BI
Bruce InCharlotte
May 3, 2026
Twenty three minutes is not fast food, and today proved that definitively. I placed my order on the app at 12:52pm, choosing McDonald's because Mrs. K. said she wanted a fish sandwich. From there, I walked inside a few minutes later, and immediately noticed that while the parking lot was tidy, the dining room was not. Two of the tables had some food remaining, there was some trash on the floor, two of the kiosk screens were down and the cramped layout of the dining area made the mess feel even more obvious, which set the tone before I even had a chance to wait.
There was one person already standing in the lobby when I arrived waiting for their food, then another, then another, and at one point a woman who had ordered nothing more than a single burger simply gave up and left. My own wait stretched to twenty three minutes, twenty three long minutes of watching the crew socialize instead of work, listening to four different alarms chirping nonstop behind the counter, and even watching a former employee slip behind the counter to unlock the bathroom for a friend, which did not inspire confidence.
Eventually my bag was handed over and I headed out to see eight cars queued at the drive through that were not there before.
In the bag, everything was accounted for, including napkins. My McChicken was hot and tasted right. The Filet-O-Fish was assembled properly and Mrs. K. said it was good. The only real flaw in the food itself was the fries, which were cold and very underdone.
Overall, this was a negative experience from start to finish, and I would suggest continuing down the highway to another McDonald's where the basics of speed and cleanliness might be taken more seriously.