McDonald’s

As McDonalds go this one is pretty tired and true.
You can consistently get through the drive thru at this location in a timely manner. They get your order right and the food is as expected.

I just can’t give a McDonald’s 5 stars, but there is nothing I found wrong or bad about this McDonald’s. Some of the best French fries I have ever had from a McDonald’s, and my burger was very fresh. Probably helped that I went right in the middle of the lunch rush. Super efficient and friendly service too. My order was perfect. So, with me placing a 4-​star cap on any McDonald’s, or most fast food chains for that matter, this Mickey D’s scores ⁴⁄₄ stars.

Okay, first things first. Yes, I’m really reviewing a McDonald’s. I know. I know. I can’t believe it either. While I’m not opposed to reviewing fast food joints, let’s be honest and acknowledge that unless you’re in a bad neighborhood or a really good neighborhood then you know exactly what to expect from McDonald’s.
While I do frequent McDonald’s for breakfast, mainly because it’s on my way to work, it’s incredibly rare that I choose to actually go inside one and have a meal. However, tonight I wasn’t having much luck finding anything that sounded good and I knew I wanted an abundance of iced tea. Mostly, I just wanted to chill for a bit and read the newspaper.
This particular location is located across from Castleton Square Mall. This makes it neither a bad neighborhood nor a good one, but definitely a high retail area. This location has a bit of the retro vibe and has generally been fairly consistent with service at the drive-​thru.
Tonight, however, McDonald’s did a couple things that drive me absolutely batty and I felt compelled to come home and document them.
First, it completely drives me nuts when chains become inconsistent with their pricing. Everyone knows that McDonald’s has the $ 1 drinks. The vast majority of McDonald’s locations will upsize the drink at no charge and many of them do it automatically. So, I didn’t even think of asking for an upsized drink since I was getting iced tea and it should have been automatic. When she started to hand me the medium-​sized cup, I asked to upsize and was informed it would be $.21.
I know. I know. I feel petty. I really do. But, really. It’s what makes McDonald’s different from the other folks. If you’re going to nickel and dime customers then I may as well head on over to our favorite border crossing corporate dudes at Burger King. Mostly, it’s just inconsistent because multiple other McD’s in the area don’t charge for the upgrade AND it makes buying a value meal less of a value. So, it really is contradictory.
Then, of course, there’s food quality. I can remember when McDonald’s had the best fries around. I know they’re trying to be healthier these days, but between that change and the fact that these fries tasted like they’d been sitting around in the pan for a bit I can honestly say they were completely abysmal.
The chicken McNuggets? They were decent, but even they didn’t seem particularly fresh this evening.
There’s really not much more I can possibly write here. This is, after all, a McDonald’s. However, I’ve come to expect better from this location and given its high visibility location they definitely need to do a better job. This visit was a definite disappointment.

Clean, fast and friendly service. I had to pull down my hoodie before entering, so only 3 stars.