The Varsity (restaurant)

The Varsity is a restaurant chain in Atlanta, Georgia. The main branch of the chain was the largest drive-in fast food restaurant in the world taking up two city blocks and can accommodate 800 diners. The main location ended car-side service in 2020. There are now six other branches across metropolitan Atlanta.

History

Originally named "The Yellow Jacket", The Varsity was established in 1928 at the corner of Luckie Street and Hemphill Avenue in Midtown Atlanta. Its founder, Frank Gordy of Thomaston, Georgia, a Reinhardt University graduate, briefly attended The Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) but dropped out in 1925. As the business grew, Gordy was forced to move the restaurant to 61 North Avenue (on the northwest corner of Spring Street). To accommodate the crowds, the present structure now covers two city blocks. It was here that the name was changed to "The Varsity," reflecting his desire to expand to other college campuses. During the drive-in era, The Varsity began its curbside service, which ended in 2020.

The current location in Atlanta is now adjacent to the Downtown Connector's interchange with North Avenue. When that freeway (now I-75/85) was built by GDOT, it took out several blocks of Williams Street and much of The Varsity's western parking lot, forcing a parking garage to be erected as a replacement. The restaurant and the Georgia Tech campus sit on opposite sides of the Connector, linked by the North Avenue bridge.

The enterprise has since expanded to Athens, Kennesaw, Norcross, Alpharetta, and Dawsonville. The first Athens location opened in 1932 at the corner of East Broad Street and College Avenue, but was closed around the late 1970s. Another Athens location opened further west on West Broad Street near Milledge Avenue in the 1960s. The latter location for demolition in 2021. The Varsity location in Athens closed in June 2021, though the company hinted that it might return to Athens. The Alpharetta location closed on February 1, 2016, and the building has since been demolished. The Varsity, Jr., located in northeast Atlanta, was the only other location of the chain to offer curbside service. The Varsity, Jr. closed in August 2010, having been at that location for more than 40 years, after the city of Atlanta did not approve the chain's plans to replace that building. The plans for the new Varsity, Jr. were instead used for the new location in Dawsonville. The restaurant offers catering services to the metro Atlanta region for both corporate and non-corporate functions, going as far east as Conyers and Stone Mountain, Georgia.

There is also a mini-Varsity on the campus of Reinhardt University in Waleska, Georgia. Frank Gordy met his wife, Evelyn, at Reinhardt in 1924 and went on to Georgia Tech to finish his education. Their custom-designed home was later moved from Atlanta to the Reinhardt University campus. The Gordy family gave part of their land to Cobb County for what is now the Mountain View campus of Chattahoochee Technical College and the Mountain View Aquatics Center, the rest was sold in the 1990s for upscale tract housing and strip malls. Gordy Parkway, a loop named for Frank Gordy, serves all of these.

Culture

One of the best-known employees at the Varsity was Erby Walker, who worked there for 45 years until he died in 2008. He started at the Varsity at the age of 15 sweeping floors, and was nearly fired on the first day, but soon graduated to the kitchen. Mr. Walker was noted for his ability to move the service line quickly, especially during the rush period right before a Georgia Tech football game. His signature catchphrase was, "Have your money out and your food on your mind, and I'll getcha to the game on time!" He retired in 2003, but came back three weeks later. That year Walker was inducted into the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau Hospitality Hall of Fame.

Comedian Nipsey Russell began his entertainment career at The Varsity in the 1940s as a carhop. The creative and resourceful Russell would dress in a flamboyant style and pepper his order-taking duties with jokes and amusing songs, thereby earning him extra tips. U.S. presidents Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama all visited The Varsity during their terms in office. '' Mad'' artist Jack Davis has done advertising for The Varsity.

The Varsity was featured in the PBS documentary ''A Hot Dog Program'' by Rick Sebak. It also appeared in the movie '' We Are Marshall'' while the coaches are recruiting players.

See also

* Junior's Grill - another Georgia Tech dining tradition; closed in 2011.

Books

* ''What'll Ya Have: A History of the Varsity.'' Dick Parker. Looking Glass Books, 2003.
* ''Images of America: The Varsity.'' Janice McDonald. Arcadia Publishing, 2011.

References

External links

*
Then (1953) / Now (2004) photo of The Varsity

{{DEFAULTSORT:Varsity, The
Restaurants in Atlanta
Midtown Atlanta
Drive-in restaurants
Hot dog restaurants in the United States
Fast-food chains of the United States
Regional restaurant chains in the United States
Restaurants established in 1928
Georgia Tech
1928 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)