McDonald's Future in Question

[TechMan]

I'll go with Wendy's, then White Castle, then Steak & Shake, next up Burger King and finally McDonalds.

[wmenorr67]

Went to IHOP last night after basketball game with the wife and three teenage boys and a teenage girl. 

Food for me was blah, first carafe of coffee that was brought out was cold, my omelet was bland, and the service was slow with what appeared to be a 1 server to 2 table ratio.

[Brad Johnson]

I wonder how much of McD's financial woes are due to the raging success that is their value menu? I know it started as an almost-loss-leader way to get people in the door to buy more profitable items. It seems to have morphed into a much larger percentage of sales then they ever anticipated.

It's been several years since I ordered anything not on the VM. I'm not a picky eater, as my waistline will attest. $2.50 for a filling meal is mere pennies more than I'd have in something home-prepared. I have to believe I'm not the only one who regularly uses the McD VM as a convenient, cost-effective meal option when home-cooked isn't readily available.

Brad

[Ben]

I wonder how much of McD's financial woes are due to the raging success that is their value menu? I know it started as an almost-loss-leader way to get people in the door to buy more profitable items. It seems to have morphed into a much larger percentage of sales then they ever anticipated.

It's been several years since I ordered anything not on the VM. I'm not a picky eater, as my waistline will attest. $2.50 for a filling meal is mere pennies more than I'd have in something home-prepared. I have to believe I'm not the only one who regularly uses the McD VM as a convenient, cost-effective meal option when home-cooked isn't readily available.

Brad

Those value meals are one place where I have to give McDonalds (and America!) credit. As much flak as they get for how bad their food is for you, I can guarantee that there are millions of people in the world who would consider it a Godsend to be able to eat a McDonalds value meal once a day. We have ridiculously cheap, safe, and available food here, when compared to so many other parts of the world.

[Waitone]

A lot of the franchisees complain about the growth of the menu.  Too many marginal products they are required to produce.  Then there is the complain about HQ marketing stunts that have no known purpose (free coffee, fer instance).  McD lost its founding vision for any number of  reasons.  Press I've been reading says McD will go back to its roots.

Where I live we have small mid state chain called Rush's.  Puts the big boys to shame.

[230RN]

Andiron remarked,

I've pretty much written off fast food,  when possible.  Best way to not encourage fatassery on my part.

Doggy Daddy chimed in with,

Either that, or I'll just sit here all fat and satisfied with grease dripping off my chin and read youse guys ruminations for a while.

Well, I figure you've got to challenge and stress your system once in a while to keep it in good running order. 

Sorta like taking your car out for a high speed run on the highway to blow the carbon off the valves. :)

Terry

[Brad Johnson]

Well, I figure you've got to challenge and stress your system once in a while to keep it in good running order. 

Sorta like taking your car out for a high speed run on the highway to blow the carbon off the valves. :)

Terry

That's what SPAM, Earl Campbell's Jalapeno Cheddar hot links, and Allsup's chimis are are for. 

Brad

[K Frame]

If their future depends on the performance of the location I'm pretty much forced to go to on nights when I have a meeting, MickeyD's is screwed.

This place is unbelievably slow. It's messy (never really dirty, per say), but everything just looks out of place. The women making the sandwiches get the ingredients wrong about 15% of the time, which is absolutely incomprehensible...

I was there last week and ordered one of their grilled chicken sammiches. After waiting an incredible length of time, the manager finally plops down a Quarter Pounder box.

Excuse me, I ordered a chicken sandwich.

Manager comes back a few moments later and says (I think) "sorry, it's just a chicken sandwich in the wrong box."

Yeah.... so I opened the box... "Uhm... since when does your grilled chicken sandwich come with a bonus hamburger patty under the chicken?"

Stupid sammich assemblers in the back weren't paying attention to what they were doing. AGAIN.

By that time I was pretty pissed, and the manager knew it. I was hungry, I was running late, so he tossed a "free drink or sammich" coupon my way.

Nice gesture on his part, but that kind of crap should never happen.


I was there again Wednesday (yes, I know, but it really is the only option for dinner for where I need to go)...

The woman doing the fries dropped the fry scoop and it broke. They couldn't find another one. No back up? Jesus...

The place was messy as all get out again.

The manager on duty I've seen before. He's not slow... he's glacial. And when he's on duty, the place pretty much comes to a stand still. I really think he's a Burger King mole trying to bring down the clown from the inside.

[KD5NRH]

The manager on duty I've seen before. He's not slow... he's glacial. And when he's on duty, the place pretty much comes to a stand still. I really think he's a Burger King mole trying to bring down the clown from the inside.

Nah; he either got his training at the Jack in the Box drive through or the WalMart express lane.

Bad fast food service is why I like to watch the HEB meal deals (Buy something - usually the entree - at regular price and get everything else to make a complete meal for 2-3 people free.  Wednesday, it was 2 24oz bags of fully cooked boneless chicken tenders for $7/bag, get chips, salsa, salad, dressing, hot sauce, 2L soda and a salsa bowl free.  Not bad for 3lbs of pretty good tenders and at least a couple meals worth of other stuff.) with nuke-and-eat entrees.

[Boomhauer]

Went to IHOP last night after basketball game with the wife and three teenage boys and a teenage girl. 

Food for me was blah, first carafe of coffee that was brought out was cold, my omelet was bland, and the service was slow with what appeared to be a 1 server to 2 table ratio.

IHOPs here suck too. Last one I went to there were a bunch of flies in the restaurent and the service was glacially slow.

[Andiron]

Anyone ever try Sheetz?  For what's essentially a gas station, it has tasty fast food.

[TechMan]

Anyone ever try Sheetz?  For what's essentially a gas station, it has tasty fast food.

There are none around here, but there is one in my parent's town in NE Ohio.  I just looked at the online menu, wow.  I didn't realize they had so much.

[Scout26]

The absolute best gas station in the world to eat at is Oklahoma Joe's in Kansas City.

Right Nick1911?


 

[MechAg94]

Nah; he either got his training at the Jack in the Box drive through or the WalMart express lane.

Bad fast food service is why I like to watch the HEB meal deals (Buy something - usually the entree - at regular price and get everything else to make a complete meal for 2-3 people free.  Wednesday, it was 2 24oz bags of fully cooked boneless chicken tenders for $7/bag, get chips, salsa, salad, dressing, hot sauce, 2L soda and a salsa bowl free.  Not bad for 3lbs of pretty good tenders and at least a couple meals worth of other stuff.) with nuke-and-eat entrees.

Bad/slow fast food service is likely crappy owners and management who tolerate it as long as the profit is still there. 

I worked 3 months at a McD's in my home town.  Managers were constantly pushing and yelling periodically.  Then the owners would show up ocasionally and yell at people even worse.  Crappy way to run a store. 

[MechAg94]

A lot of the franchisees complain about the growth of the menu.  Too many marginal products they are required to produce.  Then there is the complain about HQ marketing stunts that have no known purpose (free coffee, fer instance).  McD lost its founding vision for any number of  reasons.  Press I've been reading says McD will go back to its roots.

Where I live we have small mid state chain called Rush's.  Puts the big boys to shame.

Now that I think about it, Whataburger is everywhere down here, but I don't think it get much out of the Texas Gulf Coast.  Good franchise.  Good food.

[TechMan]

Now that I think about it, Whataburger is everywhere down here, but I don't think it get much out of the Texas Gulf Coast.  Good franchise.  Good food.

From my visits down to TX (San Antonio) oh so long ago, I remember Wataburgers all over the place.

[Cliffh]

BRB.

The wife is serving up home made greasy sloppy joes.  When I get back I'll post something about fast food.  Either that, or I'll just sit here all fat and satisfied with grease dripping off my chin and read youse guys ruminations for a while.

 

Just finished off 3 BLTs w/o the L.  Not so hungry.

Wendy's, Jack, pretty much anyone else, McD's.  Wendy's used to sell up to a double burger, I'd stop by there after work before heading over to the shop to work on the race car.  I'd always order the double with an extra patty to make it a triple.  A few months after I started doing that they began offering the triple burger.  Really like it when the grease drips off my elbow.

About 9 years ago, we went to a Whataburger in Gilbert AZ.  Wasn't impressed, the burger was dry, the service was slow.

[Scout26]

McDonald went off the rails when they stopped with grilling burgers in small batches (as they anticipated orders) and went to grilling hundreds if not thousands and then storing them in trays/heaters and/or microwaving them just before assembling.   Taste has bottomed out since then.   Their burgers were best either A) hot off the grill, or b) about 10 minutes old when the grease and condiments got a chance to soak into the buns.

Yes, I like their reconstituted onions.

Steak-n-Shake.  I usually hit the one in Lafayette (if I don't have time for Triple XXX).   $4 for a Triple Steak Burger and Fries, filling meal for a decent price.  With a shake total runs just under $7.  Still a good deal.


We've had a whole bunch of burger places open here 5 Guys, Smashburger, Meatheads.  We've been to all three, but not one was a "OH WOW THIS PLACE IS AWESOME."  All were decent burgers but spendy.

Since we don't go out to eat often, it's only when traveling that we'll hit a restaurant.  

[RoadKingLarry]

I don't eat here within 3 month of my annual cholesterol check.

http://www.ronschili.com/

[Ben]

For a regional sit-down burger chain, I like these guys, because you can get good (i.e., not Jack Daniels) whiskey with your burger:

http://www.eurekarestaurantgroup.com/eat.html#prettyPhoto

[Doggy Daddy]

Just finished off 3 BLTs w/o the L.  Not so hungry.

Had exactly that for breakfast a couple of days ago.  The L is not always necessary or desired.

[Doggy Daddy]

Sorta like taking your car out for a high speed run on the highway to blow the carbon off the valves. :)

Terry

Yep, still blowing of the carbon.  Good thing we have 4 dogs I can blame it on.  3 would not be enough.

[Perd Hapley]

Meatheads.

I like Meatheads. Also, I wish Beef-A-Roo would expand out of the Rockford, IL area.

[lupinus]

I actually rate the big national three about equally, it just depends what I am in the mood for. Though BK and Wendy's have never managed to forget to put the chicken on my fluffing chicken sandwich. McDonalds still has the best fries out of the three.

[Ben]

McDonalds still has the best fries out of the three.

Or possibly had. It may have just been coincidence or quality control, but the fries that came with my "new" Quarter Pounder earlier in the week were not that great. I was already wondering if they changed the recipe to (way) less salt, "healthy" fries.