IIRC, “casual dining” is the term the restaurant industry uses for places like Applebee’s and Olive Garden and similar ilk, which I think is the sort of place you were trying to describe. In other words, places that offer table service, but otherwise aren’t particularly fancy.
It seems a whie ago fast food places started emphasizing take-out (or drive-thru) since it was simpler than having a dining area that needed cleaning up. McD’s (and others) got their start as drive-up places for America on the road, as the interstates were built and people were looking for a casual place to stop and have a bite, but didn’t want the full restaurant experience (or price).
They added “play places” as people realized that it was impossible to control toddlers at a regular sit-down restaurant for the whole meal (or were too lazy to try) so it became a place to take the kids for a meal.
Lately, these fast food places see less emphasis on play places, their clientele have gotten older with less young children. More people are doing drive thru; food delivry services have proliferated (people seem less concerned about cost vs. convenience). Nowadays we even have “ghost kitchens”, restaurants that only operate for the delivery services, so they can forego the fancy decor and extra staff associated with a walk-up/drive-thru restaurant.
But they still serve fries.
For what it’s worth, early In-N-Out Burger locations in the Los Angeles area were drive-thru only; they didn’t have any dining area apart from maybe a couple of picnic tables outside. They only started building restaurants with actual dining areas later on.
A certain fairly recent pandemic may have had a little sumpin’ to do with all that …
IMO the advent of kiddie car seats and the explosion of child safety concern had a bunch to do with it.
When my Mom was driving a 1960s station wagon with 4 toddlers running amok unbelted, she could pull into the McDs parking lot, shut down and open one back door for our horde to pour forth and head into the indoor sit-down area of the McDs. If a kid darted across the parking lot in front of a car, tires squealing and Mom’s ineffectual yell was all that happened. Once inside the kids could run amok in safety while Mom was in line ordering burgers & fries.
Nowadays the little hellions are each installed in a car seat. For Modern Mom to get each kid out of their car seat through a separate car door, and get them strapped into a stroller or similar for safety, and move all the way around the car getting all 4 kids takes 5+ minutes. Then Modern Mom wheels the mass into the McDs, and keeps them all within arm’s reach every second lest stranger danger attack one of her precious brood.
After the meal it’s another 5-10 minutes for Modern Mom to redistribute the brood back into their personal safe-space kid seats, stow all the other kid life support gear, and get the car going again.
Modern Mom can save massive hassle and 20 minutes by driving through. Even if the drive through line is a bit slower than the line inside, she’s still got a 20 minute head start on getting to her next stop.
Like these?
Here’s the restaurant’s website, BTW:
Yeah, places like that plus local restaurants that would serve your typical breakfasts (eggs, pancakes, skillets, etc),!unch and dinner fare like meatloaf, stews, chicken fried steak, pasta dishes, lemon chicken, etc., often with a Greek influence around here (Chicago, as a lot of Greeks owned these, what I term, “diners.”) A family restaurant. Diners to me aren’t really captured by the image of “fast food with plates” at all. They are not fast, in my experience, and the food offered is far more expansive than at a fast food restaurant. Most of it requires utensils, which fast food generally does not.
Nicely done. 
Sounds like the thin end of the wedge.
Modern Mom probably has one child today, not 4. But your point is correct.
Skywatcher, no, those are cottage fries. The menu says as much. I recognized them because I used to be hooked on Ore-Ida cottage fries, till they stopped making them. 
The Committee found out.
isn’t Burger King being sued for that?
They are being sued for telling a Whopper (lie) about the Whopper.
??? Is that a reply to my post? If so, what Committee?
The Committee is a pretend org that finds out what people like and stop making it.
Restaurants in Japan have displayed models of their food in a street-facing window since at least the 1920s. Once upon a time they were made of wax to get the the proper translucency but in these modern times, plastic is used instead.
Well, I’m on their list for sure!
Oh wow, next time i have any free time in Tokyo i need to visit Kappabashi Street.
Japan is a place I truly want to visit! Italy will definitely be first, but Japan is second on my bucket list.