I actually appreciate when my fast food order doesn't come instantly because then I know that it wasn't sitting around for god knows how long. Unless you'd rather have the burger sitting out for an hour (or more), fresh food is actually a good thing. And if you're going at peak times where fast food places are busy, of course you're going to be waiting around for awhile for you to get your food. Perhaps avoiding those peak times can alleviate the time spent getting your food
My local McDonald's really focuses on the drive through customers first. So if you're in the lobby, you have to wait until everyone in the drive through has been served. That can take a while. 60% of McDonald's revenue comes from drive through customers so those of us without cars kind of get the shaft.
I live in an area where it is difficult to hire help. Not because I live in a remote area, but because either A., customer service is not taught anymore, B. the teenage help is not trained adequately any more, C., some of the help cannot speak English well enough to understand me, D., the help doesn't show up for work and the business is abysmally shorthanded.....and on and on. Insofar as sit down restaurants are concerned, reference the above reasons. Not all of them, of course, but where I live, I've had to walk out because of being ignored and not being seated, or ignored at the table after I am seated. And this restaurant wasn't busy. No, I'm not a loudmouth and I'm not obnoxious. Although I did drag a girlfriend out of the restaurant when we were not seated promptly, and then when we did get seated, she started in on the busboy who was only trying to pour her water. I truly don't believe that fast food is fast any longer, and it's just something we'll have to live with, as I also believe it's just going to get worse as our population continues to grow....
I agree, but most of the time it is still fairly fast. I'd say at peak hours it is definitely certain that you are going to have to wait in line, thus negating the original advantage of saving you time in the first place, but i think most people nowadays actually like fast food partly for the actual flavor so they are willing to wait. I have seen way faster service at Chinese restaurants though, and there you get actual hearty meals so I usually just prefer to go that route if I can.
Wow! In just a short period of time a lot of minds have been changed and things forgotten. Because of the hype regarding food preparation about 20 years ago, most fast food places no longer call themselves that. Burger King, McDonalds, Wendy's ect were all slammed because the food wasn't fresh enough when the customer received it 2 minutes after ordering it. There was a lot of pre-cooking and volume cooling going on and when the media beat them all up about it everyone went "fresh cooked." That involves more help, better and faster machinery ect which eventually means higher priced food and because of the fresh value placed on it the burger will still take a couple of minutes longer but quicker than conventional cooking. About the best "fast food," you can get any more is Lil Ceasars Pizza. They're all pre-cooked and are single topped but they are still hot and good when you get them and for about 5 beans.
I overheard a fast food worker explaining to a trainee how to microwave a short stack of frozen pancakes in a plastic package. It takes me just a few minutes to throw some Bisquik pancakes on the griddle. I don't think certain foods are worth buying at fast food places. Even if I did want frozen pancakes, Dollar Tree sells a whole box of them for $1 and they come in 2 different flavors. Why would I pay a burger joint $3.50 to microwave some pancakes for me when I can microwave a whole box of blueberry pancakes for $1?
It's a lot faster than a nice restuarant or cooking dinner yourself. I'm sure they are far from the freshest, most sanitary of choices. But I haven't died after a burger yet, and as long as I don't see what exactly is in them, or how long they've been sitting I probably won't notice a difference. Sometimes all I want is a grease filled burger with an order of fries. Humm!
Some fast foods serve food faster than restaurants but there is still a significant amount of waiting time involved. In my country, the fastest fast food outlet is McDonald's. They serve the food a minute or so after you made your order. The rest are just too slow and run contrary to the original reputation of fast foods. Although I understand that the growing crowd can be stressful and difficult to handle, it wouldn't hurt to upgrade their standards and improve the speed of their service.
Usually, fast food is relatively fast. After working in fast food, I realize how fast you have to move constantly in order to make this fast food seem like it is truly fast. Also, whenever you are working at a busy fast food establishment, it is even harder to make the food come fast. It really just depends on the day and the staff working at that specific time.
I don't want it too fast if it's hot food to be honest and I don't mind waiting. Certain things like a toasted sandwich shouldn't take long and items like fries and has browns should always be ready anyhow. The only time I am in a hurry is breakfast and most items are quick except in coffee shops where the pace isn't as fast due to coffee orders.
I’ve been visiting fast food places more often lately (usually with someone else, I’ll grab an iced tea or something similar), and I’ve definitely noticed wait times have gotten longer, even in the less busy places. It does kind of make me question whether it’s worth it just for some food I probably shouldn’t be eating in the first place. If I weren’t so fond of free wifi, I’d eschew them completely. It takes a bit of looking around, but sometimes you can find local restaurants with better, healthier food for similar prices. Sometimes cheaper, if you’re lucky or you know what to order. Of course there’s a wait involved, but I feel like it’s a nicer experience than standing around for ten minutes or more just to get some “fast” food.
