McDonalds - literally, 'fast' food (McDonald's)

Member Name: Stephoohla

Product:	McDonald's
Date:	19/08/09 (45 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Food to eat on the run, tasty, satisfactory, affordable

Disadvantages: Unhealthy if you eat lots of it

I don't know too much about the background of McDonalds, considering its a massive US corporation and I'm from little old England, so I'll just get right into my experiences of MDs and what to expect from one of their' restaurants'.

I don't know when fast food surfaced, but its certainly made lots of lives easier. Especially, MDs, as there's one EVERYWHERE. Every city, every town, they are literally like an infectious disease, but in a good way.

When most people think of MDs, they think of dirt, filth, grime and grease. That's a stereotypical image of a fast food joint, and MDs is, after all, the King.

However, I think that most of my MDs experiences are actually rather pleasant.

The first thing I generally notice from outside is the big familiar M, recognised by most cultures and ages. They are afraid to let everyone knowwhere they are. Upon entering, I find that often staff are about everywhere, always cleaning, emptying the bins, wiping tables, etc, on the main floor. So I think it is generally always clean, in the large branches of MDs anyway.

There are often at least a few lines of queues due to the popularity of MDs, but because of the fast service, common to 'fast food' places, the queues go down quickly.

Whilst the staff are nearly always youths in MDs, I find they are most of the time quite friendly, and if you don't cause a fuss then they will be polite and let you get on with your eating.

There is plenty of speculation about whether MDs food is microwaved, but most of the time you can see into the kitchen and see burgers being pulled out of stoves and the fries are always in the fryer, cooking.

So, the food. Depending on what you buy, generally the food is actually really tasty and looks good, despite obviously being terrible for your health. The burgers can be made to your order (I always ask for no sauce, no salad) as can most other things, though they take a bit longer to do.

The chips are really nice, and aren't too salty now that MDs have tried to take on a healthier option, but the one thing that will always be the same about MDs chips is that they go cold, and quickly. But this is common knowledge, so as long as you eat it fairly quickly (its called 'fast food' so shouldn't be a problem, right) then they'll still taste good.

MDs do have even healthier options, such as salad, but some critics now say that the salads contain as many calories as the burgers do. In my opinion, if you're going to buy from a fast food place, you've got to expect it to be unhealthy. Nothing healthy can be cooked within 2 minutes! If you want a salad, buy veg from the supermarket and make it yourself, don't go to MDs!

MDs is a very family orientated place, proved by the Happy Meals, aimed at kids, massive burger meals aimed at men typically (generally, dads), with lots of healthier and less junky options aimed for mum, like the chicken burger.

In the larger branches they have kids' play areas too, with kids' seating (generally for children's parties but the public are free to sit there too) with colouring pads, crayons and other toys, trying to make it a fun experience for children so that they beg mum and dad to take them back.

MDs is very clever in their marketing techniques, proven by the fact that they've almost taken over the world!

MDs pricing differs quite a bit depending on what you get. Some would say that their meals are actually quite expensive. For example, a large Quarter Pounder meal, which includes a Quarter Pounder burger with cheese and sauce and salad if you wish, large chips and a large drink of your choice, costs £4.59. Cheaper than a restaurant, but then you don't get the nice facilities of a restaurant, such as comfortable seating and proper waiter service. A plain burger costs simply 89p, with a double burger costing £1.19, so if you're only after something small it's definitely worth it. Chips alone depend on what size, I believe small is 79p, medium 99, and large £1.19. Drinks are similar prices for sizes respectively.

The deserts available are fairly limited. The most popular choices are a chocolate muffin (£1.19) or a doughnut (89p), or most common, a McFlurry. There are often deals on specific McFlurry flavours, for example when the Creme Egg McFlurry came out, it was 99p.

MDs isn't all bad and won't kill you, as long as you eat once every couple of weeks and don't go crazy. The people who end up suing McDonalds for 'making' them 'fat' is because they eat the food every day out of choice, despite knowing the consequences.

McDonalds restaurants are a friendly, pleasant yet busy atmosphere, and clearly like to have a big turnover of customers. The seating areas are standard, not too comfortable, as then you'd be there for hours! Instead, they keep you wanting to go back with the tasty food, cheap-ish prices, and the promise that they'll always be there should you need a 2 minute burger whilst on the run!

Summary: If you're in town, have a few minutes to spare and are hungry, MDs is the way forward