Updated Forecast: In Excess of 8" of Snow, Plus Wind
And Now, 10-20 Inches
Federal Govt. Closed Tuesday
Snowmaggedon 1.0 in Time Lapse
Yours truly has a love-hate relationship with junk food. But so do you, dear reader: one of the most popular posts in this here site's five-year plus history was Andrew Wiseman's thoughts on the fast food joints that the nation's capital misses out on.
Obviously, some holes in the fatty atmosphere will always remain unpatched. (No one's expecting any In-N-Outs to pop up around these parts anytime soon.) But one of the most-pined for aberrations from that collection of missing artery-cloggers could be closer than you think. Here's what we said way back in 2007 about Sonic, which holds up remarkably well to this day:
We can't tell you how frustrating it is seeing all the commercials in D.C. for Sonic, which taunt us with their complicated beverages and improv comedians, all while not actually having any locations near us whatsoever. The closest Sonic is over 50 miles away, in Fredericksburg, VA. Dear Sonic: we seem to recall from our childhoods that your food was not bad, but please stop being so mean and advertising on our basic cable channels. Thanks.
However! Baltimore-based blog Inside Charm City dropped us a line to let us know that we Washingtonians aren't the only ones bemoaning a lack of slushies and tots. The blog notes that a location for a new Sonic has been chosen around the Baltimore beltway and is scheduled to open in 2010 -- a timeline which jives with an earlier report from the Baltimore Business Journal which claimed that the chain is actively scouting "several dozen" locations in the Washington-Baltimore area.
While opening a new Sonic would present some unique challenges inside the borders of the District -- Sonics are a drive-thru joint, so any location would require a) a bunch of parking space, and b) a location where such a traffic flow wouldn't be disruptive; attributes not exactly in abundance around here -- we can imagine that it might be nice to finally try some of this food for which we see advertisements all the time.
Calls placed to Sonic's headquarters regarding plans for D.C. were not returned as of this posting. (Of course, we'll update you if or when we hear back.) Would you still be as excited to see a Sonic in Washington as you were two years ago?
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
Oh, how the Sonic commercials used to tempt me as a Washingtonian. I recently moved to Florida and was thrilled to partake of Sonic goodness.
But you know what? For as cheap and tasty as it can be (note the "can be" -- the tater tots with chili and cheese rock but skip the "healthy" stuff like the chicken wrap and its metric ton of mayo).
I've gotta say, having a Sonic in D.C. would exclude the vehicle-less, and "you guys" have all the good burgers "up there," so Sonic would probably end up being nothing more than a flash in the (frying) pan.
Rally's (Checker's in these parts) does (or at least did back in the 80s/90s--that might have changed post-Checker's-merge, since I haven't gone to one in a decade) carry-out, so I don't see any reason that Sonic couldn't cater to pedestrians, too. And Aaron, (again referencing pre-'99 versions) Rally's never cared much about parking, either, what with their having no or almost no seating, and thus no reason for people to do anything other than drive through or pop in to pick stuff up, so again I think Sonic would need a lot of parking.
wouldn't need a lot of parking, clearly.
This applies to the Cleveland area as well, which is where I moved here from 1 year ago. To this day, I've never even seen a Sonic, but I've probably watched there commercials more times than I could possibly estimate.
Grammar fail.
For those of you headed west, there's a Sonic on Route 50 just west of Winchester, Virginia.
I went to Sonic on Friday (somewhere near Richmond) after watching and being tempted by all of their commercials back when I had a TV. But I forgot once I got there that what I really wanted was a limeade, so I ordered one of those ice-cream-and-other-things concoctions...and it was no better or worse than going to DQ. I'll have to go back for a limeade though.
when i lived in nashville, i went to sonic all the time. if there were one convenient to me, i would go there frequently (either for a fancy-ade drink or those tots...) the burger's are pretty tasty, too - although not amazingly so.
I, too, am from Nashville and used to go to Sonic a lot. But I've never eaten their food.
It's all about the cherry limeades.
If there is one thing DCist needs, its more coverage of issues related to Street Fighter II.
But seriously, the Sonic website has a 'Menu & Nutrition' heading. I don't even have to make a joke here.
They're waiting for a Lululemon to catch fire to break out the "Yoga Flame!" headline.
Depending on the location, Sonic always has tables outside under cover. I've been to some that have a good number depending on the location.
I worked hotdog/chili/cheese station at Sonic when I was in high school in Texas. The three best things I can recommend are: the chili-cheese tater tots, the onion rings (made fresh everyday, at least in 1993), and the cherry-lime slush (I still make point of getting one of these every time I go home to visit).
DC remains woefully underserved in the non-gourmet slider department. We're below the White Castle line and too far north for Krystals. And with every passing day, another gourmet burger shop opens. Whither Tastee Freeze and Dairy Queen?
Score one for the Krystal mention!
Sonics are primarily drive INS (as opposed to drive thrus), thus the need for parking.
Eightman, they have started retrofitting the original locations with drive thru now by taking out some of the drive-in spaces closest to the door on the far side. You park and the carhop comes out with your order.
I think the success of the locations built with drive thru caused that. Funny thing I saw on History Channel years ago, the first Drive Thru was a McDonald's in Sierra Vista AZ because of regs at nearby Ft. Huachuca (where I went to AIT - lots of posts had this reg in the 70s and 80s) that you couldn't go to lunch in uniform off-post. So a McDonald's (which I ate at in the mid 90s when there) decided to add a drive thru.
That's why I said "primarily." They're both "ins" and "thrus" but the "in" part of it is the novelty.
Speaking of McDonald's, I remember while at UMd being told that the McDonald's on Route 1 in College Park was the first to be open 24-hours. I kind of doubted that, but would believe the first one in Maryland/DC area.
That sounds like the stories when I was at Georgetown in the early 90s that the Domino's on Prospect was the busiest one in the chain and that they were the one that knew when Desert Storm was starting because of a big order to the White House.
The first Sonic drive-in is located in Stillwater, OK, and it's still in operation. I spent 2 years in grad school in that armpit of a college town. I do love those commercials. The burgers aren't bad either, as someone noted above. Underrated burger = DQ! Not sure if they still sell them but man were they good.
The necessary amount of parking aside, the typical Sonic requires some real-estate to move the cars through. Not sure where that could be save for outside the downtown area.
And completely off-topic, I prefer Taylor's Automatic to In-n-Out any day.
All this is making me wistful. I love a good Five Guys burger, but nothing beats a Double-Double. Nothing...you hear me, DPR? NOTHING! :) And while we're on the subject of underrated burgers, Wienerschnitzel and Del Taco also have amazingly under the radar burgers...oh wait. We don't have those here either? Dammit!!! I'm going going...back back...to Cali Cali...
Well, I suppose that there is nothing left to do except for you to Draw. Your. Sword.
I think you're bluffing.
I KNEW IT! I KNEW YOU WERE BLUFFING! I KNEW...he was...bluffing.
Too Easy (comb back hair)
Just don't go to Johnny Rocket's. No sir-ee.
I actually went to _one_ Sonic that had no parking (other than the standard gas station parking, nothing like the classic Sonic), had inside eating and just a drive thru..... In the middle of Texas between Austin and Dallas, which pretty much wins it for the most unlikely location for this configuration that I have ever seen....
The lack of a Sonic in the DC area is a gross injustice to DC residents as well as mankind in general. I demand they cease running national advertisements until this injustice is addressed:
http://www.sogoodblog.com/2008/08/07/new-rule-until-i-have-actually-been-to-one-sonic-must-stop-advertising-on-national-tv/
I knew I wasn't the only one who loved cherry limeade.
I've been wishing for this since I moved here 4 years ago. I make several visits to Sonic whenever I go home (to Oklahoma). Though I'm not a big fast food person, I love Sonic. It's about time they quit taunting us and make these delicious drinks and snacks available to us.