McDonald's Grey Lynn — Restaurant in Waitematā

editing this as lf june 2025 just to say i started going back to this mcdonalds recently because a friend of mine is chronically ill ane loves mcdonalds and i need to state that this is the most inconsistent McDonalds ive ever frequented, presentstion of burgers are often extremely sloppy, with sauces and cheese halfway off the burger, chips under salted and not fresh, and my god never ask for any additions/customisation of your burger - they will either withhold all pickles if you ask for extra or give you an entirely different burger. almost out of spite? ive never felt more like a mcdonalds cares less about its customer base than this mcdonalds because on additon to their mistakes, you have no recouese - drive thru? please park to get the non-drink/icecream part of your order, enployee takes it to your door and LEAVES understand if you inspect your order and something is wrong it will take a very long time to correct any mistakes, as the rest of yours and your friends order goes cold in the car you have to practally lay on top of the front counter and BEG to be seen to in order to have something corrected - on top of this if you uber some food from here, same problems with presentstion and forgetting additions like mayo, extra butter or naple syrup containers etc - all the while theres little to no recourse. i hate this mcdonalds for how extremely antisocial it is.

now comes the tea to spill, i knew someone who worked at this mcdonalds a couple years ago and she told me about the ranpant racism of its management, where a caste system is implemented with majority mainland indians being employed for the mornings and then majority pacifica for the afternoon/evenings/graveyard shifts, i say majority because the odd pakeha maybe on any of these shifts.

if you work here, understand the management is screwing you over with its racist segregationist tactics, join a union and then maybe work their would be good enough and then maybe quality of service will get better.

below is the review i last left many years ago:

This McDonald's is chronically under staffed to the point they never have staff at the till, the only way to get your order through to this McDonald's reliably is if you pay by card on the self service machines, use the drive through with a car (they might ignore you if you ride a motorbike, happened to me before), or order from them...

Really appalling drive thru experience just now at (edit: around 12:06am). Ordered an app combo which I was unaware had a drink included. Paid for it, then they tried to give out a Coke which I asked to switch to Sprite as neither I nor my partner ever drinks Coke at all. Staff member in a navy polo (not the grey uniforms) then insisted that I MUST have ordered it, and they would NEVER put through a drink without asking first? This was incredibly confusing as neither I nor my partner ever drinks Coke so why would I order it in the first place? 1) I was NOT asked what drink I’d prefer 2) I was unaware the combo had a drink at all so when exactly could I have asked for Coke? I even questioned the staff at the window which combo the drink was coming from bc I was unaware 3) the person next to me also chimed in since he’d never hear me say Coke 4) I handed the cup back and drove off since I was never going to drink it at all - further proof I NEVER ordered it.

This review may seem long but the experience of being GASLIT this hard deserved a review tbh. I understand the machine automatically makes the drinks before the payment confirmation from the drive thru goes through but it’s also possible to just manually press through a drink? What do they do when people change their mind at the speaker? And the ongoing insistence that I said yes to a Coke + staff would NEVER put through a drink without first verbally confirming with the customer was equally crazy to me. Anyone that has ever been to a Mcdonald’s will tell you Coke is the default if no drink is specified. It’s syrup from a box and soda water how expensive could it really be….just switch out the drink I didn’t ask for instead of holding up the entire drive thru line. Literally was cheaper for my time to drive off without a drink and leave this review instead of arguing further...

There is something comforting about McDonald's, a global fast-food chain that has become an intrinsic part of our culinary landscape. My recent experience at McDonald's Grey Lynn, while enjoyable in many respects, was marked by a minor hiccup that, if addressed, would elevate their service to new heights.

The restaurant itself is clean and well-maintained, with a friendly ambiance. The staff was courteous and efficient, which is typical of the hospitality we've come to expect from McDonald's. The order process was smooth and easy, with a wide range of menu options to choose from.

As for the food, it was delicious and hit the right spot. The Big Mac was as satisfying as ever - a tantalizing mix of juicy beef, crisp lettuce, cheese, onions, pickles, and the unmistakable special sauce. The fries were golden and crispy, and the McFlurry was the perfect sweet end to my meal.

However, my primary concern was with the delivery through UberEATS. Although McDonald's Grey Lynn promises fast delivery, I found the service to be slower than anticipated. This led to a longer wait time than expected, which dampened the overall experience. Given that we live in an age where time is a valuable commodity, efficiency in delivery is critical.

To their credit, the food arrived warm and well-packaged, indicating the delay was more of a logistical issue rather than carelessness. I hope McDonald's Grey Lynn, in conjunction with UberEATS, can find a way to streamline their delivery process for faster service.

Despite the delivery speed issue, I would recommend McDonald's Grey Lynn. The food quality and overall service were impressive, and if they can work out the kinks in their delivery system, they would undoubtedly offer an unmatched fast...