McDonald's — Restaurant in Virginia

Seeing no place with a person at the small little counter, I went ahead and used the self serve. After placing the order, it said to take a number to our table to have the food brought out. Then, it said I had to pay at the counter and flashed an order number to mention when paying. I didn't expect that and it disappeared before I knew what it was for. So I went to the little three foot wide counter, the only one a person could stand behind and waited. Employees in the back kept doing their thing and one walked past me to go on break. By then another group of people were trying to figure the self serve out and a lady and her child behind me to pay for their meal, but no one to pay. I began speaking pretty loud, hoping someone would think to check if someone needed to pay and man the counter. Finally an older lady, looked like the manager came out to help the group that had trouble with the self serve. After she started to walk past and head for the back. I asked her who do I pay? She looked a bit perturbed, but got behind the register and asked for my order number, I told her it flashed too fast and I didn't get it. She sighed and punched to register for a while and we found my order. I told her it seems like the self-serve thing isn't working out too well, especially if I can't just pay at it. She said something about there are bugs that the company is trying to work out. With a place that is busy inside and out in the driveway, they need to have real people to keep things flowing. At least an employee that can check the place, make sure everything is set out and restocked and clean, no leftover rubbish from the last inconsiderate customer. All the self-serve can work, if done right, but keep people around to do the...

I am reporting serious issues at your James City County location near Busch Gardens. This is not just a customer service failure—this is a complete breakdown in support for the owner-operator. It is clear that the current staff has no interest in upholding the standards, reputation, or success of the franchisee who owns this location.

When employees hide from customers, roll their eyes when asked basic questions, and treat the mention of law enforcement as a personal offense, it reflects a toxic culture. These aren’t isolated behaviors—they’re systemic, and they suggest there is no accountability in place to protect the investment, brand, or goals of the franchise owner.

This is a retraining opportunity at all levels—especially management. Because right now, the staff’s behavior is actively sabotaging the success of this franchise. If they don’t want to be there, they shouldn’t clock in.

I’m prepared to provide detailed supporting documentation (video) to support this claim . Let me know how you’d like to proceed.

Additionally, there was a J1 employee on shift who appeared visibly terrified—intimidated and isolated by the very team she’s expected to rely on. This is a textbook example of a toxic work environment. I am fully prepared to assist her in filing what is known as a negligent retention claim through the Virginia Department of Labor, as your location is knowingly allowing employees who create fear and hostility to remain employed. This violates the basic protections afforded to international "J1" students /workers and exposes the franchisee to serious liability.

I look forward to resolving this matter to our mutual...

This is absolutely positively the worst McDonald's establishment I've ever been to by far. I live in NC but I have family here that I'm visiting and any McDonald's in NC has better employees, better management, the food is a lot fresher and the inside is cleaner. I went through the drive-thru to only order ice cream in the middle of July and they tell me that their ice cream machine is broken, okay I'll accept that despite the fact that for years when I used to live here, it'd be a hit or miss whether their ice cream machine was broken or not. I come back 5 days later attempting to get ice cream again and they tell me the same exact thing. It's 2020, in no way should any establishment's ice cream machine not work, especially in the middle of summer. It's not acceptable and their attitude about it wasn't acceptable at all either. Other friends and family of mine told me that there is about a 20% chance that their ice cream machine is even working when you go there and that's pathetic. I wouldn't be surprised if they tell you that because they're too lazy to make your ice cream. That, and the fact that when you do get food then you'll be waiting a lot longer than average and it's a hit or miss whether they even get your order right. This McDonald's has lousy management and lazy, unsympathetic employees. I'm not lying, read the reviews because that's the theme. Compare them to Wendy's right next to them and you see how fast that drive-thru is and how accurate they are with your orders. Oh and Wendy's ice cream machine is always working! Go figure, I'm shocked this McDonald's is still open because they've had a terrible...