in 1955, a man named raymond kroc entered a partnership with two brothers named mcdonald. they opened a popular restaurant in califor-nia which sold food that was easy to
prepare and serve quickly. hamburgers, french fries and cold drinks were the main food there.
kroc opened similar eating places under the same name,mcdonald's, and they were an instant success. he later took over the company, and today it is one of the most famous and successful "fast-food" restaurants in america and the world.
why was his idea so successful? probably the most important reason was that his timing was right. in the ]950s,most married women stayed home to keep house and take care of their children. in the 1960s, many women returned to the work place. this meant that they had less time and energy for housework and preparation of meals, so they depended more on "tv dinners" and fast-food restaurants. single parents also have little time to spend in the kitchen. people living alone also depend on this type of food, since cooking for one is often more trouble than it is worth.
fast-food is not part of all americans lives. another trend of the 1960s, sometimes called the back-to-nature movement,influenced many people to avoid food that was packaged and processed. this preference for natural food continues to this day. from the success of raymond kroc's fast-food business,we can say that social and economic trends influence where and what we eat.
麦当劳
1955年，一位名为雷蒙德·克劳克的人与两位名为麦当劳的兄弟合伙，在加州开了一家颇受欢迎的小餐馆，销售制作方便服务快捷的食物。那里的主打食品是汉堡、炸薯条和冷饮。克劳克用同样的名字—一麦当劳开了几家类似的餐厅，迅速获得了成功。后来他接管了这个公司，今天它成为美国和世界最有名、最成功的“快餐”厅之一。
他的想法为什么会如此成功呢?也许最重要的原因是因为他时机正好。20世纪50年代，大多数已婚妇女呆在家里做家务、照顾孩子。而在60年代，许多妇女回去工作。这就意味着她们做家务、准备食物的时间、精力减少了，因此她们更多地依赖于“电视晚餐”和快餐店。单亲家庭中父母也很少有时间花在厨房里。独自居住的人也依赖于这种食物，因为一个人做饭经常太麻烦，不值当费那功夫。
快餐并不是所有美国人生活的一部分。20世纪60年代还有另一种有时被成为“返璞归真”运动的趋势，影响了很多人，他们避免食用经过包装和加工的食物。这种对天然食物的青睐一直持续到今天。从雷蒙德·克劳克快餐生意的成功中，我们可以说社会和经济趋势会影响我们就餐的地点和食物的选择。