The Varsity
The front exterior of The Varsity.
Restaurant information
Established	1928
Food type	Fast food
Street address	61 North Avenue (original)
City	Atlanta
State	Georgia
Postal code/ZIP	30308
Country	United States
Seating capacity	800+ inside and 600 cars (Downtown location)
Other locations	Alpharetta, Athens, Hartsfield-Jackson Airport (Atlanta), Kennesaw, Norcross, Dawsonville (Varsity Jr)--all in Georgia
Website	Official website

The famous Varsity 'V' sign as seen from the Downtown Connector.

The Varsity is a restaurant chain, iconic in the modern culture of Atlanta, Georgia. The main branch of the chain is the largest drive-in fast food restaurant in the world. There are now six other branches across metro Atlanta, and another near the University of Georgia in Athens.

History
Originally named "The Yellow Jacket,' The Varsity was established in 1928 at the corner of Luckie Street and Hemphill Avenue in Midtown Atlanta.[5] Its founder, Frank Gordy, a Reinhardt University graduate, briefly attended The Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) but dropped out in 1925. Then, as now, the restaurant catered heavily to Georgia Tech students. As the business grew, Gordy was forced to move the restaurant to 61 North Avenue (on the northwest corner of Spring Street) to accommodate the crowds; the present structure now covers two city blocks. It was here that the name was changed to "The Varsity," reflecting his desire to expand to other college campuses. During the drive-in era, The Varsity began its curbside service, which continues to this day.

The current location in Atlanta is now adjacent to the Downtown Connector's interchange with North Avenue. When that freeway (now I-75/85) was built by GDOT, it took out several blocks of Williams Street and much of The Varsity's western parking lot, forcing a parking garage to be erected as a replacement. The restaurant and the Georgia Tech campus sit on opposite sides of the Connector, linked by the North Avenue bridge.

The enterprise has since expanded to Athens, Kennesaw, Gwinnett County, Alpharetta, and Dawsonville. The Varsity, Jr., located in northeast Atlanta, was the only other location of the chain to offer curbside service. The Varsity, Jr. closed in August 2010 after more than 40 years at that location, after the city of Atlanta failed to approve the chain's plans to replace that building. The plans for the new Varsity, Jr. were instead used for the new location in Dawsonville. In addition, the main location is responsible for more retail sales of Coca-Cola, on an annual basis than any other single location in the world, a record which has stood for many years. The restaurant also offers catering services to the metro Atlanta region for both corporate and non-corporate functions, going as far east as Conyers and Stone Mountain, Georgia.

There is also a mini-Varsity on the campus of Reinhardt University in Waleska, Georgia. Frank Gordy met his wife, Evelyn, at Reinhardt in 1924 and went on to Georgia Tech to finish his education. Their custom-designed home was later moved from Atlanta to the Reinhardt University campus. The Gordy family gave part of their land to Cobb County for what is now the Mountain View campus of Chattahoochee Technical College and the Mountain View Aquatics Center, the rest was sold in the 1990s for upscale tract housing and strip malls. Gordy Parkway, a loop named for Frank Gordy, serves all of these.