Day 3 - McDonald's

I don't frequent McDonald's.  That's not a reflection of my opinion of McDonald's or of their food so much as it is a reflection of the large percentage of my life that has been spent too broke to have other people cook for me.  But because I am not a frequent customer, I don't know what is on their menu.  I mean, I get that you have your Big Mac and Quarter Pounder and other classics that have been there a really long time, but for those of us who may go there once or twice a year, there are a whole lot of other items that pop up.  I can't tell you what those items are, however, because I never get to look at the menu. 

I resigned myself long ago to the fact that unless I am going to order a Big Mac or a Quarter Pounder, I can't use the drive-through.  Drive-throughs are designed for speed.  It’s kind of the point.  I get that.  What I don’t get is why they can’t set up a menu about 3 car lengths back so that while I’m waiting in line I could be choosing my lunch and have something to do besides sorting the receipts in my car console.  But they don’t, so as a courtesy to the throngs of people in a hurry and familiar with more than just the Big Mac or Quarter Pounder, I park and go into the restaurant.

Also as a courtesy to others, I don’t get in line right away.  My theory when I first started this practice was that going up to the counter was the recognized action meaning ‘I am now ready to order.’  But every time I start looking at the menu from the back of the restaurant, a well-meaning employee shouts to me at the back of the restaurant.  “Can I help you, ma’am?”  Maybe my lack of McDonald’s experience has left me naïve to the masses of confused customers those employees must deal with every day.  Maybe there are people wandering about aimlessly wishing that they could figure out how to get someone to take their order.  If this is the case, I would suggest that they hire a retired person greeter, like WalMart does, only instead of saving you the trouble of reaching for a cart, these people could gently guide people to the cash registers.  That way, those of us who want to read the menu can do so in peace from the back of the store.

Today, after the inevitable cross-the-restaurant greeting, I told the employee that I was still deciding and she left to go do something important in the back.  But no worries.  She was immediately replaced by another employee who shouted pleasantly, “Can I help you, ma’am?”

I ordered a Big Mac.