Is it Time to Reinvent the Drive-Thru?

Traditional American fast food is perceived by many to be inevitably unhealthy; however, it doesn’t have to be. Amy’s Kitchen is reinventing the classic American drive-thru one organic, vegetarian burger at a time. In this episode of The Main Course, Host Barbara Castiglia sat down with the President of Amy’s Drive-Thru, David Wolfgram, to discuss how this healthy spin on a quick meal came to be.

Many know Amy’s Kitchen brand from their pre-prepared, organic meals found in grocery stores. “When our founders started Amy’s kitchen, they set out to fulfill a need that they identified through their own personal experiences,” Wolfgram said, “They realized there was really no pre-prepared organic, vegetarian and great tasting foods available.”

As the rating and fanbase continued to grow for the brand, there started to be more and more push from customers to bring this same commitment to the restaurant world, thus giving birth to Amy’s drive-thru.

Wolfgram, who spent decades growing and developing brands for private equity brands, shared that in his 40+ years in the business, Amy’s drive-thru is by far the most exciting concept he has worked on. “Not only does it have tremendous potential financially but the good it does for the people on the planet is pretty amazing.”

At Amy’s Kitchen, their main focus is sustainability and plant-based options. “It’s a brand with purpose,” Wolfgram explained, “Doing good for people and doing good for the planet is what really drives everything.”

At its core, the menu at Amy’s Drive-Thru includes all of the traditional American Drive-thru food you could imagine, including burgers, fries, shakes. But what sets them apart? All of these options are both organic and vegetarian. Extending beyond that, anything can be made available gluten-free, dairy-free, or vegan. “This was another really important part of the brand for the founders that everyone had accessibility to the brand despite food allergies.”

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