Carrols Corporation
Encyclopedia
Carrols Restaurant Group is a fast-food restaurant operator. It is the largest Burger King
franchisee in the world; Carrols owns and operates about 330 Burger King locations across 12 U.S. states.
The company also owns the restaurant chains Pollo Tropical
and Taco Cabana
. About 30 of these locations are franchised; the remaining are owned and operated by Carrols itself. It originally owned a restaurant chain named Carrols; the U.S. locations were closed in the mid-1970s; current Carrols restaurants
only exist in southern Finland.
Carrols corporate offices are located in Syracuse, New York
. Most of its operations are under the name Carrols Corporation.
.
Herb Slotnick bought the franchise rights for the New York area and started opening restaurants in the Syracuse, New York
area in the early 1960s. They expanded over the years throughout New York state.
During the 1960s, a yellow slug character served as Carrols' first mascot, replaced in 1974 by a young blonde boy wearing a tweed suit and a Fedora hat.
Carrols restaurant locations were converted to Burger King franchises in 1975. The original menu of Carrols, and the Carrols brand
, then went overseas to Finland
, Sweden
, Estonia
, Latvia
and Russia
.
In February 2011 the company announced it was divesting itself of its two Spanish themed chains, Taco Cabana and Pollo Tropical, in a spin off aimed at helping the company focus on its core Burger King operations.
); their attempt was advertised as "Carrols Crunchy Country Chicken—I can't say it, and I work here". Carrols also formed an agreement with Good Humor
to sell several of its ice cream novelty bars.
The flagship sandwich in Carrols' original menu was the Club Burger. Like the Big Mac at McDonald's, it also had two all-beef patties, a special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions, served on a sesame-seeded, triple-decker hamburger bun. The Club Burger also had a tomato slice, and its special sauce is known as Crisbo Royale Sauce. In the early/mid-1970s, there was no tomato slice, and the sauce was a French dressing variant called Royal Dressing. The fish sandwich at Carrols was the Sea Filet. They also rolled out the Brute, their own version of Burger King's Whopper
. Carrols' Roast Beef Hero
piled heated slices of deli roast beef inside a bolillio roll with a dripping of beef broth. Carrols' Toasted Cheese (aka TC) had two yellow American cheese slices criss-crossing on both the top and bottom sides of a hamburger bun, which was pressed with a spatula as it cooked on the grill. The TC sold for ten cents in 1970.
, and the Fayetteville Mall in Fayetteville.
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
franchisee in the world; Carrols owns and operates about 330 Burger King locations across 12 U.S. states.
The company also owns the restaurant chains Pollo Tropical
Pollo Tropical
Pollo Tropical is a restaurant chain specializing in the Floribbean cuisine of South Florida . The chain has its headquarters in Kendall, unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida.The first Pollo Tropical opened in November 1988, in Miami...
and Taco Cabana
Taco Cabana
Taco Cabana is a U.S.-based fast food restaurant chain specializing in Tex-Mex cuisine and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Carrols Restaurant Group. Taco Cabana is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas...
. About 30 of these locations are franchised; the remaining are owned and operated by Carrols itself. It originally owned a restaurant chain named Carrols; the U.S. locations were closed in the mid-1970s; current Carrols restaurants
Carrols (Finland)
Carrols is a chain of fast-food restaurants in various cities in Finland.The company originally came to Finland as a franchise of an international chain named Carrols Corporation. However, it was eventually completely bought by the Finnish company Tuko which in turn was acquired by the Finnish...
only exist in southern Finland.
Carrols corporate offices are located in Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
. Most of its operations are under the name Carrols Corporation.
History
An offshoot of the Tastee-Freeze company, Carrols was named for the daughter of Tastee-Freez co-owner Leo Marantz. Carol Marantz Marx was the daughter-in-law of Gummo MarxGummo Marx
Milton "Gummo" Marx was an American vaudeville performer and theatrical agent. He was the fourth-born of the Marx Brothers. Born in New York City, he worked with his brothers on the vaudeville circuit, but left acting when he was drafted into the U.S...
.
Herb Slotnick bought the franchise rights for the New York area and started opening restaurants in the Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
area in the early 1960s. They expanded over the years throughout New York state.
During the 1960s, a yellow slug character served as Carrols' first mascot, replaced in 1974 by a young blonde boy wearing a tweed suit and a Fedora hat.
Carrols restaurant locations were converted to Burger King franchises in 1975. The original menu of Carrols, and the Carrols brand
Carrols (Finland)
Carrols is a chain of fast-food restaurants in various cities in Finland.The company originally came to Finland as a franchise of an international chain named Carrols Corporation. However, it was eventually completely bought by the Finnish company Tuko which in turn was acquired by the Finnish...
, then went overseas to Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
In February 2011 the company announced it was divesting itself of its two Spanish themed chains, Taco Cabana and Pollo Tropical, in a spin off aimed at helping the company focus on its core Burger King operations.
Carrols restaurant menu
During the 1970s, Carrols tried their hand at serving fried chicken (like that served at KFCKFC
KFC, founded and also known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, is a chain of fast food restaurants based in Louisville, Kentucky, in the United States. KFC has been a brand and operating segment, termed a concept of Yum! Brands since 1997 when that company was spun off from PepsiCo as Tricon Global...
); their attempt was advertised as "Carrols Crunchy Country Chicken—I can't say it, and I work here". Carrols also formed an agreement with Good Humor
Good Humor
Good Humor is an American brand of ice cream novelties sold from ice cream trucks as well as stores and other retail outlets. Originally, Good Humors were chocolate-coated ice cream bars on a stick, but the line was expanded over the years to include a wide range of novelties...
to sell several of its ice cream novelty bars.
The flagship sandwich in Carrols' original menu was the Club Burger. Like the Big Mac at McDonald's, it also had two all-beef patties, a special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions, served on a sesame-seeded, triple-decker hamburger bun. The Club Burger also had a tomato slice, and its special sauce is known as Crisbo Royale Sauce. In the early/mid-1970s, there was no tomato slice, and the sauce was a French dressing variant called Royal Dressing. The fish sandwich at Carrols was the Sea Filet. They also rolled out the Brute, their own version of Burger King's Whopper
Whopper
The Whopper sandwich is the signature hamburger product sold by the international fast-food restaurant chain Burger King and its Australian franchise Hungry Jacks. Introduced in 1957, it has undergone several reformulations including resizing and bread changes...
. Carrols' Roast Beef Hero
Submarine sandwich
A submarine sandwich, also known as a sub among other names, is a sandwich that consists of a long roll of Italian or French bread, split lengthwise either into two pieces or opened in a "V" on one side, and filled with various varieties of meat, cheese, vegetables, seasonings, and sauces. The...
piled heated slices of deli roast beef inside a bolillio roll with a dripping of beef broth. Carrols' Toasted Cheese (aka TC) had two yellow American cheese slices criss-crossing on both the top and bottom sides of a hamburger bun, which was pressed with a spatula as it cooked on the grill. The TC sold for ten cents in 1970.
Theaters
Beginning in the early 1970s, Carrols owned and operated the CinemaNational movie theater chain, until their sale to Mid-States Theaters and USA Cinemas in the early and mid 1980s. The theaters were concentrated in central New York State, but there were locations as far away as Wisconsin, Idaho and California. The chain consisted mostly of large single-screen locations that had been purchased from companies like Kallet, Hallmark and Dipson Theaters, along with new locations that were built by Slotnick. CinemaNational also built some triple-screen multiplex locations in sites like the Penn-Can Mall in Cicero, New YorkCicero, New York
Cicero is a town in Onondaga County, New York, USA. The population was 27,982 at the 2000 census. The name of the town was assigned by a clerk interested in the classics, honoring Cicero, a Roman statesman....
, and the Fayetteville Mall in Fayetteville.