Burger Queen: Remembering Queenie Bee and Fried Chicken
Burger Queen served hamburgers, fried chicken, and family meals before becoming Druther’s in 1981. Founded in Florida in 1956, the chain built a lasting following in Louisville and communities across Kentucky.
OPENING
For a restaurant called Burger Queen, hamburgers were only part of the story. Fried chicken and a self-service salad bar gave customers more choices than the name suggested. Meanwhile, a bee named Queenie Bee helped make the restaurant easy to recognize.
That difference between the name and the menu eventually helped bring about a major change. In 1981, Burger Queen became Druther’s. The familiar restaurant continued under a new identity, but the Burger Queen name became a memory.
Its story belongs to an era when regional restaurant chains became neighborhood landmarks. A stop for dinner could also become a first job, a meeting place, or a family tradition.
AT A GLANCE
Place: Burger Queen
Also known as: Druther’s after the 1981 name change
Historical location: Founded in Winter Haven, Florida; later based in Louisville, Kentucky, with restaurants in several states
Category: Fast-food restaurants
Opened/established: 1956; expanded into Kentucky in 1963
Closed/disappeared: Burger Queen became Druther’s in 1981; most Druther’s restaurants converted to Dairy Queen around 1990–1991
Current status: The former chain identity has disappeared, but an independently operated Druther’s remains in Campbellsville, Kentucky
Remembered for: Hamburgers, fried chicken, Queenie Bee, salad bars, and its transformation into Druther’s
HOW IT BEGAN
Burger Queen began in 1956 when Harold and Helen Kite opened their first restaurant in Winter Haven, Florida.
During the early 1960s, George Clark and Mick Gannon obtained franchise rights to bring the concept to Kentucky. They later joined forces with the Kites, helping build the business that would expand the Burger Queen name.
The chain reached Middletown, in the Louisville area, in 1963. Kentucky became an important part of its growth and identity. What began as a Florida restaurant developed into a familiar name in communities farther north.
For customers, the appeal was straightforward: convenient meals with several choices. The restaurant could serve someone looking for a hamburger while also offering chicken to another member of the family.
WHAT MADE IT SPECIAL
Burger Queen’s menu helped distinguish it from restaurants focused mainly on hamburgers. Fried chicken gave customers another substantial meal option. Later, the self-service salad bar broadened that selection further.
The chain also had a memorable mascot. Queenie Bee gave Burger Queen a playful identity that customers could associate with its signs and advertising.
However, the strongest memories often came from the people inside the restaurant.
In a 2025 article for WinCity Voices, writer Randy Patrick recalled working as a teenage grill cook at Burger Queen in Winchester, Kentucky. He described demanding shifts, friendships with coworkers, and a parking lot where teenagers gathered.
His recollections show how a fast-food restaurant could become part of a town’s social life. Customers remembered meals, while employees remembered their first paychecks and the people beside them on a busy shift.
THE FINAL CHAPTER
Burger Queen’s final chapter began with a new name.
In June 1981, the company announced that its restaurants would become Druther’s. One reason for the change was that “Burger Queen” suggested a narrower menu than the restaurants actually offered. Management and the menu initially remained the same.
For regular customers, this meant their familiar restaurant could continue serving meals even as its signs changed.
A second transformation followed in 1990. The company became a Dairy Queen territory operator and converted restaurants to the Dairy Queen brand. Its business history notes that the transition carried over its breakfast program, suppliers, and operating systems.
The restaurants did not all vanish on a single closing date. Instead, the chain’s identity changed in stages—from Burger Queen to Druther’s, then largely to Dairy Queen.
WHAT’S THERE NOW?
A surviving connection to Burger Queen remains at Druther’s Restaurant, 101 North Columbia Avenue in Campbellsville, Kentucky.
The restaurant’s official website identifies it as the last Druther’s and continues to advertise burgers, fried chicken, breakfast, and online ordering. Its address and advertised operating status were verified online on October 12, 2026.
The family restaurant dates to 1970. Steve McCarty started working there as a teenager and later took on its management. The restaurant now draws both local customers and visitors interested in experiencing a surviving piece of the old chain.
Other former Burger Queen locations have separate stories. Their present use—and whether their original buildings survive—must be checked individually using a confirmed street address.
DO YOU REMEMBER BURGER QUEEN?
Did your family visit Burger Queen for hamburgers or fried chicken? Do you remember Queenie Bee or watching your local restaurant change its name to Druther’s?
Share your memories with Forgotten Spots. Include the town, location, and approximate year if you remember them.
Old photographs, menus, advertisements, employee uniforms, and restaurant souvenirs can help preserve this history. Please identify who owns any materials you submit and whether you give permission for publication.
SOURCES AND CREDITS
- Brian J. Easley — Druther’s Business History: Founders, Kentucky expansion, and the transition to Dairy Queen.
- “The Last Druther’s in America” — WinCity Voices, Randy Patrick, April 9, 2025: Employee memories and the surviving Campbellsville restaurant.
- Druther’s Restaurant — Our Story: McCarty family history.
- Druther’s Restaurant — Official Website: Current address and advertised restaurant service.
- Druther’s — Historical Overview: Supplemental information about the mascot and 1981 name change.