drive-thru

Escaped Cow Visits McDonald's Drive-Thru, Ponders Circle Of Life
By Laura Northrup on May 7, 2012 9:00 AM   22 Comments
If you're an attentive reader of this site, you know that people are always bringing inappropriate things to fast-food drive-thrus, hoping to get served. Mobility scooters. Snakes. Even pedestrians have tried and failed to acquire food. But when Darcy wandered up to the drive-thru window at a Colorado McDonald's on foot, employees didn't just wearily tell her to go inside the restaurant to order like all of the other pedestrians. That's because Darcy is a dairy cow. More »

(yarnzombie)

How Can The Fast Food Drive-Thru Be Improved?
By Chris Morran on October 20, 2011 2:15 PM   180 Comments
From busted speakers to hard-to-read menus, the fast-food drive-thru lane has long been a staple of both comedy and consumer complaints. But now in the age of mobile payments and LED signage, some eateries are trying to improve that image. More »

(WNEM)

The Drive-Thru Flu Shot
By Ben Popken on September 30, 2011 5:00 PM   75 Comments
In a continuing trend, health care professionals are once again this year offering drive-thru flu vaccines. Oh, you hadn't heard? Yep, you can drive right up, stick out your arm, and get a flu shot, all without ever having to leave your car. More »

(mypleasurestore.com)

Are Drive-Thru Adult Stores The Wave Of The Future?
By Chris Morran on December 30, 2010 1:40 PM   41 Comments
Like it or not, adult videos and sexual aids are a multi-billion dollar business. And while many who purchase these items are more than happy to do so over the internet, some still like the immediate satisfaction of picking up their x-rated goods at the local adult emporium. One such store in Alabama has found a way to make those customers happy without them ever having to leave their cars. More »

(Morton Fox)

Burger King Tells Me To Pull Into Handicapped Parking Spot So It Can Cheat Drive-Thru Timer
By Phil Villarreal on September 13, 2010 1:30 PM   210 Comments
You're at a drive-thru, you've already paid and are stuck in line waiting for your food. You're at the mercy of an employee who may ask you to pull off to the side so the restaurant can cheat the timer so Corporate continues to think service is quick. But what do you do when the employee tells you to pull into a handicapped spot? More »

(GinnySkal.com)

Why Does My Starbucks No Longer Advertise 'Tall' Coffees?
By Chris Morran on September 1, 2010 2:15 PM   76 Comments
For those who haven't been schooled in the Starbucks lexicon, a "Tall" coffee is actually a small, with "Grande" and "Venti" signifying medium and large respectively. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, we can deal with the Starbucks in Durham, NC, which apparently still sells Tall beverages — though you wouldn't know that from its drive-thru menu. More »

(SA_Steve)

"Open 23 Hours, 39 Minutes" Doesn't Make A Very Catchy McDonald's Sign
By Laura Northrup on August 18, 2010 9:30 AM   111 Comments
Gregory writes that he made a trip to a 24-hour McDonald's after 4 AM because, well, it was a 24-hour McDonald's and would ostensibly be open. This particular McDonald's apparently shut down between 4:00 and 4:30, simultaneously ignoring the concepts of "open 24 hours" and "fast food." More »

(macmedics)

Burger King Drive-Thru Guys Make Us Pull Off To The Side To Cheat Timer
By Phil Villarreal on July 20, 2010 9:45 AM   184 Comments
Jenn patronizes what is possibly one of the fastest Burger King drive-thrus on record. That doesn't mean the fast food joint serves customers food quickly. She says its workers game the drive-thru timer system by asking people to pull off to the side after they order and wait to be served. More »

(Paxton Holley)

Man Robs McDonald's Drive-Thru With Beer Bottle
By Chris Morran on March 15, 2010 4:14 PM   23 Comments
As the world grows more and more technologically savvy, thieves continue to have success with old-fashioned methods. First there was the guy who robbed a Walmart with their own crowbar and now comes report of a man who not only managed to burgle a McDonald's through the drive-thru window, but who did it with a broken beer bottle. More »

Chick-Fil-A Has The Best Drive-Thru
By Meg Marco on October 2, 2009 9:22 PM   148 Comments

—>The Chicago Tribune informs us that the quick-service industry publication QSR Magazine ranks fast food restaurants based on the follwoing drive-through attributes: speed of service, order accuracy, menu board appearance, and speaker clarity. Chick-fil-A is apparently unstoppable, stealing the top spot for the sixth time in seven years.  More »

Fake McDonald's Letter Is Totally Fake, Burger Pusher Confirms
By Ben Popken on October 1, 2009 5:35 PM   50 Comments

—>Mickey D's down under wants everyone to know that the parody McDonald's letter making the rounds is indeed prankaliscious. Corporate Communications Manager Bronwyn Stubbs writes:  More »

(Parody) New Profit Center For Australian McDonald's: Fraud?
By Laura Northrup on October 1, 2009 1:00 AM   152 Comments

—>Note: This memo is a parodic spoof.  More »

Burger King Drive-Thru Workers Try To Cheat The Timer System
By Phil Villarreal on August 17, 2009 1:15 PM   219 Comments

—>If an employee of Burger King or other fast-food drive-throughs ever asks you to back up before pulling forward, they're most likely attempting to re-set the timer sensors so it appears you're being served faster.  More »

Hey, Who Took A Bite Out Of My Cheeseburger?
By Laura Northrup on June 16, 2009 12:51 AM   101 Comments

—>Jesus and his family stopped at the drive-thru window of a newly opened Sonic in Wilkes-Barre, Penn. on their way home from a shopping trip. When they got home and opened their bags, Jesus noticed something weird about his bacon cheeseburger. Part of it was missing.  More »

Don't Hack Into The Taco Bell Drive Thru And Yell Obscenities At Customers
By Meg Marco on February 18, 2009 9:16 PM   144 Comments

—>Sure, we have to admit that it's kind of funny, but our official position is that you should not use your immense technological skills to modify a radio to broadcast on the Taco Bell drive thru's frequency. Sadly, we did not get this important message out to two teenagers in Sedalia, Mo.  More »

Why Won't Checkers/Rally's Make Their Nutrition Information Available?
By Alex Chasick on July 9, 2008 4:33 PM   55 Comments

—>When we posted our Ultimate Fast Food Nutrition Guide a few months ago, a couple readers pointed out that Checkers/Rally's, the chrome and neon double drive-thru hamburger joint, has refused to provide nutrition information to customers for years.  More »

Steak 'N Shake Manager Denies Drive-Thru Service To Deaf Mother
By Carey Alexander on January 27, 2008 7:04 PM   221 Comments

—>A Steak 'N Shake manager refused to serve Karen Putz, a deaf mother of three, after she asked to place her order at the drive-thru window as allowed by the Americans with Disabilities Act. The manager claimed it was "policy" to force Karen to order like any other customer:

"You'll have to drive around again so I can take your order through the speaker," the guy said.  More »

Please Don't Throw Drinks At Your Local Drive-Thru Attendants
By Carey Alexander on August 9, 2007 8:49 PM   74 Comments

That is all.  More »

Upcoming Technology in Fast Food Drive-Thrus
By consumerist.com on January 30, 2006 8:13 PM   6 Comments

—>CNN has an article up, explaining the cutting-edge technological battle between the fast food chains: drive-thru automation. It will surprise none who have experienced the annoyance of trying to order a cheeseburger through a fuzzy, warbling speaker from an anonymous immigrant on the other end that the strategy these companies are banking on is absolutely clueless. What will companies like Burger King and Wendy's be doing to guarantee a better drive-thru experience for you, the consumer? One: outsource your order to call centers, possibly in India. Two: use computer programs that guess your upcoming order.  More »

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