Sonic to Open in Early December Bringing 80 Jobs to Area

Dave Crocetti, the co-owner of the new Sonic restaurant under construction in Edgewater said that after a few hiccups along the way, the building is coming along nicely and they hope to be open in early December.

"We're aggressively hiring right now. All positions, crew members, car hops, assistant managers. Most of them will be training 10 days prior to opening. Those who have the time can go to Randallstown for training. We've had some people carpooling," Crocetti said.

He said that the process for applying is pretty easy, just go to their website – click on the "jobs" tab.

Sonic has a different model from other fast-food restaurants. There is a drive-in, but most of their food is served at their drive-up stalls. When a customer pulls into the stall, there is music playing from a speaker box. Diners put their order in and a carhop brings the food out. Many of the carhops do their work on roller skates, which increases the speed of their work—and therefore increases their tips.

Those who want to apply to be a carhop don't need to have their own skates. Crocetti said that they help their employees out with the skates, and then the employees pay for them over time out of their paychecks. The skates are quads, not rollerblades, which are hard on the ankles over the course of a shift.

Many think of Sonic as the ultimate summer stop—mostly because they don't have any indoor dining. But Crocetti said that they're happy to be opening, even if it isn't the optimum time of year.

"We are starting with a mix of full and part time employees. We'll have about 80 [staff] when we open. Had we opened in the summer, we would’ve been hiring 120 to 130 people," Crocetti said.

But while people are eating in their cars or getting dinner to take home, it doesn't really matter what season it is.

Crocetti said that they have a huge menu variety, which includes burgers and hot dogs. In fact, they have a number of hot dog options. Crocetti described one of the specialties, "the Chicago" dog.

"It's 100 percent beef, sport peppers, spicy mustard, sliced tomatoes, whole pickle, celery salt on a poppy seed bun."

The price point for dinner is about the same as other fast food restaurants.

"Our meal deal is about $6, which is in line with others," Crocetti said.

They also do a big business in ice cream.

"We are the only one in the industry with fresh, real ice cream," he said.

In December, one of their specialties is the pumpkin milkshake, which has been a favorite of customers at Sonics across the country.

They also have a large variety of drinks—41 in all. "Our most popular is fresh cherry limeade."

If you "like" them on their Facebook page, they are offering free coupons for one of those cherry limeades. Tell them Patch sent you!