Posted on 03/10/2014 1:36:24 PM PDT by Red Badger
WASHINGTON -- After an elderly couple got the boot from their local McDonald's for sitting too long, management and the owner are not answering the question if there really is a 30-minute sitting limit at the Culpeper, Va. fast food restaurant.
Carl Becker, 87, a World War II veteran, and his wife Barbara Becker, 81, say they both were at the Culpeper McDonald's on Feb. 21 at about 2:30 p.m. when they were approached by the manager.
The location is a place the pair has frequented for years.
"And he says 'You two are going to have to leave.' He said 'Your half hour is up and we need to clean this floor,'" says Barbara Becker. The restaurant was not crowded at the time, she says, and the two were stunned. This was the first time they had ever been asked to leave a McDonald's.
"We've never, ever, ever been kicked out of a McDonald's," she says, adding that they've have been patrons of the fast food chain for decades and since their own children were kids. The couple has six children ranging in age from 43 to 61 and 14 grandchildren with one on the way, due March 10.
"Now our grandchildren are McDonald's lovers," she says adding that they spend lots of time at McDonald's because they are on a fixed income and it's affordable. Her husband loves getting the chicken sandwich, she says and that it's a treat for the both of them to just eat, talk and enjoy each other's company.
Carl Becker wrote a letter to the editor of the Star Exponent about the incident.
But Barbara Becker says, "We were kicked out unnecessarily and we're just not that kind of people."
The couple has been back to a McDonald's since the incident but not the Culpeper location. The restaurant owner has reached out to the couple.
Bob Drumheller, the owner of the McDonald's Culpeper franchise, issued a statement:
"I care deeply about the comfort and satisfaction of my customers. My organization takes these matters seriously, and is investigating the customer's claims. I have also reached out to the customer to extend my apologies for this misunderstanding. Our focus will continue to be on serving our customers and providing them a welcoming experience."
In another incident involving a McDonald's in New York, the franchise had a bigger battle on its hands. That location had to remind its customers of a time limit for patrons who dine in by posting a sign stating customers have 20 minutes to finish their meals. The catalyst behind the sign was a group of elderly patrons who would come to the restaurant as early as 5 a.m. and would stay until after dark, the New York Times reports. The Times says a number of elderly Korean patrons were taking up tables for hours on a daily basis.
WTOP asked its Facebook followers to weigh in on the issue by asking whether there should be a 30-minute sitting limit at McDonald's. See the responses here.
Follow @WTOP on Twitter and on the WTOP Facebook page.
© 2014 WTOP. All Rights Reserved.
Moronager you mean.
“That location had to remind its customers of a time limit for patrons who dine in by posting a sign stating customers have 20 minutes to finish their meals.”
They’ll call 911 for you when you choke to death on your Big Mac.
This McD manager would never make it in Europe where you can practically move in with a cot.
No free coffee refills though. :(
This ‘manager’ is gonna be really sorry he did that.............
Corporate ain’t gonna like the publicity *this* draws.
My eighty year old parents and their friends meet and EAt at McDonalds. They go at the non busy times. If they were told to leave they would never go back at any time.
This guy is an ass.
His decision will bring down the RATH of CORPORATE on his a$$.
I wonder if that store just got a new manager.
When I lived in Culpeper (for 22 years up until last August) the McDonalds welcomed older people.
A couple of Mickey D’s around here have a 15 minute time limit posted. Mainly because drug traffickers had been using their stores as a remote office.
PS - Mr. Becker and his wife are fine people.
The odd thing to me is that they like McDonalds. I guess I did too maybe 50 years ago but the last time I was in one will be my last time ever.
No mention of when they arrived and made their first purchase.
EVERYDAY, my FIL used to arrive at opening and greet his buddies throughout the morning. He’d get home around 230PM. Back in the day, he’d pay for #1 coffee and then refill for over 7 hours.
Put yourself in the “moronagers” shoes.
Free order of soggy fries for life for these victims!
Especially after their low earnings report............
One has to weigh the possible outcomes. One guy getting coffee for seven hours or me standing in the unemployment line for 40..............
I can’t imagine anyone wanting to sit and chat at McDonalds-so if I had the finances to do it and lived where this happened, I’d open a quiet, nice coffee shop with a simple food menu where anyone who bought something could sit for as long as they liked and socialize, and I’ll bet I wouldn’t lose a dime-talk about an opportunity-I think the McDonald’s manager is a complete idiot...
I once went to a McDonald’s to kill some time and they had a similar policy but it did not seem to be enforced while I was there. There was one table where a guy was reviewing a years worth of bills with some adviser. A second guy had a phone list and appeared to be making solicitation calls. These folks were here long before I arrived and looks like they would be there long after.
I can see management getting upset that they are being used as rent free offices. As far as being a patron, I sat far from them because I wanted to give them privacy.
Would that be Rocky Rath, the Corporate enforcer?
Several years ago I stopped at a Hardees in my home town for breakfast. I can’t remember why as that was very unusual for me.
Anyway, there were 4 or 5 of my old classmates there and I enjoyed a reunion. It turned out they met there just about every morning for breakfast. I lived too far away to have joined them on a regular basis even if I wanted to get up that early every day.
If they are just using the facilities as a free meeting place for hours on end, I don't blame them for kicking them out.
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