You nailed it. McDonald’s used to be fun. I got the food I wanted without food nanny disapproval. Stopped buying Happy Meals when they short-changed on fries and removed the cookies. Bought a few salads, none fresh, so stopped. Then they had one person take the order and made me wait in line across the room for another person to call my number. With no accountability, waiting time increased. Any personal connection vanished.
Too many choices, too, adding to the time wasted. McDonald’s as a Starbucks wannabe is ridiculous. I haven’t considered going there in several years.
I totally agree with the call numbers and lack of accountability. They use to serve a large “Newman’s Own” coffee for a buck -love the coffee! That got me in the door and occasionally bought an egg sandwich. But, it’s annoying when I’m just waiting for a coffee and the call number taker is standing idle (deadheading) starring at just the very next order...instead of just pouring the coffee two orders up (all of 20 seconds to pour, maybe).