One fact often overlooked about teenage jobs at burger chains is that many kids actually like them—a lot.
Amanda Brown of Rose City, Michigan, says she had a great experience working at McDonald’s for 1 1/2 years as a teenager before launching a 12-year professional career as a flight attendant. While she loved working for airlines, she decided before giving birth to her first child at age 35 that she needed a more down-to-earth occupation.
Brown puzzled over her next steps, wondering, “Which road am I going to take, now that I’m not into flying?” she told Nation’s Restaurant News. Her small hometown offered few jobs. Recalling how much she enjoyed working at a McDonald’s store in a nearby town as a teenager, Brown returned to the same restaurant. Although her family questioned her decision at first, Brown says she liked being busy. As it turned out, that fast-food job was “the start of me really winning in this business.”
To reduce her commute, Brown applied to train at a Beef-A-Roo location in Rose City. Beef-A-Roo operates both brick-and-mortar restaurants and 800-square-foot drive-thru-only shipping container models, and Brown liked the novelty and economy of the container space. She started training at Beef-A-Roo and quickly rose to assistant general manager, then general manager. Her customer and manager reviews were so positive that she soon became a franchise owner.
Industry sources have recognized Beef-A-Roo, founded in 1967 in Rockford, Illinois, as a promising brand. Next Brands acquired the franchising rights for Beef-A-Roo in 2021 and is actively seeking other franchise partners.
Brown has created grassroots promotions, such as giving out free shakes at a local charter high school fundraiser. She is excited by the opportunities she sees in franchising. During a meeting with a Beef-A-Roo owner, he asked if she’d like to open one new restaurant a year for the next five years. Her response? “Heck yeah!” Brown plans to stay with the chain, adding, “I think we make a great team.”
