There are many ways to improve your eating experience when at McDonald's which will not only benefit yourself, but more importantly me, the manager of the place. Some of these 'tips' will only apply at stores that have introduced the MFY (Made For You) cooking platform and the SFS (Split Function Service) system, commonsense is the name of the game here.

Front Counter

First of all, get in a line in front of a register that actually has a person serving at the register. The fact that the store has 3 registers is irrelevant if there are only 2 people serving - we will not open the third register just for you. There are many reasons for this, lack of staffing or weak kitchen crew being the primary examples. If there are only 2 registers open there is always a good reason - typically opening it will make service slower for everyone.

Here is a heads up - the register closest to the fry station will typically have the best counter person on it. If the lines are an even length, getting in the first register will save you time.

A piece of advice. If you see a manager in the kitchen, your burger should be perfect. Unfortunately for the customer perfect means no extra lettuce or any other condiments on the burger without being paid for. We have to control our food cost, and unfortunately doing things right may not be the way you usually get your food.

Want a special burger? No problem. Make sure you know what you want on/off the burger ahead of time. Also, if you use the following terminology it will make it a tad easier for the service person, especially if they are new:

  • Without - If you are taking something off a burger (like a pickle) this is the word to use.
  • Extra - If you want something extra on the burger that is already on the product, use extra.
  • Add - If you are adding something to the product that usually doesn't go there - say add. This is the slowest grill to enter, as the service person has to scroll through 3 pages of products depending on what you ask for.

Pay using a reasonable method. Buying a cone with a credit card, or a $100 note is fairly frustrating. Using a large note (depending on the store, a $50 or $100) will result in the crew person to go find a manager, the manager to swipe a card into the register and then give a password authority to ensure the note isn't counterfeit. Also, walking into a store and paying with 50 coins is also quite annoying, and it slows up everyone who is behind you.

Once you order is taken, wait to the right of the register for you order. Do not walk away, and listen attentively for your older to be called out. In a perfect world your order should be ready in 1 minute - but sometimes issues happen.

One final note for eating in - if you take a long time to order, the person who collects your order may put your food into a bag to save time instead of waiting for the order to be concluded. If you plan on eating in and you do get a bag, please don't insist on getting all the food taken out and put onto a tray - you will waste time.

Drive Thru

If the store has a speaker box, roll down your window all the way - that way we can hear you, and you can hear us. If you have a big/noisy car sometimes the best thing to do is turn off the ignition.

When paying, I strongly recommend paying with cash. Using EFTPOS in Drive Thru is notoriously unreliable. The pinpad units are quite fragile, and having them on a long cord being passed out a window god-knows how many times causes them to fail at a terrifying (and expensive) rate.

Once you receive your order, by all means check you have been given everything you asked for - but pull away from the window first. Have a look once you get into the lot - this way you don't hold up everyone behind you.

Finally, if we ask you to park your order - we have a good reason. It will always mean that there is a short delay on your order, but the customer's order behind you is ready to be handed out. By not parking, to be frank, you are being selfish.

Have any McDonald's questions? Send me a message. Any popular topics will be expanded for all to see.