Went to McDonald's tonight

[madoka]

Went there for dinner after my kid kept insisting on it. My observations:

1. They have their menu on screens. The problem is that they rotate screens every five seconds. It's really hard to order when what you're looking at keeps disappearing. WTH were they thinking?

2. There were five separate screens with no rhyme or reason on how they were organized. I stood there and watched as they cycled through. To top it off, they didn't even have all the menu items on there.

3. That McPick is a not a good deal. I found that I saved a whopping $0.08 by ordering two items off the McPick 2 for $2.50 menu as opposed to just ordering them individually. It was however, really hard to tell this since the menu screens kept changing. Perhaps that why they do it.

4. The McDouble is $1.70 and a Big Mac is $4.40. The only difference is that the Big Mac has lettuce, an extra bun in the middle, and special sauce. The Big Mac is way overpriced. The McPick 2 for $5 was a good deal, since you can get 2 Big Macs for $5.

 

[Ns1]

#3
That's because you want 2 McChickens which are $1.29 each on the McPick2 menu which is also their regular price. Pick higher value items.

 

[Mai72]

I got me a large Mc Shake and a burger tonight.

Tasted like Mc Sh*t!

 

[Hugh Jass]

#firstworldproblems

 

[CFP]

I've traveled a little bit, and everywhere I've gone if they have a McDonalds I try the big mac + one other item that I've never tried. Big Mac for baseline purposes.

These are my subjective experiences, thank you for reading my blog.

UK (London, Bristol)
Way too messy. I must have gotten unlucky with don't-give-a-crap schoolkids manning the McDonalds, but the Big Mac was just a gross, over-sauced mess and soggy. From what I hear from buddies and family in the UK, you're more likely to get super gross McDonalds than even average stuff.

US (Chicago, Seattle)
Bic Mac was way too salty. Saltier than anywhere else I've had it before. I don't know if it was user error or the way it's meant to be, but it ruined the burger for me. It was messy, too, but not on the scale of the UK ones I had. I didn't enjoy it at all, but forced myself to finish the damn thing, to hell with sunk cost fallacy.

Japan (Tokyo)
This was actually pretty great. Burger was tidy, staff were prompt and weren't gum-chewing kids who couldn't give a rats ass, and the burger tasted fine. The thing is, everything went very smoothly, and everything was very satisfactory. This, to me, robs McDonalds of some of it's "gambling charm", as typically in a McDonalds, you always have to expect at least one sacrifice / corner cut. The question is: Where? It's like a game.

When everything is perfect, it no longer feels like McDonalds. Just an imitation. Odd how that goes, huh?

Australia (Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Cairns, Sydney)
All experiences were pretty similar. McDonalds manned by high-school kids working for pocket money is never very good. Melbourne was the best experience with a tidier burger, Adelaide the worst, and Perth surprisingly good. Come to think of it, that's basically a great representation of the country, because seriously, Adelaide sucks, and Perth is surprisingly good. Great beaches.

Hong Kong
A little messy and dry, but otherwise fine. Few high school kids and almost always two managers on scene, and each restaurant is always so busy they don't have time to fuck around. Too little lettuce, though. Perfectly acceptable.

Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur)
Similar to above. Messy, too little lettuce and hence quite dry. Stingy on the sauce two, even though I assume they're those fixed-amount dispensers. Either way, wasn't particularly impressed, but it was fine, if I was stuck on a desert island I'd definitely pick a Bic Mac from KL over the ones I tried in UK and US.

Singapore
A better version of Hong Kong's Big Mac (hey, here's another great analogy as it applies to the cities as well). Tidier, tastier, and the atmosphere was better and less rushed. Definitely enjoyed my Big Mac here.

The Netherlands (Amsterdam)
This was fine, apparently good by Western European standards according to my buddies who are certified Big Macxperts. Mayonnaise with chips (fries) was novel for me. Not a bad experience, but I was also really hungry, so this is a more subjective result than the others.

Canada (Vancouver, Toronto)
Again with the salty burgers. Definitely more salty than any of the burgers in Asia or Europe. What the heck is up with that? Ruined it for me, but again, finished the whole thing for testing methodology purposes. Otherwise tidy, though, and staff were friendly.

And that sums it up. I one day hope to submit a book to the lonely planet for publication called Big Max Out Your Life: A Comprehensive Guide to McDonalds Around The World.

So far, they've not replied to my emails and sample chapters, but I'll never stop believing and hoping.

Yes, I am a little overweight, why do you ask?

 

[madoka]

#3
That's because you want 2 McChickens which are $1.29 each on the McPick2 menu which is also their regular price. Pick higher value items.

Actually I got the Sausage McMuffins. But the same also applies to the sundaes. I think the only item on there were you can actually save money is the McDouble. Though the offer seems to vary by region. It's a scam to make you think you're saving money, when all you're doing is buying two items at essentially normal prices.

 

[A Casual Fitz]

So don't go to McDonald's? I haven't been other than the drive-thru since I was a teenager, and I usually have a good idea of what I want before I pull up. Does your drive-thru have the same screens?

 

[ViRGE]

#mcworldproblems

FTFY

 

[shortylickens]

They've had TV's for years.
My local McD's doesnt rotate the menu every 5 seconds. Its closer to a minute. Dont know why yours is fast. Weird.

 

[imported_bman]

They have the same issues here in Canada with those menu screens changing every few seconds, an overly complicated menu, and a combo system that makes little sense anymore (the difference between a la carte and combo prices is not even uniform burger to burger). McDonald's has many issues, but making a simplified menu is something that they could easily implement to improve their restaurants.

 

[lxskllr]

Went there for dinner after my kid kept insisting on it. My observations:

1. They have their menu on screens. The problem is that they rotate screens every five seconds. It's really hard to order when what you're looking at keeps disappearing. WTH were they thinking?

2. There were five separate screens with no rhyme or reason on how they were organized. I stood there and watched as they cycled through. To top it off, they didn't even have all the menu items on there.

Holy shit this pisses me off. I don't have an issue with speed since they're set to 'functionally illiterate', but it's 2/3 ads that have nothing to do with ordering, and if you miss part of the screen the first time, it takes forever to come back.

I'm also not sure what McDonalds has what. It used to be they all had exactly the same thing in rough geographical areas. Now they have stupid digital menus, and going by those, they have eight items only. If I guess, and order something I've seen at a different store, I'm met with a blank look.

 

[Mai72]

I'm going to get some McD's breakfast.

Gotta clean out the ole colon. lol

 

[renz20003]

Just order an adult happy meal.

 

[Puffnstuff]

I was just wondering how the defoamer tastes these days?

 

[Raizinman]

I prefer the meatless sandwich - meaning the fillet O'fish. (assuming it really is fish!!)

 

[Pardus]

I prefer the meatless sandwich - meaning the fillet O'fish. (assuming it really is fish!!)

It's made up of fish parts.

 

[brainhulk]

Why go to McDonald's anymore when there are so many better quality fast casual restaurants now

 

[purbeast0]

#3. "the mcpick is not a good deal"

#4. "the mcpick is a good deal"

 

[Bubblehappy]

I do love me a couple of their breakfast biscuits and a hashbrown. And their fries. They can keep everything else.

 

[Billb2]

If you want to save money at McD's get the app.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

I went on Saturday. The burger meat seemed to be thicker and better than it has been. Not gourmet but better than the last time. Have they moved to better quality beef as part of their menu improvements?

 

[IronWing]

Went there for dinner after every other possible dining option was destroyed in the zombie apocalypse. My observations:

There was an old man standing at the register staring at the menu like it was his first time on earth and he was trying to hand carve each letter onto his brain before comprehending the words there written. He had a kid with him who was like to die of embarrassment at how long they were standing there while his dad crafted his dining strategy. The man yelled at the cashier about the price of a Big Mac and then tried to write a check to pay for the meal.

 

[zinfamous]

Went there for dinner after my kid kept insisting on it. My observations:

1. They have their menu on screens. The problem is that they rotate screens every five seconds. It's really hard to order when what you're looking at keeps disappearing. WTH were they thinking?

2. There were five separate screens with no rhyme or reason on how they were organized. I stood there and watched as they cycled through. To top it off, they didn't even have all the menu items on there.

3. That McPick is a not a good deal. I found that I saved a whopping $0.08 by ordering two items off the McPick 2 for $2.50 menu as opposed to just ordering them individually. It was however, really hard to tell this since the menu screens kept changing. Perhaps that why they do it.

4. The McDouble is $1.70 and a Big Mac is $4.40. The only difference is that the Big Mac has lettuce, an extra bun in the middle, and special sauce. The Big Mac is way overpriced. The McPick 2 for $5 was a good deal, since you can get 2 Big Macs for $5.

The real mistake here is in your lack of effort at convincing your children that In-n-Out is superior to McDonald's in every way and that they should never want to make that choice again, considering you actually have access to InNOut

 

[nakedfrog]

To top it off, they didn't even have all the menu items on there.

This has been increasingly popular at fast food joints over the last few years. I hate it. Lets them have bigger pictures of the food, and less information is good for the lowest common denominator customers.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

This has been increasingly popular at fast food joints over the last few years. I hate it. Lets them have bigger pictures of the food, and less information is good for the lowest common denominator customers.

Its a sales thing too. Good margin gets the best real-estate plus too many choices will cause longer time to order. Happens almost every where, even at sit down places with their daily specials separate menu.