Clinton Sonic Drive-In plans ‘soft opening’ next Monday
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Clinton Sonic Drive-In General Manager J.T. Kiestler shows the new automated order-pickup kiosk installed at the new Clinton location. The Clinton store is the only one to get the pickup kiosk so far. - G. Chambers Williams III
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Clinton Sonic General Manager J.T. Kiestler, left, and Keith Overton, Sonic’s senior direc- tor of restaurant operations, sit at a patio table at the new Clinton location on Monday. The restaurant will open next Monday, Feb. 21. - G. Chambers Williams III
Workers were rushing to complete installation of kitchen equipment in the new Clinton Sonic Drive-In restaurant on Monday as new employees were undergoing training in the building, all in preparation for an expected opening next Monday (Feb. 21), company officials said.
“We are shooting for the 21st, doing a soft opening, which will give us some time to work everything out and get ready for our full opening, possibly on Feb. 23,” said Keith Overton, senior director of restaurant operations for the Oklahoma City-based Sonic Drive-Ins.
The new Clinton store, off Interstate 75, Exit 122, is one of the first Sonic locations to get the new store design, which includes two drive-through windows, 15 stalls for curb service, a patio with four picnic tables, and a new automated “meal delivery zone door” accessed from outside the building for third-party food-delivery services.
“We’re excited to give this new design and new look for Sonic to the Clinton community,” Overton said Monday. “And we’re excited to be able to give our customers a great experience.”
Already, 50 employees have been hired for the Clinton store, at 2210 North Charles G. Seivers Blvd., according to General Manager J.T. Kiestler, who was on hand Monday to lead the training.
“I have hired 50 people, and I hope we’ll be able to keep all of them,” he said. “All of them have already been training at our Oak Ridge location. But we are still looking for excited workers to join us.”
Store hours will be from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday, Kiestler said.
“On the heels of launching a new brand identity and advertising campaign … Sonic Drive-In recently unveiled the first drive-in of the brand’s new restaurant design – Delight,” the company’s president, Claudia San Pedro, said in an announcement on the website.
“The updated look provides a fun and inviting space for guests to enjoy a moment of carefree bliss in their daily routine.”
Located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the first of the newly designed Sonic locations features 18 docks, a drive-through and a covered outdoor patio, where guests can dine under string lights and enjoy lawn games, the company said.
“The exterior of the drive-in highlights Sonic’s new brand identity with pops of red, blue and a bit of yellow, reminding guests that summertime is a feeling, not just a season. The new design also pays homage to Sonic’s signature beverages, with a large, brightly-lit cherry placed atop the building as a nod to the more than 9 million cherry limeades enjoyed at its drive-ins across the country each year,” the announcement said.
“Inside the drive-in, a brand-new kitchen layout enables teams to operate more efficiently, delivering on the brand’s original slogan of ‘service at the speed of sound.’ That quick service is amplified by Sonic’s Mobile Order Ahead platform, allowing guests to take advantage of contactless ordering and payment.”
“We’re excited to bring the one-of-a-kind Sonic Drive-In dining experience and all the craveable flavors our menu offers to guests in Clinton with the opening of our new drive-in,” said Sonic corporate spokesman Brent Reams.
Founded as Sonic Drive-In in 1959, the chain got its start as the Top Hat root beer stand in Shawnee, Oklahoma, in 1953.
In December 2018, Sonic was purchased by Inspire Brands, based in Sandy Spring, Georgia. Inspire Brands owns 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, Rusty Taco, and Sonic Drive-In restaurants worldwide.
As of this month, Sonic operates 3,552 restaurants in 46 U.S. states, the website says.
In September, the Sonic developers began site preparation for the new restaurant, including grading and foundation work, after receiving a building permit from the city of Clinton on Sept. 14 for that work.
Rafferty Construction, Inc., of Franklin, Indiana, got the building permit for a new $1.2 million structure on Oct. 14. The 1,287-square-foot building and outlying structures are just east of the new Buddy’s bar-b-q restaurant in the Sinking