The origin of Applebee’s name is a somewhat difficult history to unravel. Almost nothing is mentioned about it on their website and, despite what most people think, the casual dining chain is not named after any of the founders of the business. Although the original name, which was much longer and more whimsical, did contain a portion of one of the founder’s names along with some of the spirit that would make this restaurant so popular.

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In 1993, Steve Ells, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, had the bright idea that burritos and tacos could be a million-dollar industry. Besides receiving his pedigree from one of the best cooking schools in the country, Ells was also a sous chef for one of the founders of California cuisine, Jeremiah Tower at Stars, a very prominent restaurant in San Francisco.

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Ice cream is ice cream. Right? Well, sure it is – unless it’s Dairy Queen. Can you take a cup of ice cream and turn it upside down without all of that delicious goodness ending up on the floor? No? Well, you can if it’s a Dairy Queen treat. In fact, in Texas, Louisiana, and Canada, there was a time when if the staff person making your Blizzard didn’t demonstrate this particular phenomenon before handing it over to you, you could get your ice cream for free. Perhaps this is because their soft-serve only has 5% butterfat (to actually be called “ice cream,” the stuff would need to contain at least 10%), allowing it to defy gravity.

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The small college town of Ypsilanti, Michigan might not be the first place you’d imagine a multibillion-dollar food franchise beginning, but that’s exactly where Domino’s started back in 1963. The original Domino’s location was located on 507 Cross Street in Ypsilanti (known locally as Ypsi) and was owned by Dominick DiVarti.

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Colonel Harland Sanders has been a fixture of the American consciousness for a few decades now. Most people would imagine that the Colonel, as well as the KFC brand, started in, well, Kentucky, but the Colonel was actually born in Henryville, Indiana, and the first Kentucky Fried Chicken was opened in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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