SUV Smashes Into Renton Restaurant
Three people taken to the hospital after an out-of-control Jeep hit a Burger King.

RENTON – A Jeep SUV slammed into a Renton fast food restaurant early this morning, punching a big hole in the building and sending three people to the hospital.

It happened around 3:20 am at a Burger King on the corner of NE 3rd St. And Sunset Blvd. N right along I-405 in Renton.

The SUV hit the restaurant so hard, it became stuck deep inside the back of the restaurant. Two workers were inside the Burger King time at the time but they were not hurt.

Police tell Q13 FOX that the woman driving the Jeep was speeding downhill on NE 3rd St. before the crash. She tried to turn north on Sunset Blvd. N but missed the turn and ended up driving into the restaurant.

“There was definitely speed involved,” said Renton Police Dept. Commander Clark Wilcox said from the scene shortly after the crash. “You don’t get across all these lanes of travel into a brick wall and into the back (of the restaurant) that far without any speed. Significant speed was involved in this collision.”

Police also believe drugs or alcohol were involved as well. The driver and passengers are said to be in their 20s. The extent of their injuries are unknown.

The police investigation tied up traffic on the streets around the restaurant. As for the scene at the Burger King, police have to make sure the building is stable before they can even go inside to investigate.

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Originally posted 2009-05-19 07:26:02.

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Burger King Corp. plans to swap its generic fast-food feel and bland tiles and tabletops for a vibe that’s more sit-down than drive-through.

As part of a plan to be revealed Wednesday in Amsterdam, the company will announce a massive effort to overhaul its 12,000 locations worldwide.

The sleek interior includes rotating red flame chandeliers, brilliant TV-screen menus and industrial-inspired corrugated metal and brick walls.

“I’d call it more contemporary, edgy, futuristic,” Chairman and CEO John Chidsey told The Associated Press. “It feels so much more like an upscale restaurant.”

But that comes with an upscale price: The new look is expected to cost franchisees, who operate 90 percent of Burger King’s locations, between $300,000 to $600,000 per restaurant.

The company said the new design, called “20/20″ at the Miami-based chain, is already in place at about 60 locations around the world. But it will take years before all its locations are switched.

Burger King franchise owners are contractually required to update their restaurants after a set period, and executives said the redesign will be the primary option for future upgrades. All new restaurants will be built using the plan.

Burger King said it expects about 75 more redesigned restaurants to be open by the end of next year.

So far, remodeled restaurants have seen sales climb about 12 to 15 percent, while restaurants that are torn down and completely rebuilt at the same location have seen sales climb by as much as 30 percent, Chidsey said.

Observers say the hip, urban and masculine elements in the redesign may be a hit with Burger King’s most loyal customers — young men who frequent the chain known as much for its signature Whoppers and “steak burgers” as its sometimes-creepy “King” commercials. But some experts are skeptical about whether sales will climb as much as the company claims and how eager franchise owners will be to part with that kind of cash, particularly in a sour economy.

A group representing Burger King franchise owners didn’t immediately comment.

Chidsey said he thinks most franchise owners, who typically own both their restaurant’s building and the land, won’t have trouble obtaining finanacing and will be swayed once they see how sales can climb.

Morningstar analyst R.J. Hottovy said the reformulated restaurant could keep diners at the table longer but may not draw in enough extra diners to justify the cost.

“I don’t think they’ll change their perception,” he said. “They’re pretty entrenched in their reality.”

Fast-food restaurants typically get almost two-thirds of their business from drive-through or carryout orders. More appealing interiors could help the company compete with its sit-down counterparts that many customers think offer better food and better ambiance.

They might also help Burger King, the No. 2 burger food chain the U.S., stand out from larger rival McDonald’s Corp. and other competitors, including regional chains, who’ve begun to add bigger and better burgers as they clamor for a share of the growing burger market that’s worth $100 billion in the U.S.

“It’s a competitive necessity to square up against the competition,” Chidsey said.

Ron Paul, president of the food consultant company Technomic Inc., said he thinks the redesign shows just how determined Burger King is to compete with “fast casual” restaurant chains such as Chipotle, Starbucks and Panera, which customers think of as a cut above typical fast food.

“People in the fast-food category are recognizing they’ve been losing customers to the fast-casual player,” he said. “What this sounds like is an attempt to get that dining-in business back by making it an attractive environment.”

While the most noticeable changes will be inside restaurants, Burger King executives also plan to tweak exteriors, too, adding more signs proclaiming “Home of the Whopper.”

At the same time as the company is beefing up its value menu, temporarily adding a $1 double cheeseburger to U.S. menus. And it’s also in the final stages of installing new broiler ovens that cut energy use and will let the company roll out new menu items in the future.

On deck is Steakhouse XT burger, which has a thick patty topped with mayonnaise, fried onions, lettuce, steak sauce, cheese and tomatoes. It’s slated to join menus in February.

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Originally posted 2009-10-08 11:14:50.

Popularity: 1% [?]