One of my favorite foods in the whole world is a Big Mac. I don’t think I’ve ever had anything else on the menu at McDonald’s. And their fries are really, really good, until they cool down, at which point they turn into rocks.
The problem is, I haven’t eaten at one McDonald’s in Florida that hasn’t given me food poisoning. There’s an outlet 5 minutes from my house that has given me serious enough food poisoning to go the emergency room. But that has nothing on the Burger King whose food made me (TMI ahead) violently ill at both ends simultaneously.
You go to the drive-through and get a hamburger made of patties that have been sitting for hours in a warming tray that isn’t sufficiently warm to stop the meat growing bacteria on it. Then, a couple of hours later, you wish you hadn’t gone there at all.
Now I only eat there if I absolutely have to, and we must go in and order one and insist that it be made fresh. They’re not wild about that suggestion, so more often than not, we eat at Subway or some other place where we know the food is safe.
I have a fondness for the Filet-O-Fish - I just love the sauce on them, and the McD’s by my house is, for some strange reason, the most “well run, clean, don’t mess up my order, always give me correct change, and darn they’re FAST even when the high school lets out at lunch time” McDonald’s in Illinois, I’m sure.
Besides, nothing is quite so good as a Big Mac, no lettuce, extra sauce and cheese and a cold milk.
I don’t like french fries, so I can’t comment there.
Has anyone else come up with their equivelent of the McGriddle, THE tastiest (and certainly unhealthiest) meal known to man? Until then, McDonalds will continue to get my business.
I had Burger King at my college, so I’m now completely sick of them, although I still do miss their Rodeo Burger. Wendy’s is the best at everything, but they’re too hard to find. I do recall Jack In the Box having an EXCELLENT bacon cheeseburger last time I was out in CA.
Like McDonald’s? Sure. Love it? Nah. When I have enough time to travel somewhere that I sit down and eat lunch, I can think of many places I’d rather go than to McDonald’s. Mind you, I’m not comparing Mickey D’s to elite restaurants- I mean that there are many places with tastier burgers and better French fries.
But in a pinch, sure, I’ll eat at McDonald’s, and everything is always perfectly okay.
I’m mostly a vegetarian but every so often I get a craving for something meaty. and McDonald’s cheeseburgers were perfect precisely because they are so unmeaty. A grey, bland (but salty) patty that doesn’t look or feel like meat at all. Plus, I do like the fries. Ever since the mad cow scare tho’, I’ve stopped eating there. Now, I cheat at Arby’s…
When I was a kid, McDonalds was considered a Big Treat. As a result, it’s comfort food for me now.
All the features of McDonald’s cuisine that appealed to my immature palate just enhance the nostalgic experience: the unsubstantial bun, the unthreatening patty, the insipid processed cheese, even the almost completely un-onion-like reconstituted minced onions. And let us not forget the mysterious alchemy that occurs when ketchup mingles with meat under the benign radiance of an infrared lamp!
Also, along with Wendy’s, McDonalds has resisted the stampede to the “stealth” fry coating (that’s what they actually call it in the food industry) that creates artificial crispiness in fries well past their prime. I think the stealth coating tastes funny, and the texture doesn’t do much for me, either. I far prefer naked soggy fries to stealthy ones.
I don’t eat at McDonalds often (Argh! My arteries!), but when I do, I savor the experience.
Another vote for McDonald’s fries. For burgers, I prefer Wendy’s, though their fries are good also. I’ll choose one or the other in the uncommon event I need to eat lunch out. BK has never sent me. I once worked near a Jack in the Box, and it was okay.
As for In-n-Out burger - yech. Their fries are one level below that you’d find in a dumpster. The burgers are okay, but nothing worth waiting in line 20 minutes for. I have to make a special effort to go. I’ve tried them twice, and I’m not going back.
The best burgers, though, are in the independent places we have. Their not all that fast, but they’re sure better.
I used to like McDonald’s–they were quick and cheap, and as everyone else has mentioned–the fries are quite delicious.
I’ve eaten there once in the past 6 months, and I had one of their new salads, which as someone mentioned earlier, was ‘adequate’.
But, with reading Fast Food Nation, watching Super Size Me, and being on a low-carb diet, I’m just not really in tune with eating at most fast food establishments anymore. Carl’s Jr. and In-n-Out do have low-carb burger options, which are fine if my husband and I are out on the road and need something quick. If I’m going to cheat at a burgers-and-fries joint, I’d much rather go to Fatburger. Their burgers are really good, and their fries can give McD’s a run for its money.
It’s insane how I can rarely say No to their fries. If I’ve had a full Filet O’Fish combo and then someone drops a box of fries in front of me, I’ll complain for about 10 seconds, but I’ll inevitably start eating them after I convince myself that a few extra fries won’t clog my arteries.
Yes, the Filet O’Fish combo (the #7 here in my area) is the most delicious combo in the world. It’s full of flavour and so easy to chew! I love their tartar sauce. I always scrape off excess with my fries and use it as a dip.
I eat at McDonald’s more than once a week.
As for burgers, I haven’t eaten beef in about eight years, but I do remember the beef burgers from Harvey’s to be the most delicious I could find anywhere. Their onion rings are also absolutely delicious, fried to a perfect crisp. I don’t think you can find this fast-food chain outside of Canada though.
I actually enjoy a fresh Micky D’s burger. It really isn’t a burger in the classic sense. I mean, it sort of LOOKS like a burger, and it sort of TASTES like a burger, but it isn’t a burger, you know what I mean? It’s like a one-piece, preformed foodstuff that comes out of a big machine like soft serve ice cream or something.
But damn me to hell, I actually like how they taste, and sometimes I actually go to McDonald’s when it’s NOT the most convenient because I’m pressed for time. I’m fortunate enough to have one close by that’s well run and consistantly serves good food.
And those fries… Mmmmmm… Yessir, I wholeheartedly jump on the McD’s Fry Bandwagon. Mmmmmm… I think McDonald’s is gonna sell another #2 with a Coke tonight…
OOOHH! I forgot about McRibs. I love McRibs. Last March when I drove from Charlotte, NC to Phoenix I ate them all the way here but then somewhere around New Mexico I just stopped seeing them. People here tell me they’ve never heard of them but they admitedly don’t eat at McDonald’s much.
Does anyone know if they ever have McRibs in Arizona?
I loved McGriddles until I got TWO IN A ROW with multiple hairs in them. Several of the (long) hairs were removed from my mouth, not the sandwhich. It makes me queezy to even think of McGriddles now.
I like McDonald’s. In Canada, they are always clean, usually have newspapers and allow free refills with less hassle than most other chains here (this idea is much more popular in the US than Canada).
I stick to diet Coke, usually order a side salad with the Thai Sesame dressing (very tasty) instead of the small French Fries (and McD’s fries are beaten only by the Montreal chain Frites Alors) and try to stick to the Filet-o-Fish with half a bun and not much tartar sauce.
I did enjoy, ironically, both Fast Food Nation and Supersize Me. Both are somewhat disturbing, I suppose. Both have a lot to say about American (Western) eating habits. But Fast Food Nation, more subtlely, does address American ingenuity and the reluctant role of McDonald’s in securing tougher consumer protection laws once consumers made it very clear this is what they wanted. It does not mention Ray Kroc’s widow donated more than $1.5 billion gto the Salavation Army and other charities. I found Supersize Me spellbinding, but it was quite manipulative, a little misleading and very much played to the camera – but still a good reason to swear off non-diet soda.
McDonald’s is okay in my books, but you do have to be selective, and this means avoiding nutritional timebombs like the tasty McGriddles. Wendy’s chili is actually quite nutritious, and I often choose this instead.
I don’t like McDonalds. Honestly, I’d rather go hungry than eat there.
My kids are 6 and 8, and they like the toys and playgrounds, but they both agree that the food is not very good. Maybe they are just odd, but it’s more likely they don’t like the food because I don’t take them to McDonalds often. I think they have been there about 8 times- sometimes for birthday parties and sometimes during long driving trips where the playground was my main focus for the stop.
Usually on a drive, I try to stop at a playground to let them run around a bit, but will go to McDonalds if it’s raining or too hot (You gotta stay off those metal slides etc. in Texas in the summer!).
