On the heels of yet another devastating last-place finish among burger chains, McDonald’s may be trying to spice up their gray meat by going even grayer — or rather, greyer — with the English Pub Burger it’s testing in at least one Illinois town. [More]
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Man Uses Spare Syringe To Invent Sauce-Injected McNuggets
By 7.5.11
Noticing how a spare syringe was sitting on his desk right next to his box of McNuggets and dipping sauces, Kenji over at Serious Eats was struck by inspiration. He picked up the syringe, dipped it in the Tangy Barbecue sauce, and loaded the syringe with sauce. Then he injected it directly into the McNugget to create a dipping sauce-filled fried chicken nugget. Genius! [More]
Science Confirms In-N-Out Burger Is The Best And McDonald's The Worst
By 6.30.11
Almost a year ago, our survey-loving siblings at Consumer Reports asked several thousand readers to rate burgers from 18 burger chains and to no one’s surprise, McDonald’s came in dead last. Not satisfied with merely finding the best and worst beef-on-a-bun, CR decided to go for the super-sized option, rating 53 restaurants in five categories to find which ones provide the best food, service and value to customers. [More]
Delta & McDonald's Are Big Losers In Customer Satisfaction Survey
By 6.21.11
Earlier today, the lovely folks at the American Customer Satisfaction Index released their latest data for airlines and fast food restaurants. And judging by the companies that came in last in each category, being the biggest doesn’t make you any better. [More]
This McDonald's Video Takes Recruitment Propaganda To Hollywood Heights
By 6.16.11
This recruitment video for McDonald’s is simply amazing. It is a full-on miniature drama tracing the arc of a young woman who starts at the bottom at McDonald’s, overcoming the snark and condescension of her friends and her mother, and rises to become a floor manager who trains other new employees, joining part of a community of other happy workers. All who doubted her are forced to eat their words. The production is slick, with emotive cinematography and lots of rising crane shots. It should get the Oscar for best internal corporate propaganda. [More]
McDonald's Employees Stand Outside New Sonic To Remind People McDonald's Exists
By 6.10.11
Up until the other day, there was only one Sonic restaurant in the entire state of Connecticut. And now that a second one has opened, the locals are showing up to see if they like it. But the staff at a nearby McDonald’s decided to turn a problem into an opportunity by standing outside the new Sonic with signs directing hungry diners to the Golden Arches. [More]
Parent Wages Internet Campaign Against Disgusting McDonald's Play Area
By 6.9.11
If you noticed that the play area at your local fast-food restaurant was unacceptably filthy, what would you do? Sure, you might keep your children off the equipment and stop visiting that restaurant, and tell your friends and neighbors to do the same. But when one Arizona mom repeatedly complained about the conditions at her local McDonald’s and still nothing changed, she went further. She paid for testing by an independent lab to see exactly what was crawling around in that playground. She also climbed through the playland tubes herself, filming the graffiti, discarded food, and filth her children had been romping around in. [More]
Original Ronald McDonald Was Really Creepy
By 6.2.11
If today’s Ronald McDonald looked more like his original incarnation, the McDonald’s CEO might have a tougher time defending against those asking for the burger clown’s resignation. Have you seen the first Ronald? Played by Willard Scott, he’s a clown with a soda cup for a nose and a tray of food as a hat. He also has a food tray attached to his belt which will magically produce three hamburgers in a row on demand. You can see why this Ronald was streamlined into the version we know today. Because he looks like a serial killer. [More]
The McRice Burger Has Rice Cakes Instead Of Buns
By 5.23.11
In America we associate McDonald’s with three things, burgers, fries, and self-aggrandizing homogeneity. But the iconic chain is actually quite adaptable to local tastes, flavors and customs as it coats the globe with franchises. [More]
Ronald McDonald Is Still Not Being Retired
By 5.23.11
Although McDonald’s has repeatedly insisted that the company’s red-headed mascot is not about to suffer the same fate as the Frito Bandito, activists that say the clown encourages childhood obesity continue to call for his ouster. At the company’s annual meeting last week, CEO Jim Skinner defended Ronald against the charges, declaring him an “ambassador for good.”
For Variety, Eater Of 25,000 Big Macs "Sometimes Eats Them Upside Down"
By 5.18.11
Yesterday Don Gorske set a new world record by eating his 25,000th Big Mac in his lifetime. The news reports are full of charming anecdotes surrounding this man and his accomplishment. My favorite is the one where his brother recounts how he once asked Don, doesn’t he ever get tired of eating the same thing over and over again? Don reportedly replied, “Sometimes I eat them upside down.” Turning the burger over 180 degrees is enough to rearrange the order in which the flavors enter his mouth. Here are some other fun facts about this story: [More]
Man To Eat His 25,000th Big Mac Today
By 5.17.11
At 4pm Eastern, Don Gorske, 57, will have eaten his 25,000th Big Mac, reports Wisinfo. He has timed the event to coincide with the exact anniversary, down to the hour, of the very first time he ate, and fell in love with, Big Macs 39 years ago. Despite daily doses of Big Macs consisting of “90% of his solid food intake,” Gorske is not obese and he runs in races. How is this possible? [More]
McDonald's Spending $1 Billion On Redesign, Nothing To Make Burgers Taste Less Like Chewed Cardboard
By 5.9.11
Last year, McDonald’s made headlines when its burgers came in dead last out of the 20 chains surveyed by our kin over at Consumer Reports. So to improve its image, is the grease goliath falling on its own sword like Domino’s and coming out with a better product? Nope. It’s dumping over a billion dollars into remodeling its restaurants. [More]
Logos Redesigned For What The Company Actually Does
By 5.4.11
For fun and whimsy, graphic designer Viktor Hertz took a crack at reworking some famous company logos so they more accurately depict what the company is all about. C’mon, let’s get real people. YouTube is not about putting “you” on the “tube” — it’s the world’s largest repository of cat videos! The rest of the satire, more of which can be found here, speaks for itself. [More]
McDonald's Hires 62,000 At Job Event, Turns Down 938,000
By 5.2.11
McDonald’s reports that it has hired 62,000 people who applied during its April 19 nationwide job event. If that sounds like a lot of people who want to work at McDonald’s, get a load of this number. They say they got over a million applications, meaning they turned down over 938,000 wanna-be burger flippers. [More]
Want Milk In Your Coffee? At Some McDonald's, You'll Have To Buy A Whole Carton
By 4.19.11
McDonald’s wants to be your caffeine pusher of choice, and promotes their inexpensive brewed coffee and frozen creations as quick, convenient, and cheap. $1 is the price point advertised on billboards. Cheap! What they don’t mention in these ads, though, is that price applies if you want your coffee black or with cream or half and half. If you prefer milk in your coffee, some franchises will accommodate you, but at others, you’re going to have to pay for a half-pint carton of milk. [More]
McDonald's: Happy Meal Lawsuit Should Be Dismissed Because Parents Can Always Tell Kids "No"
By 4.19.11
Last December, a California woman — along with the Center for Science in the Public Interest — filed a lawsuit against McDonald’s, alleging the fast food giant violates state laws by using toys to advertise Happy Meals directly to children. Yesterday, lawyers for the Golden Arches filed a motion to have the case dismissed because the company shouldn’t be held responsible for parents who can’t say no to their kids. [More]
McDonald's Canada Accepts Monopoly Money
By 4.14.11
Paying “in Monopoly money” may cease to be a pejorative after McDonald’s Canada started selling fast food in exchange for bills from the classic board game. [More]
