5 & Diner Franchise Corporation | Introduction
Introduction
1140 East Greenway Street, Suite 1
Mesa, Arizona 85203
U.S.A.
Telephone: (480) 962-7104
Fax: (480) 962-0159
Web site: http://www.5anddiner.com
Private Company
Incorporated: 1987
Employees: 600
Sales: $25 million (2004 est.)
NAIC: 722110 Full-Service Restaurants
Mesa, Arizona-based 5 & Diner Franchise Corporation operates some 20 freestanding 1950s style, family-friendly diners located in Arizona, California, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, Tennessee, and Virginia. Only the original 5 & Diner is company owned, while the rest are franchise operations. Each unit features stainless-steel counters and classic red acrylic soda-fountain stools, along with a real soda fountain, and dozens of red-and-white vinyl booths with Formica table tops. The restaurants also offer a handful of patio tables. Each booth or counter station comes with a small juke box playing period songs, while larger reconditioned vintage juke boxes are found on the floor. In keeping with the retrospective appeal of 5 & Diner, waitresses wear poodle skirts, bobby socks, and pony tails, with coin changers clipped to their belts. Retro advertising and black-and-white photos of 1950s celebrities—such as Elvis Presley, James Dean, and Marilyn Monroe—grace the walls. On occasion a store will hold a hula hoop contest. Menu items include malts, shakes, and egg creams, along with a dozen signature burgers, such as the Big Bopper Burger and the Blue Moon Burger. The 24-hour diners also offer a wide variety of comfort foods, including meatloaf, sloppy joes, fish and chips, spaghetti, chicken fried steak, and BBQ Ribs. 5 & Diner is a private company headed by its founder Kenneth E. Higginbotham.