, but I know there was some stuff like that. In general, I have seen a few two-story fast food restaurants in places where space on one floor is limited. That's usually in cities, of course.

[CandidGamera]

The one in downtown Columbus is the original restaurant. The Wendy's website says the first franchise was in Indianapolis. Sadly, we in Dayton don't own any significant part of early Wendy's history as far as I know.

As for the restaurant having two stories, perhaps it's because of the historical displays, such as video kiosks showing "Where's the beef" commercials? I have not been there in a long time, but I know there was some stuff like that. In general, I have seen a few two-story fast food restaurants in places where space on one floor is limited. That's usually in cities, of course.

I may have been confusing Dayton and Dublin - but then what's the story behind the Dublin one? I used to work with a guy, and he said the first Wendy's was in his town, and he was from Dayton.. or possibly Dublin.

I think the corporate HQ may be in Dublin, though.

I don't know, it's all a tangled mess!

The one in downtown Columbus is cool though.

[PigBoy]

Yes, the HQ is in Dublin. I don't know if there's any historic restaurant there, but I'm not exactly an expert Wendy's historian. Of course, when in Dublin, one could probably be referring to Columbus when speaking of one's own town.

But maybe you aren't confusing place names, and the guy you worked with was a dirty rotten liar. :D

[drewcosten]

I've heard rumros of a McDonald's that is likewise two stories tall.

There was one on Yonge St. in downtown Toronto for a while, but it closed down a couple years ago.

[ITR champion]

There's also a two story McDonalds in a downtown mall in Louisville Kentucky. I think many of these early malls were originally divided into sections much smaller that what fast food restraunts typically want, so some chains may have bought two plots in a single mall and connected them.

[TeaElle]

There are two story McDonald's, Wendy's and Arby's in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and during the lunch rush, it's still hard to find a seat. Two dining rooms (and even two prep/serving areas) isn't a bad idea when there are going to be thousands of people in your restaurant during certain times of day. Outside of the lunch rush, they simply close the non-main floor.

You want overkill in terms of fast food restaurant sizes, though, you have to check out the McDonald's that's in a bridge that runs over I-44 in Oklahoma, somewhere between the Oklahoma/Missouri border and Tulsa. It's billed as the world's largest, and I believe it, as it spans a four-lane interstate highway. Huge, full of McDonald's themed tchotkes and cheesy as all heck. It's not just fast food, it's a fast food tourist trap! :eek:

[Lute Skywatcher]

It's billed as the world's largest, and I believe it, as it spans a four-lane interstate highway.It's been out-sized (http://www.roadsideamerica.com/attract/OKVINmcd.html)!

[percypercy]

There's also a two story McDonald's on St. Charles near Louisiana Ave. in New Orleans. There's just additional seating upstairs.

[rjung]

There's a two-story McDonalds just east of Los Angeles International Airport, on Century Blvd. It's on a small lot, so they need the extra space for seating.

[China Guy]

I've heard rumros of a McDonald's that is likewise two stories tall.

But indeed, the Wendy's in question has two floors - I haven't been there in a while, but it's in the heart of downtown Columbus, walking distance from the City Center mall and the Convention Center.In asia, there are a lot of multi-storied fast food restaurants. Here in Shanghai there are multiple McD's, KFC's, etc that are 2-3 stories high. Space is a premium.

[jayjay]

There is (or was, seven years ago) a two-story McDonald's on University Avenue right outside downtown St. Paul, MN.

[Guinastasia]

Two stories? Are you serious? I like Wendy's and all, I find it to be far superior to McDonalds for instance, but two stories? Who needs two stories of fast food restaurant? What could possibly take up two stories? I really am curious about this.


There are quite a few of them here in Pittsburgh (two story fast food places, that is!). (As TeaElle has noted upon preview!) Basically, it's not that big-the rooms themself are rather cramped, so there's simply an extra dining area upstairs.

There is a two story Wendy's at Liberty and Wood, (only the extra seating is downstairs, rather than up); next door is a two-story McDonalds. And in Oakland there is another McDonalds with a second floor dining area and a Burger King with one as well.

Trust me, it's not as overkill as you'd think.

[Odinoneeye]

And one in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Although I can't say it had significantly more seating. The building was probably the nicest looking McDonald's I've ever seen, and the space was utilized to maximum efficiency like most McDonalds.

(This is not a complaint)

[PigBoy]

Well, while we're at it...

I'm pretty sure there is a two-story Wendy's in Caracas (perhaps more than one). Or at least there was nearly seven years ago.

[chique]

The two-story McDonald's in Key West was forced to to comply with the rules in its historical-district location. It is probably the NICEST McDonald's I've ever been in - wide, deep verandas with slow ceiling fans overhead and surrounded by palms.

[Vlad/Igor]

There's also a two story McDonalds in a downtown mall in Louisville Kentucky.

It's gone, unless it was recently built. They tore down and rebuilt that mall. I know there's a two story McD's in Bloomington, In, right next to the church I went to. It sits on a small lot, and with both floors has about the same area as a normal-sized restaurant. I'm sorry to hear about the McDs in Toronto being torn down. That was the first time I saw a maple leaf on a McDs sign, and I took a picture of it for the novelty. I think I have the picture around here some where...

Vlad/Igor

[flodnak]

Two-story fast-food places are common around these parts, too. Generally the cooking and serving areas, plus a small seating area, are on street level, where rents are obviously highest. The main seating area is either upstairs or downstairs, where they can get more space for the same cost. I was under the impression that this was not at all uncommon in urban areas.

When one of my sons suddenly expressed an urgent desire to find public facilities in downtown Antwerp, Belgium, the closest likely place happened to be a McDonalds in an old, tall and narrow building. The restaurant occupied at least four stories of the building - maybe more, we stopped going up the stairs when we finally found the toilets :eek: