a & w restaurants this article needs additional citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . february 2013 learn how and when to remove this template message a & w food services of canada inc. type private with publicly traded income fund tsx aw.un industry fast food founded winnipeg manitoba canada 1956 headquarters north vancouver british columbia canada number of locations 800 1 key people food services paul hollands chairman and ceo susan senecal president and coo fund and a & w trade marks inc. john mclernon chairman products hamburgers french fries poutine onion rings fried chicken root beer hot dogs revenue 99.4 million cad 2013 2 net income 9.4 million cad 2013 2 number of employees 21 801 2011 parent a & w restaurants 1956 1972 unilever 1972 1995 website www.aw.ca a & w food services of canada inc. is a canadian fast food restaurant chain . 3 a & w canada was part of the u.s. based a & w restaurants chain but was sold to unilever in 1972 and then bought by its management in 1995 . 4 it no longer has any corporate connection to a & w operations outside of canada . 5 the canadian operation is owned and operated by the privately held a & w food services of canada inc. based in north vancouver british columbia . 3 in december 2013 a & w was canada s second largest quick service restaurant burger chain with 850 outlets after mcdonald s 1 400 outlets . 1 6 contents 1 history 2 products 2.1 the burger family 2.2 chubby chicken 2.3 breakfast 2.4 differences between the canadian and american menus 3 references 4 external links history edit a canadian a & w in stratford ontario the first canadian a & w restaurant opened in winnipeg manitoba in 1956 . 7 the canadian restaurants were part of the american chain until 1972 when they were sold to unilever . in 1975 facing competition from the growing canadian operations of mcdonald s the company launched what was to have been a temporary advertising campaign starring an orange clad mascot the great root bear . the bear and the tuba jingle that accompanied him became a long running campaign the tune entitled ba dum ba dum was released as a single by attic records credited to major ursus a play on ursa major or great bear . the mascot was so successful that he was eventually adopted as the mascot by the american a & w chain as well . the famous tuba jingle was played by famed vancouver jazz classical and session trombonist sharman king . king also did the ads for the book warehouse chain of discount book stores which he owned . 8 in the early 1980s the drive in style of restaurant was phased out . it was replaced with a modern pastel coloured fast food outlet which included marginally healthier options . while the chain continued to open some standalone restaurants a & w also aggressively pursued shopping mall locations and as a result a & ws are still commonly found in canadian malls of various sizes . in 1995 the chain was bought from unilever by senior management . during 1997 and 1998 drew carey served as a spokesperson for the chain appearing in tv ads alongside the great root bear ; he was dismissed with legal action ensuing after a november 1998 episode of the drew carey show featured carey eating at a mcdonald s location in china . 9 a & w root beer as offered at a & w restaurants in canada by the end of the 1990s marketing and products began to take on a more retro approach . former menu items such as the burger family were reintroduced and marketing became more targeted toward the baby boomer generation . the great root bear and in english canada the ba dum ba dum theme were also retired from most advertising the tuba theme is still used in french language ads . a new restaurant design was introduced featuring a bright orange and yellow exterior reminiscent of the 1950s while the interior is decorated with memorabilia associated with the same period . existing restaurants were renovated to match the new style . meanwhile with malls in decline a & w began to focus on opening new standalone restaurants particularly in smaller markets where mcdonald s was often the only major hamburger chain . the last drive in style restaurant closed in 2000 in langley british columbia . 10 on february 15 2002 the a & w revenue royalties income fund was listed on the toronto stock exchange . the initial public offering was 8.34 million units at 10 each . the fund owns the a & w trademarks in canada and licenses them to a & w food services of canada inc. revenue is generated by charging a three percent royalty on gross sales of each restaurant . television advertisements are filmed at locations in the fraser valley . in june 2006 a & w celebrated 50 years in canada . 4 some quebec locations had been dunkin donuts locations until dunkin donuts closed most locations in quebec . two new restaurant concepts were introduced in the fall of 2009 . the new standalone restaurant design is ultra modern but with some architectural markings reminiscent of the design in the earlier buildings erect from a & w back in time . there is also a new separate format for urban i.e. downtown locations where some of the baby boomer aspects are scaled back in favour of a more modern look . on november 21 2013 the chain opened its 800th location in downtown montreal . 1 products edit apart from the namesake brand of root beer the a & w menu is focused on the burger family a lineup of hamburgers introduced by the u.s. a & w chain in the early 1960s mostly discontinued in the 1980s in favour of a more standard menu then reintroduced in canada and expanded upon beginning in the late 1990s . the burger family edit the original burger family lineup consists of the baby mama teen and papa burgers . they are still sold today along with other burgers named after other family members 11 baby burger small beef patty 1.6 oz ketchup unseeded hamburger bun mama burger regular beef patty 3 oz onion slice pickles ketchup mustard teen sauce sesame seed bun teen burger regular beef patty 3 oz onion slice pickles ketchup mustard bacon teen sauce lettuce tomato cheese slice sesame seed bun papa burger two regular beef patties 6 oz onion slice pickles ketchup mustard teen sauce sesame seed bun grandpa burger three regular beef patties 9 oz onion slice pickles ketchup mustard teen sauce sesame seed bun uncle burger 5 oz . beef patty ketchup uncle sauce mustard mixed with hellmann s mayo pickles chubby mayo hellmann s mayo lettuce tomato three red onion rings sesame seed bun buddy burger one or two small beef patties mustard ketchup teen sauce grilled onions unseeded hamburger bun ; value burgers available in little or regular versions the only non family member of a & w s beef burger lineup is the mozza burger consisting of a beef patty lettuce tomato bacon mozzarella cheese and mozza sauce on a sesame seed bun . discontinued members of the burger family include the grandma burger a prime rib burger topped with caramelized onions and horseradish sauce and the baby burger twins which were a pair of sliders . chubby chicken edit another 1960s era offering chubby chicken returned to the menu shortly after the reintroduction of the burger family . chubby burgers are breaded all white meat chicken breasts . there are three varieties offered ; the original chubby burger which is made on sesame seed bun and comes with chubby mayo hellmann s mayo and lettuce the spicy habanero chicken burger is made on a seeded bun and comes with jalape o mayo lettuce and tomato . blt chubby burger is made on a ciabatta bun and comes with chubby mayo hellmann s mayo two slices of bacon lettuce and tomato . these can be ordered by themselves or in combos . they also offer all white meat chicken strips which come in either 3 or 5 by themselves or in combos . some locations offer fried chicken bone in pieces . a grilled chicken sandwich the chicken grill is also available . 12 breakfast edit a & w launched a revamped version of their breakfast offering in the summer of 2014 in addition to the bacon n egger sausage n egger classic bacon n eggs they launched several new items including the all canadian special three egg omlettes as well as pancakes other offerings include the veggie deluxe veggie burger with mozzarella cheese lettuce tomato onion and pickles and traditional hot dogs as well as the whistle dog topped with cheese and bacon . available sides include french fries poutine and thick cut onion rings . recently sweet potato fries have been added to the menu in some locations . the sweet potato fries are served with a small container of chipotle mayo . drinks include a & w root beer and other coca cola soft drinks vanhoutte coffee milkshakes and a & w root beer floats made with pre portioned scoops of frozen ice cream by nestl . differences between the canadian and american menus edit the canadian menu has some similarities to the current offerings of the american chain but owing to their independent management also diverges in many respects . the only burger family product available by name in u.s. locations is the papa burger although it differs significantly adding lettuce tomato and cheese slices which are not included by default on the canadian product . however the american original bacon cheeseburger appears to be almost exactly equivalent to the teen burger available in canada . notable products on the u.s. menu not available in canada include deep fried cheese curds cheese fries and soft serve based products such as sundaes . 13 references edit a b c a & w canada opens its 800th restaurant downtown montr al press release . montreal quebec cnw group . november 22 2013 . retrieved october 26 2014 . a b consolidated financial statements pdf . a & w food services of canada inc. february 6 2014 . retrieved october 26 2014 . a b company overview of a & w food services of canada inc. . businessweek . retrieved january 12 2014 . a b a & w celebrating 50 years in canada . vancouver province . canada.com . june 6 2006 . retrieved october 26 2014 . our history in canada . a & w revenue royalties income fund . retrieved october 26 2014 . ballingall alex may 29 2012 . canada still loves a & w . maclean s magazine . retrieved june 1 2013 . restaurant chain celebrates 50 years of rings root beer . cbc news . june 13 2006 . retrieved october 26 2014 . cowan micki may 22 2012 . book warehouse remains standing in vancouver . new owner won t change name . vancouver courier . retrieved november 30 2014 . ryan joal january 13 1999 . drew carey s ill timed big mac attack . eonline.com . retrieved january 13 2013 . note that this source incorrectly implies that carey was a spokesperson for the independently owned american a & w chain . claxton matthew september 8 2011 . dub cruised . langley advance . retrieved october 26 2014 . nutritional facts . a & w food services of canada . retrieved april 26 2012 . http www.aw.ca assessed january 31 2013 menu . a & w restaurants u.s. . retrieved 2012 04 26 . external