McDonald's Ararat — Restaurant in Ararat

I usually don’t go out of my way to write reviews, but my recent experience with McDonald’s has left me frustrated enough to share. What happened to us should never happen to paying customers, and the lack of accountability from the current management made it even worse.

We placed an order through delivery, expecting the usual convenience and reliability McDonald’s is supposed to offer. Unfortunately, the food never showed up. We gave it the benefit of the doubt at first, thinking maybe the driver was delayed, but as time dragged on, it became clear that our order was simply not coming. No call, no update, no explanation—just nothing. Waiting hungry, watching the clock tick, and realizing the food we paid for wasn’t arriving was already frustrating enough.

What made this experience worse, however, was the response—or rather, the complete lack of response—from the manager on duty when we called the store to sort it out. Instead of apologizing, investigating, or even offering a solution, the manager brushed us off. Their attitude was dismissive, and it felt like they genuinely couldn’t care less that our order was missing. A simple acknowledgment or some effort to help would have gone a long way, but instead we were left with no food, no refund, and no respect.

As a customer, I don’t expect perfection, but I do expect accountability. Mistakes happen; deliveries can go wrong. That’s understandable. What isn’t acceptable is a manager who refuses to take responsibility or even try to make things right. The role of a manager is to step in when issues occur and ensure customers leave satisfied, but in this case, the manager completely failed at their job. Their unwillingness to act showed a lack of professionalism, leadership, and basic customer service skills.

We were left feeling not only disappointed but also disrespected. McDonald’s is a global brand built on consistency and customer trust, yet this experience showed the opposite. If a store cannot ensure food gets delivered—or at the very least, cannot manage the situation properly when it doesn’t—then why should customers feel confident ordering from them again?

At the end of the day, it wasn’t just about the missing food. It was about the way the situation was handled—or ignored. Hungry customers were left hanging, money was taken without providing the product, and the manager did nothing to resolve the issue. That is simply not good enough for any business, let alone one as established as McDonald’s.

This experience has seriously made me reconsider ever ordering from this location again. Until there is a change in management or at least some accountability, I cannot recommend relying on them for delivery. Customers deserve better, and right now, this store is not delivering—literally or...

Feedback about a recent experience at your drive-thru, as I believe it’s important for improving customer service.

After placing my order, I pulled up to the first window to pay, but no one was there. I proceeded to the second window, where an employee named Teresa handed me part of an order. A moment later, she told me it was actually someone else’s order and asked for it back quite abruptly, which was surprisingly rude - for no reason.

When I tried to pay with a $100 bill, she informed me that she couldn’t accept it due to COVID-related policies and asked me to drive back through the line. Instead, I chose to come inside to complete the transaction. However, when I entered, Teresa again spoke to me in a very stern and unwelcoming manner, insisting I return to the drive-thru and refusing to help further. Another staff member came to help - not hard!

I completely understand that policies need to be followed and that mistakes can happen, but the way this situation was handled felt unnecessarily harsh and discourteous. I believe a more respectful approach would have made a big difference to all involved.

I hope this feedback is taken constructively. I would recommend that Teresa receive additional training in customer service and communication, as her current approach is not well-suited for a customer-facing role. That's not how you treat people.

Thank you for taking the...

Have been here many times over the years as we travel interstate. Late this afternoon we stood near the checkout for sometime and was ignored, there were plenty of staff either standing around or walking back and forth with nothing to do. Customers were treated like we weren’t there. Eventually we got served by a not very happy tall young lady. And then we were left waiting near the coffee machine for some time with nothing happening. We had to ask whether our coffees going to be made. We were told yes. There was a girl down on the floor fixing or cleaning something. Then she jumped up and put a coffee on the counter and abruptly said “there you go”, no number called no apology for the wait. It was not made at the coffee machine as usual, it just appeared and she’d been cleaning on the floor so we did not know where the coffee appeared from and she had not washed her hands prior to handing it to a customer. The coffee tasted strange. So we were not really sure what it was and we were given the wrong size. Plus the toilets are not that clean, lots of toilet paper on the floor in the ladies. I think staff could do with some further customer service training. Hope this is helpful and we will see some changes as it’s a great location...