What started as a hot dog cart in New York will be getting a drive-thru at a second Valley location in Arizona.
Ted's Hot Dogs, a Tempe restaurant and considered by some to be an ASU staple, will be opening a new location in Chandler which will feature a drive-thru. The franchise will also be renovating its 30-year-old Tempe location in the coming months.
Keith Call, general manager for the Tempe location of Ted’s Hot Dogs said the company is looking at a three-week renovation.
“We’re thinking late May, early June,” he said.
Call said the renovation will be done to enhance the aesthetic of the restaurant.
“In Tempe, when we shut down, we’re going to (do) cosmetic construction, new floors, new walls and we’re going to update some things. Basically, we’re going to change the look of our restaurant,” he said.
Call said the Chandler location will open sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It will be located in the retail center at the corner of Germann Road and Gilbert Road
“Part of our design phase for the property right now is to configure a drive-thru for that restaurant,” he said. “We’re not going to configure a drive-thru, at this time, in the Tempe location until we see how Chandler plays out ... The drive-thru could either be a nightmare or it could help us.”
Ted’s began using iPads for taking orders during rush times last year.
“(iPads) help tremendously, they cut down the lines” Call said, “If we’re lined up to the door or the dining room, they’re very significant.”
The Chandler location will have the first drive-thru of the 90-year-old company.
“Chandler will be a pioneer, we have never done a drive-thru,” she said. “This is new to us, we are still gathering information."
Ortolani said her father opened up the Tempe location when he retired in Arizona.
“In Arizona, there is a lot of room for growth. It’s just natural for the next store to be in Arizona,” Ortolani said.
Ted’s will also be offering online ordering only at the Chandler location, upon its opening.
“I don’t think we’re going to try the online ordering in Tempe,” Ortolani said. Ted’s will be only trying the online ordering in its new location in Chandler to test the success of the process, Ortolani said. “In order to have an online we want to have a designated online grill, so the people in line don’t have to battle or compete with the online orders.”
Patrick Askins, an junior ASU film student, said he was referred to Ted’s by one of his professors.
“The food was so great, the onion rings are really good. It was a whole experience,” he said, “There was a solid line but it was to be expected on a Saturday.”
Askins said the iPad ordering feature at Ted's Hot Dogs could help curb long lines at the Tempe location.
“I think (using iPads) is definitely a good idea," he said. "Hearing that, I would go back to see how they have in integrated and see if it’s fast. I think any company that would implement online ordering would be good as long as it's implemented well.”
Reach the reporter nfish2@asu.edu or follow @gofishgetgone on Twitter.
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