GREENFIELD — To offer guests quicker and more convenient access to their food, Friendly’s at 200 Mohawk Trail will be constructing a new drive-through slated to open Aug. 18.
A sign at the restaurant announces the plan, and the company confirmed the news in an email to The Recorder on Tuesday. According to the email, the drive-through will serve “classic menu items,” including signature sandwiches and a dessert selection, with the goal being to accommodate modern customers and the need for on-the-go meals.
At the restaurant Tuesday, some customers said they look forward to the new addition, while others were skeptical.
Ian and Kimberly Pouliot of Turners Falls bring their two kids, Xavier, 2, and Scarlett, 6, to Friendly’s about once or twice a month. It’s one of the family’s go-to restaurants and is a nice alternative to the McDonald’s next door, they said.
Kimberly, 36, said she saw the sign outside announcing the new drive-through a few days ago, and is excited for the addition to the restaurant.
The family comes to the restaurant for breakfast or dinner and sometimes for a late-night ice cream.
She said it’ll be nice to be able to order food without leaving the car when the kids are cranky.
“You don’t always wanna sit in the restaurant and fight about what to eat,” Kimberly said.
Ian, 33, who just heard the news about the drive-through that morning, said he feels indifferent about the addition to the restaurant.
He said he wondered whether customers would have the option to order food beforehand and then come pick it up at the window.
“I just see it being a really slow drive-through, being what the product is,” Ian said.
Diana Freniere, 62, is a regular at Friendly’s. The Sunderland resident said she comes to the restaurant usually five times a week for breakfast, and always gets the ham and cheese omelet with tomatoes and mushrooms.
Freniere said she worries the construction due to the drive-through will be a bother.
“It’s gonna be inconvenient until they do get it in,” Freniere said.
Freniere said she wondered how different the drive-through menu would be from the sit-down menu. Regardless, she said she’ll keep coming to Friendly’s, but will probably still sit inside.
“I never like going through any drive-through,” Freniere said. “But there are people who are in a hurry who’d like it.”