tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post3438674776530041698..comments2024-03-29T10:10:40.315-05:00Comments on Every goddamn day: 03/29/24: Ronald McDonald stumblesNeil Steinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11468057838260476480noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-2106409161470767122014-09-14T00:09:14.666-05:002014-09-14T00:09:14.666-05:00Minimum wage in Australia is US$16.88, which is pr...Minimum wage in Australia is US$16.88, which is probably another reason Australians consider McDonald's a good job.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-8808578414274183722014-09-10T17:22:32.589-05:002014-09-10T17:22:32.589-05:00The Union Station McDonald's must be hell to w...The Union Station McDonald's must be hell to work at. I've been there many times, usually walking out because it's such a zoo and going down to the other places in the station. I go there maybe once a month and was at one in Elgin today. The staff was great. It was all hello sir, yes sir, thank you sir. I hope they are paid well. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-89519491999897653432014-09-09T14:55:07.578-05:002014-09-09T14:55:07.578-05:00The McDonald's across from Wrigley Field is th...The McDonald's across from Wrigley Field is the place where many of my fellow employees (vendors and ushers) hang out at before games. Which is why I usually walk over to Starbucks. I do occasionally run in to the McDonald's for their coffee if I'm running late, but you wouldn't believe how many of the same people are sitting there, eating the food, day after day after day. I can hardly make myself look at them anymore, I just zip in and out as quickly as possible.SandyKnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-72656064583361225922014-09-09T12:59:04.766-05:002014-09-09T12:59:04.766-05:00Whereas, the White Castle burger you got on your t...Whereas, the White Castle burger you got on your trip -- c'est magnifique, no doubt. ; ) I know, you already covered that -- it's the "nostalgia and emotional attachment" that puts White Castle ahead of McDonald's. It's pretty easy for me to see that there are a lot of people in this country who don't give a damn about "the siren lure of arcane Jack Keroac Americana." Perhaps they're proles, but McD's DOES represent nostalgia and emotional attachment to them. (It would for me, but the mediocrity of the experience of stopping there for lo, these many years, outweighs the nostalgia pretty heavily, alas.) <br /><br />I agree with Caren Tarvin and Bill Savage about the bathrooms, though. An essential national service, not to be dismissed lightly, that I credit Mr. Savage for supporting by buying something when he utilizes the facilities. (I can't say that I'm always so honorable...)<br /><br />Mentioned by Gaffigan, but nobody else here, it seems, are the fries. Pretty darn good (for an indeterminable, but very short, window of time) and not easy to make at home. Alas, on the rare occasions I hit McD's these days, it's for the southwest salad or a cup of coffee. The salad is okay in a pinch, though I'm sure there are healthier and tastier choices to be made in the world. Last time I got coffee, it was late at night, on a road trip and it was so bad I stopped at the next McD's I saw to replace it. It was only slightly better there. Such are the vagaries of my experiences with McD's -- they manage to screw up even the things that they're well-liked for, if you go at the wrong time of day. Jakashnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-76313829680919753382014-09-09T10:49:53.187-05:002014-09-09T10:49:53.187-05:00The most interesting thing about McDonald's fo...The most interesting thing about McDonald's for me is the demographics of the workers. You could teleport me anywhere in the USA and I could guess the politics and relative urbanization of the local area by the race/gender/age of the workers. I hit it for the bathrooms during road trips, and buy something to make that equitable (if they pay someone to clean the john, I should buy a damn Coke or fries). The redder the state, the older, whiter, and more female the workers at McD's. If the people working there are of both genders but mostly not white, you're in a city, probably a blue area. And this demographic is one reason why the minimum wage argument has so much bullshit in it: people now work these jobs because they have to as adults, not as entry level jobs into an economy that will someday pay this pimply teenager more. Bill Savagehttp://chicagobydayandnight.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-14100532440915450412014-09-09T10:46:47.478-05:002014-09-09T10:46:47.478-05:00Writing a blog is like a box of chocolates, somebo...Writing a blog is like a box of chocolates, somebody said.Bill Savagehttp://chicagobydayandnight.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-4822934585657611422014-09-09T10:45:28.736-05:002014-09-09T10:45:28.736-05:00Or, to put it another way, maybe workers would be ...Or, to put it another way, maybe workers would be motivated to give better service if they were paid better and it was a good job you could live on. Bill Savagehttp://chicagobydayandnight.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-81139148262992642312014-09-09T09:04:23.552-05:002014-09-09T09:04:23.552-05:00Rich:
That makes perfect sense. I guess I found t...Rich:<br /><br />That makes perfect sense. I guess I found the article intriguing -- it could just be a downturn and they'll introduce the quadruple cheeseburger and be going full bore again in 2015 -- and wanted to say something on it. I'm not a genius myself, just a guy saying what he thinks. Sometimes I look at it the next day and cringe a little. That said, yesterday's post, on Vent Haven, was sharp and thoughtful and well-written and just sat there, doing nothing, while this one is spiking, cause it's about McDonald's. I wish I were smart enough to plan that, but I'm not even that smart. Just looking over what's going on each day, like a guy surveying a box of Fannie Mae chocolates, and picking one that looks good.Neil Steinberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11468057838260476480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-5899406414273915042014-09-09T09:01:26.417-05:002014-09-09T09:01:26.417-05:00I actually ate the hamburger above after I photogr...I actually ate the hamburger above after I photographed it. Meh.Neil Steinberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11468057838260476480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-19987020679616882772014-09-09T08:17:03.017-05:002014-09-09T08:17:03.017-05:00Sounds like you've been once in last 3 years a...Sounds like you've been once in last 3 years and had an ice cream cone.Cass Johnsinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-19706536130203886382014-09-09T08:15:26.382-05:002014-09-09T08:15:26.382-05:00This one's hard to understand, Neil. The hambu...This one's hard to understand, Neil. The hamburger is crap? The hamburger's ALWAYS been crap. "Parents are becoming wise to it"? Did they really not know before? Fact is, we've always known it was crap. Nor has anyone gone to Mickey D's for excellence of service. Or the ambience. It's always been what it remains today -- edible food, cheap and fast. Regardless what the geniuses at Crain's say (like nearly all business writers, they're expert at predicting what's already happened), the menu's gotten much better. Eg, southwest salad with grilled chicken, 290 calories. Parents are actually not getting wise with the newer franchises. A Chipotle chicken burrito and all the fixings (but without chips) can easily run to 1600 calories, more than triple McD's quarterpounder with cheese. And McD's coffee is twice as good as Starbucks' and less than half the price.Rich Jnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-13801064259668397812014-09-09T07:49:21.118-05:002014-09-09T07:49:21.118-05:00I think the franchise model is the root of their d...I think the franchise model is the root of their decline. Nobody seems to own just one McDonald's; it's always a dozen or so, thereby diluting the value of owner management, the only justification for their existence that I can see. When the franchisees are taking and not giving, something has to give, either the quality of the service or the quality of the product. It seems both are going fast. They may reach the tipping point faster than you imagine, Neil. And of course, the bigger they are, the harder they fall.<br /><br />Johntatehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10088632798195131329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-13797291009189785422014-09-09T07:43:31.211-05:002014-09-09T07:43:31.211-05:00When I was in Australia, the customer service at M...When I was in Australia, the customer service at McDonald's was amazing. That is because the people down under see it as a really good job, as it shows you know how to deal with people. That is what I was told by locals. Side note, if workers want to get paid $15 an hour, the customer service should be raised. <br /><br />Another side note, Burger King in Australia is called Hungry Joes. Some food for thought ... George S.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-11857270218106686282014-09-09T06:47:57.810-05:002014-09-09T06:47:57.810-05:00McDonald's provides the nation with clean and ...McDonald's provides the nation with clean and plentiful public toilets. That's what I would worry about if they vanished--where to stop on a road trip.Caren Tarvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17652372965671115486noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-577804489583355582014-09-09T00:22:44.232-05:002014-09-09T00:22:44.232-05:00The quarter pounder is better than the regular ham...The quarter pounder is better than the regular hamburgers.<br />But that vanilla cone is a tasteless atrocity.<br />There's absolutely no flavor of any kind in it.<br />I was in Northwestern Station one hot day & decided to try it before I caught my train.<br />Cardboard tastes better than the cone they use & the ice cream is a crime against food.Clark St.https://www.blogger.com/profile/09634234069783123180noreply@blogger.com