Posted on 09/11/2019 1:40:56 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
The idea behind fast food is speed and efficiency. When it comes to fast-food chains, McDonalds is always on the cutting edge of getting people fed quicklytoo quickly, some say.
In the rush to gobble down food, much of the joy of eating is lost. Fast food is a soulless commodity that neglects the spiritual appreciation of flavor and taste. It can turn what should be a dining place into a biological fueling station.
The bad news is that it has just gotten worse.
Just when you think the fast-food giant has reached a peak of efficiency, it comes out with something that challenges the existing order of things. These changes supposedly adapt to new consumer demand for speed and efficiency.
The next new thing is called McDonalds to Go. It has just opened several locations in England including one on the fashionable Fleet Street in the heart of London. It will presumably roll out to other places if it proves popular.
The new format strips the bare bones down to the barest bones. No humans are allowed to take the orders of hungry consumers upon entering. Technology dominates everything as interaction with machines is the rule. Promoters call it the best thing since the drive-thru was introduced in the seventies.
What you wont see at the new McDonalds to Go are any dining facilities. The new format is exclusively take-out. There are no tables, chairs or any decoration at the locations. The walls are gray and expressionless to get the customer in and out as quickly as possible. Even the storefront outside is bare with minimal signage beyond some small yet familiar golden arches.
(Excerpt) Read more at tfp.org ...
Automat.
I’m in favor of mechanical fast food, provided the machines are held to cleaning and health standards.
Those standards are difficult to maintain by humans. Who knows if they wash their hands after each restroom break. Who know if they ever take a bath or how often the clean their uniforms. Who knows what falls out of their nose or hair while handling food.
Every now and then I see a food service worker that is just nasty, or picking her nose, or something that just should not be done.
And we do not go to fast food places for the atmosphere. If we want atmosphere we go to a fine restaurant.
And I recall going to a fast diner in the 70’s in Arlington, VA. My girl friend and I could not get enough of their scrambled eggs. That is until we watched the cook. Drool coming from both corners of his mouth dripping on to the food.
As far as I am concerned, bring it on mechanical take out.
“I want it hot and (some reasonable approximation of) fresh.”
Failure to do that is the problem with my local Micky D’s. The burgers are pre-cooked, I think, and never hot.
I worked at 4 McDonald’s while in high school/college. We served hot food (well, except maybe the fries during the slow periods). The burgers were much better then.
Take out only, and only guys working. Girls were introduced to the work force while I was in college (circa 1971). Seating started being installed only after I left.
The only reason I go there now (2 or 3 times a year) is to get a cheeseburger and small fries for $2. My appetite isn’t what it used to be...
Could be a win for fast food consumers.
1. No jackass at the grill to spit on or otherwise defile your food for whatever reasons.
2. More likely to get your order right than the half-wits and illegals currently performing those tasks.
3. Likely to put “Fast” back into fast food.
Annoyingly dumb article. If you want a leisurely meal tailored to your specifications, why are you at McDonald’s?
Same with us, eat at home. But we eat out RARELY, and every once in a while, McDonald’s actually sounds good, or easy. And then we do sort of “savor” the food, because it is not something we eat often.
There is a great movie on Hulu or Vudu right now called “The founder” that is about how Ray Kroc took over and made McD’s a huge success.
Very interesting. Sort of entertaining. Michael Keaton plays Ray Kroc.
The brothers were thinking small, actually working at their first shop every day, while Kroc was opening up McD’s nation wide. They could not see it.
Remember the automats? Wikipedia says the first one was in Berlin in 1895.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automat
Same here. I don’t eat at McDonald’s often, but every once in a while I get the craving. Wish they hadn’t switched oils - the french fries aren’t as good as they used to be.
This is the menu with its 15 cent hamburger (compare the prices today):
They 15 cent “hamburgers” in the beginning were very thin and with a few condiments on a small bun. They still sell those hamburgers but they are now $1.
Imagining HAL from 2001 serving burgers...”I’m sorry, Fatty, I can’t do that”
I can see it now. Armored trucks pull up with a van full of armed SWAT-like guys while supplies are fed into the automated machines. Then a series of locks, almost bank vault-like are secured. Then everyone loads up and goes to the next high-risk McD's. Rinse. Repeat.
When supplies start to run low an automatic signal is sent to headquarters so they can be sent to that location again.
The hood is bad but it's even worse when the hood rats can't get their fix of McD's and Popeye's chicken.
It’s called Hell.
No, Burger King is the official restaurant of Hell.
Used to go there in New York, as a kid....I think some entrepeneur is trying it again....just cook with robotics and have humans check for quality...and put behind the window...A bit more personal than machine only...
Purgatory...hah! Seriously most fast food places are not too good....I do go to Del Taco for the decent quality, taste and great value(IMHO)...since I am mostly veggie(I will get their beans and cheese products)...not happy with Beyond Meat...I dont work for them by the way...
Revenge of the Vending Machines.
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