A number of current and recent McDonald's employees have written to me since last night to say that my trick — ordering a quarter-pounder without cheese in order to get a freshly-made burger — wouldn't work at their establishments. One wrote — and he didn't ask me to withhold his name but I will anyway, just in case —
The burgers are all cooked en masse on the grill — regular burgers on one grill, quarter pounders and Angus patties on another, and grilled chicken on yet another. They are cooked double-sized with a heated press (the chicken have a special press spout in which water is poured). Afterwards, they are scooped up and kept in warming trays for up to an hour. Once a customer makes an order, the bun is toasted, a burger is taken from its tray and the sandwich assembled to customer specs. The only time a sandwich is made fresh off the grill is if someone actually specifies they want it fresh off the grill.
But other employees have told me it does work in their outlets. Maybe I've just gotten lucky. One did suggest I just ask for a freshly-made burger and I guess I could do that. My main point was that McDonald's burgers are a lot better when they're right from the grill. One current employee wrote…
Most people have never had a McDonald's burger that was cooked less than 10 or 15 minutes ago. We're always making them but we're also always ahead of supply and demand. At least in our store, there are always pre-made burgers ready to serve and if it looks like the supply may run out, we quickly make more to replenish that supply before it's out. The burgers that come off the grill are almost never given to customers right away. The only time I've seen that happen is if someone walks in and orders 50 hamburgers at once and wipes out our supply. That does happen once in a while. The customers after that customer will probably get freshly cooked and assembled hamburgers.
As I said, I don't give a lot of my business to McDonald's these days. I never really did. But when I fly, it always seems to come down to them, Burger King or Sbarro in an airport situation. Given that choice, I'll take McDonald's or, better still, hunger. Sbarro is to Italian food what Sbarro is to Italian food.
I must admit that I don't understand the commerce at airports at all. Like, I've never grasped why there seems to be a thriving industry selling luggage there. It seems to me that the only reason to buy anything at an airport, where prices are higher and it's more awkward to carry your purchases off, is if you need that item now. Doesn't everyone who goes to the airport already own enough suitcases to travel? Of what use is a new suitcase to them there?
Since 9/11 and the need to arrive earlier for flights, there's probably more dining taking place at airports. I see new upscale, sit-down places with servers — some pretty decent restaurants, in fact — but it seems to me the low-end options are getting worse and there's not much in the middle. For me, it always turns into a choice of someplace that takes an hour to eat (not always possible) and someplace where you get your food in three minutes in a paper bag.
Right near LAX, there's an In-N-Out Burger that is said to be one of the most lucrative outlets of any fast food chain in the country. It feeds a lot of limo and cab drivers, and there are outta-towners who get into L.A. and seize their first opportunity to eat at In-N-Out — a luxury that is not possible where they come from. (That is, it's a luxury for them. I've lost my taste for In-N-Out, which for a native Angeleno is like renouncing cars.) But I also think that particular In-N-Out does a lot of business because if you're heading for certain airport terminals, it's your last chance to grab a quick meal you won't regret. I'm surprised most airports aren't surrounded with drive-thru stands that operate on that principle.