What's up with McDonalds?

What's up with McDonalds?

It may not be politically correct to say so, especially as we undergo diet renovation, but I love Maccas. I always have. I have been a regular customer for as long as I can remember and have very fond memories of our family routine of Maccas on a Friday night when my kids were growing up, as well as the numerous birthday parties we had or attended at various McDonalds stores. 

My daughter's 5th birthday at Menai McDonalds

One of the best improvements has been McCafe, the Australian innovation introduced in 1993 that has now gone worldwide.

You may be shocked to know that since 2011, our family Christmas lunch has been celebrated at McDonalds. Family traditions can be a precious thing and this one came about at the suggestion of my daughter. Christmas 2011 was our last one with my dear Grandma. She was in a nursing home at that time, and there were restrictions on the number of people who could come and share in Christmas lunch with the residents, which meant the four of us could not celebrate with her. She was quite frail by this stage, and Hubby and I had made it a habit of visiting her each week and taking her to the local McDonalds in Bexley where we could visit the McCafe and have that little bit of normality in what was a pretty tough season. We knew she could manage Maccas, so why not take her there on Christmas Day so we could all be together? 

It was a special time for us all, and she passed away the following June only a fortnight shy of her 100th birthday.

When Christmas 2012 rolled around, it was my daughter's suggestion that we should have lunch again at McDonalds in memory of "GG". And it has remained so ever since.

Christmas 2012 - Narellan McDonalds

I tell you all of that to demonstrate that in no way do I come from a background that is anti-Maccas.

Which brings me to my original question - what's up with McDonalds?

Christmas Day 2018 took us to a new Maccas that had opened near us. New suburbs are springing up everywhere, and usually when a store is new it's a lovely thing, but the best word I could use to describe this outlet would be sterile. Gone were the pictures of the menu items on display - what happened to the thinking that you eat first with your eyes? No longer could you go to the counter and speak to a person to order – the cash registers were gone and in their place the dreaded self- service electronic display.  

  

As time has gone on, the various Maccas that I know well have undergone refurbishment, the result being that all appear seemingly intent on ensuring that customers (apart from those speedily shepherded through the drive through) are no longer welcome in store.

I recently met up with my bestie for a nostalgic revisit to South Hurstville Maccas which held lots of great memories of us meeting there with my Gran. As we entered the store, we were quickly ambushed by a sweet young thing determined to force us into using the self-serve machine for ordering. My bestie proceeded to sound off with exactly the thoughts that have been dominating my mind about Maccas since its anti-customer push has raised its head. 'I hate being forced into using these machines' she said. She was singing my tune!

When our coffees arrived, the paper placemat on the tray was adorned with advertising for the new Choc-Coconut Latte. As we had already ordered, it was too late to try it – isn’t that a lost opportunity to promote their new products? Isn't that what promotional pictures and advertising materials on counter tops and on the walls are for? We customers appear to no longer be welcome - it's as if I'm inviting you to my home but I won't let you into the lounge room to sit down and make yourself comfortable. How can that approach equal a successful business, if your customers feel alienated?

And don't start me on the app.

We try and be budget conscious, so for years we have used the coffee cards at Maccas, getting our clicks everytime we ordered a hot drink. Every freebie helps the budget, after all! We thought we'd give the app a go, but in the early days the fine print stated you couldn't use the app in the drive-through. 

Maccas 1 - Customers 0. 

I am told now that things have changed, and it is now drive-through friendly, which would be great - if we could actually sign up. We have been trying to use the app since early 2019, but when we enter our email address it just freezes. Despite contacting McDonalds to ask for help more than once, we've had no breakthrough and have given up. What's the point? 

Maccas 2 - Customers 0. 

My daughter's first job was at Maccas. Generations of Aussies have had their first chance at paid work in their local Golden Arches. So how many kids will be denied a chance at a part time job if you can no longer order your food at a counter populated by humans?  It seems that McDonalds have decided to join the ranks of other businesses who are determined to cut the need for human employees, a trend foisted upon us for years now by the big banks.

We don't feel welcome, and it appears McDonalds have very little interest in changing our view. It saddens me, but the timing is probably fortuitous, given we are trying to shed the kilos. The upside is that it has prompted us to widen our search for nice coffee, with some good results - ironically one of the best places I have found is a little cafe across the road from the offending Maccas of our 2018 Christmas Day visit. Perhaps Christmas Day will become our only trip to Maccas - my body will likely thank me, but my heart will pine a little for the happy times gone by.

The song for this post was a no brainer - I could hear the words of Don't you want me as a persistent refrain as I wrote. Thanks, Human League circa 1981, the year I was graduating from High School, McCafe was still a sparkle in Ronald McDonald's eye, and customers were important.

Tracey 😬

With thanks to Human League's YouTube channel.