A History of Howard Johnson's

How a Massachusetts Soda Fountain Became an American Icon

The iconic restaurant chain that defined Americana by introducing twenty-eight flavors of ice cream, “tendersweet” clam strips, grilled “frankforts,” and more.
 
Popularly known as the “Father of the Franchise Industry,” Howard Johnson delivered good food and fair prices—a winning combination that brought appreciative customers back for more. The attractive white Colonial Revival restaurants, with eye-catching porcelain tile roofs, illuminated cupolas, and sea blue shutters, were described in Reader’s Digest in 1949 as the epitome of “eating places that look like New England town meeting houses dressed up for Sunday.” Learn how Johnson created an orange-roofed empire of ice cream stands and restaurants that stretched from Maine to Florida . . . then all the way across the country.