The story of the KuKu

KALB-TV in Alexandria, Va., goes waaaaay off its beaten path to tell about Gene Waylan and the last survivor of the old KuKu Burger chain, located on Route 66 in Miami, Okla.

In the early 60’s, there were lots of Kuku Burger joints around the Midwest. Gene took over and settled in. He liked his customers, got involved in the community, and just kept flipping. “I’m not really a people person as far as going out and doing a sales job, but I really enjoy meeting the people and it’s really gotten better now with the Route 66 cruisers coming by,” Waylan said.

Parents sometimes tell their wayward children, teachers like to scold their problem students by saying ‘do you wanna flip burgers all your life?’.  Well, Gene said yes! And let the hungry world beat a path to his door. “I tell people I won’t never retire because I see people from all over the world right here,” Waylan said.

The example of the KuKu, which once numbered about 200 restaurants around the Midwest, is why Route 66ers shouldn’t be so quick to deride fast-food chains. Who knows … there may be only a few survivors of McDonald’s  30 years from now. One man’s behemoth may become a last-of-a-breed a few decades from now.

6 thoughts on “The story of the KuKu

  1. Going through Miami last year I stopped there. Unfortunately, it was closed then.
    Maybe next time.

  2. Me, too, Emily.

    Ron’s right. We’ve seen Stuckey’s go from ubiquitous to rare, and Denny’s is an endangered species. Arthur Treacher’s lives on in a few places, but in Tulsa the fish-and-chip shops have all become Chinese takeaways. Each chain leaves behind its distinctive roadside architecture.

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