McDonald's — Restaurant in Penn Hills

I very much like the milkshake. If you even have it.

McDonald’s has always been one of my favorite fast food chains in theory. When they get it right, the food is excellent. The burgers are iconic, the fries are unmatched when they’re hot and fresh, and the menu is familiar and comforting. But the problem is simple: McDonald’s is not consistent, and that inconsistency ruins the entire experience.

One visit, you might get a perfectly cooked Quarter Pounder, golden fries straight from the fryer, and a cold drink filled to the brim. The next visit, you could just as easily be handed a sloppy sandwich with half the toppings missing, fries that are cold and rubbery, and a watered-down soda. It feels like a gamble every single time, and that’s exactly why customers leave frustrated. Nobody wants to spend their money rolling the dice on whether their meal will actually be edible or not.

The inconsistency extends beyond the food. Service can be just as hit-or-miss. At some locations, the staff is friendly, efficient, and quick, while at others they seem checked out, understaffed, or flat-out uninterested in getting the order right. I’ve had plenty of experiences where my order was correct and fast, but just as many where I had to circle back because items were missing or made wrong. For a company as massive and established as McDonald’s, these kinds of problems shouldn’t be this common.

The foundation of fast food is reliability. Customers want to know that no matter where they go, they’ll get the same quality. That’s why chains like Chick-fil-A or even Taco Bell maintain loyalty—the product and service are steady. With McDonald’s, you never know what you’re going to get. That lack of consistency makes it impossible for people to feel confident about coming back regularly.

McDonald’s is running the risk of becoming a “hit-or-miss” chain, and that’s not something people will tolerate for long. Customers don’t want to hope their meal will be decent; they want to trust that it will be. Until the company puts more focus on standards, training, and accountability, they’re going to keep losing business from people who are tired of being let down.

When McDonald’s is on their game, it’s hard to beat. But the truth is that inconsistency overshadows everything else. A brand that can’t deliver quality across the board isn’t just disappointing—it’s pushing loyal customers...

Im a regular, I come for my iced coffee fix, and sometimes the people working here are alright but increasingly theyre incompetent. Just today I was waiting in the drivethru for no less than 30 minutes (my receipt says I paid at 7:57, I got home at 8:30). I ordered 4 unsweetened iced coffees like Ive done over a dozen times before and stress that to the girl working speaker and the boy working second window. The girl has her freaking earpod in her free ear (the headset over the other) and my coffee takes forever. Comes back sweet so i go in to ask for a replacement.

The same boy from the second window insists "we didnt put no sweetner in it...so you just want no cream?" No I want the same cream-no-sugar order I always get. Ive gotten this same order at this same location many times. I can hear them in the back talking, all flabbergasted like I just asked them to do brain surgery. They dont know what the heck theyre doing.

Finally a manager or someone comes out with 4 coffees and I taste one. It tastes exactly the same as before (sweetened!) But at this point Im late for my plans (didnt expect the DRIVETHRU to take 30 minutes) and not in the mood for a confrontation or explaining to these people how to make coffee without sugar in it so I just left. The more I think about it, I wonder if they didnt just bring me the same exact 4 coffees I got at the drivethru just to screw with me.

Y'all lost a very loyal customer. How hard is it to NOT pump the sugar-water spigot especially when you were reminded multiple times? Or do they just put sufar directly in the cream now?...

Was a little disappointed with McDonald's I would have to say and Penn Hills right across from Duff Road it took me 7 minutes to get a cheeseburger and french fries and I was the only one in the restaurant it was about 2:30 in the afternoon. I asked the young man would you please hurry up I need to catch a bus so he proceeded over to the french fries and was scraping up the little pieces of fries that have been in the bin for I don't know how long I'm like that is so unacceptable the timer on the fries were going off for seem like minutes someone finally went over there and took out the fries I said you need to replace those fries with the good ones that just came out of the fryer he looked at me like I was a stupid idiot. And then I asked for ranch dressing and he said no you have to pay for it I said since when do you have to pay for condiments I was very disappointed luckily I just made my bus but I would have to say that this McDonald's has the laziest crew that have ever come across at McDonald's and I absolutely...