(mcdonalds.com) – Downtown
How I heard of this place: Really? C’mon. It’s McDonald’s. The golden arches. The signs that claim to have served over a billion people. The home of the “Big Mac, filet o’ fish, quarter pounder, french fries, icy Cokes, thick shakes, sundaes and apple pies! It’s a good time, for the great taste, at McDonald’s! (ding!)”
Type of cuisine: Fast food burgers, fries, and chicken treats. Now, improved by adding salads, apple slices to substitute the fries in Happy Meals, and uber-sweet espresso beverages, among other things.
Ambiance: This Westlake establishment is peculiar compared to the restaurants I remember visiting as a young’un. Tall ceilings, light blue tile work, rounded store front with large windows facing out onto the street; even an aquarium with real, live fish is found at the center of the bar, complete with plastic, backed bar stools. Staff were dressed in button-up shirts and ties.
What I ordered: My dining companion did all of the ordering, as I could not remember the last time I was at McDonald’s! We ordered 20 chicken nuggets ($4.99) with ranch, BBQ and honey mustard sauce for dipping. The meal we chose to share was the number six, Premium Grilled Chicken Club Sandwich ($6.49), juicy all-white meat grilled chicken and hickory smoked bacon make for the most delicious of encounters, paired with a toasted honey wheat bakery-style roll and Swiss cheese. The meal came with fries and a fountain beverage of choice, my dining companion’s: Coke.
What I loved: I appreciate that McDonald’s has added “healthier” options to their menu to make people feel good, or at least better, about eating their food. That being said, I also love that the flavors never change. When you order chicken nuggets and fries, BBQ sauce and a Coke, you know exactly what you are getting; because it is exactly what you ate when the chicken nugget was introduced in 1982!
Why I loved it: The food at McDonald’s, despite the negativity surrounding the fast food/real estate empire brings a sense of nostalgia – for road trips with my family, sneaking off campus in high school and grabbing a cheap, greasy lunch and joking about chicken head nuggets with good friends.
Cost: Low to average ($5-$8 per combo meal)