McDonald's — Restaurant in Amesbury

This McDonald's restaurant, was actually pleasantly surprising! Almost like, IDK? - like it was the closest it gets to a McDonald's, being like an actual restaurant..m&not just your typical, "fast food drive thru", place. My family&I stopped here for lunch the other day, during a 3 hour car ride, going on vacation. We were able to stay close to the highway, making it easiest to quickly hop right back on, after lunch. This McDonald's is located in a super convenient place. We take the same route, to the same vacation destination, every year, for over 20 years now. And normally, due to stopping for lunch at a different location, we set ourselves back, quite a bit of time. Certainly not because we ever wanted to!- but because we never thought a McDonald's like this one, even existed! So we'd end up off an exit, and driving 20 minutes each way, off our route, to sit down somewhere that appears "nice" from the appearance, but it's never the case. This McDonald's was only a few minutes off the highway. The parkinglot was pretty packed but there's plenty of parking! We got a spot right near the door, &when walking in the entrance, a friendly staff member was there to greet us. Almost as if she was a hostess! She smiled &greeted us, & just asked if we wanted help with the new ordering system or anything else. Ordering was a breeze, the food was quickly yet still efficiently prepared. The food was hot, fresh, & yummy! No skimpy wimpy burgers at this place! They even brought our food right over to our table &served it to us! The bathrooms were super clean, as was the rest of the restaurant. It was up-to-date, in every way you can think of. They had an indoor, "play place", for small children. Perfect when a tired Mama wants to actually sit down to eat her meal..keeping little ones entertained forever! The play place area super surprisingly, was also spic &span! I couldn't have been more pleasantly surprised by this place, I really couldn't have! I'll give it to ya this time Mickey-D's!!- THIS LOCATION IS ON...

The last two times when I ordered the Spicy Crispy McChicken Sandwich meal, I ordered it through the Drive Through. When I got home, I expected to enjoy my Spicy Crispy McChicken Sandwich with lettuce and tomatoes on it. What I got was a sandwich with crispy chicken and pickles. THAT is NOT what I had ordered! My third attempt today to order a Spicy Crispy McChicken Sandwich, I did not use the Drive Through. I went inside and tried to use one of the four order screens. Each time I touched the screen to start my order, it would not continue onto the next order screen. Reluctantly, I walked over to the counter where I was greated by a worker who would take my order. Looking at the menu behind her I made certain that I was very specific. I ordered the Deluxe Spicy Crispy McChicken. I repeated myself three times informing this woman that I would like to order from the menu "4d". Again, I repeated the order to make sure she got it right. All the while she kept pressing the button on her headset and speaking into her microphone. I thought that this was a new procedure, whereby, she is informing the kitchen staff about my order. I paid for the order and awaited it's preparation. When my number was called, I picked the bag up and went home. When I opened the package, I found that I received a Crispy McChicken Sandwich with pickles again and it was not even the spicy sandwich. I don't understand why the McDonald's in Amesbury can never get my order correct! I hope my complaint reaches the right person because when I called on the phone to complain, the phone just rang without being answered. I am definitely not going to this establishment again because of the incompetence...

McDonald’s places a strong focus on quick drive-thru times when evaluating their restaurants. Often, customers are asked to pull forward into a waiting spot to help the store’s clocked service times, even though their order isn't ready. While this may improve their internal metrics, it doesn’t improve the customer experience.

During my visit at this restaurant, I ordered a simple breakfast—an Egg McMuffin and an orange juice, with no modifications. Despite the straightforward order, I was directed to "Window #2." The moment I pulled away from the main window, their system likely registered my order as "completed" to maintain their drive-thru time goals.

However, I then sat for nearly five minutes, staring into what appeared to be an empty storage room. Eventually, an employee opened the door to confirm my order—something that should have been done immediately. Two minutes later, I received my food, but without napkins and with no apology for the delay.

This experience highlights a clear issue with efficiency and service standards. I encourage customers to politely hold their ground if asked to pull forward for no valid reason. The priority should be on fulfilling orders promptly, not gaming the system to inflate performance numbers.

I hope management takes steps to address these issues and improve both service times and customer...