Burgers On Skates, Anyone? Sonic Drive-In Opens In North Babylon
NORTH BABYLON, N.Y. (1010 WINS) -- North Babylon has gone back in time with the opening of Long Island's first Sonic Drive-In.
The 50s-style fast food restaurant has 3,500 locations all over the country, including some in New Jersey.
1010 WINS' Mona Rivera reports: Long Island's First Sonic Drive-In Opens To Long Lines
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Forget carrying your tray of food to your table or car. Sonic has servers deliver the goods to you on roller skates.
"It's a niche as opposed to McDonald's or another restaurant. Having them come out on skates makes it look that much more exciting, much more enjoyable to eat," one customer said.
If the North Babylon location is a success the Oklahoma-based company plans to open 10 more eateries on Long Island within a year. Bob Fanelli, chief operating officer of Cinos, said now people won't have to drive to New Jersey or Pennsylvania to pick up a Sonic burger.
Workers said they have to go through some training to get the delivery process perfected.
"They set up the cones here and we have to go in and out of them," one worker said. "It's awesome. I get to roller skate all day."
The Sonic opened at 9 a.m. Monday on Deer Park Avenue to long lines and one customer said she couldn't even get in.
"The line was just ridiculous," Shayna Robinson said. "I waited for hours and hours to still get no food."
In addition to burgers, Sonic also services up foot-long hot dogs, fries, tater tots, burritos and shakes.
The new Sonic features 22 drive-in spots, two patio oredering stations and a drive-thru.
Sonic started as a hamburger and root beer stand in 1953 in Shawnee, Okla., called Top Hat Drive-In, and then changed its name to SONIC in 1959. The first drive-in to adopt the Sonic name is still serving customers in Stillwater, Okla.
