Wimpy was Dundee’s first introduction to American-style fast food and arrived when Ronald McDonald was still a glint in his daddy’s eye.
The iconic burger chain was founded in Chicago in the 1930s by Edward Gold and named after the Popeye character J. Wellington Wimpy.
Mr Gold signed a deal in the 1950s to offer the UK franchise rights to Joseph Lyons.
Hamburger lovers were licking their lips when the first Wimpy restaurant opened in Dundee in the 1960s in Reform Street.
Wimpy was famed for its red leather booths and tomato-shaped ketchup bottles and its delicacies were served on real plates with a proper knife and fork.
What could you expect to find on the menu at Wimpy in the 1960s?
There was the Wimpy cheeseburger, hamburger and eggburger.
There were all-day breakfasts, jacket potatoes, salads, toasties and shakes, alongside retro desserts including knickerbocker glory and ice cream sundaes.
Dining in this style had never been seen in the UK before and the number of Wimpy restaurants had grown to 500 nationwide by the 1970s.
The “Wimpy Brunch” – a burger and fries – could be yours for 35p while its famed cheeseburgers could be bought for 20p by the ’70s.
The restaurant in Reform Street was eventually taken over by the Halifax building society in 1987 and Wimpy moved to Murraygate to sell its meaty treats.
Championing themselves on “food being served at the table within 10 minutes of ordering”, Wimpy enjoyed decades of dominance.
But the writing was on the wall when Scotland’s first McDonald’s arrived in Dundee in November 1987 and opened in Reform Street.
Players from the Dundee Tigers ice hockey team cut the ribbon and launched the diner’s official opening event.
McDonald’s bosses even created a special whisky to celebrate the launch in Scotland.
Wimpy was now drinking in the last chance saloon, with McDonald’s stowed out as its golden arches became the city’s go-to place for a burger.
McDonald’s sold their burgers and fries over the counter and Wimpy was now forced to change its waitress-service outlets to compete with its new rival.
Wimpy began to lose popularity in the city.
The Murraygate outlet was soon replaced by Burger King and its final branch opened at the Stack Leisure Park in Lochee in the 1990s.
The Megabowl outlet was the perfect place to go for a burger before a game of ten-pin bowling or a trip to the Zapp Zone or to the Odeon for a movie.
Wimpy was praised by farmers at the time for its decision to recommence serving British beef at its branches following the BSE crisis.
During a protest in 1996, several Scottish farmers stopped off in Lochee for a spot of lunch and to congratulate the management.
However, the number of Wimpy restaurants continued to drop over the years, and now only around 70 Wimpy diners can be found in the UK, with three in Scotland.
Residents of Fraserburgh, Dingwall, and Kilmarnock can still experience the blast from the past and sample its famous cuisine.
And a remaining outlet in Dundee is one of the last reminders of Scotland’s venture into American fast-food; gone but not forgotten…
Dundee, South Africa, that is.
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