From Humble Beginnings to Global Icon: Discovering the Incredible Facts Behind McDonald’s, the Fast-Food Giant that Revolutionized the Industry
McDonald’s was founded in 1940 by Richard and Maurice McDonald in San Bernardino, California.
The restaurant initially served hot dogs and hamburgers, but the brothers later streamlined the menu and focused on hamburgers, fries, and milkshakes, which became the basis for the McDonald’s menu that is still popular today.
The Famous Golden Arches logo was first introduced in 1962.
1 The logo was designed by Jim Schindler and was based on the architecture of the early McDonald’s 
restaurants, which featured distinctive yellow arches that were meant to be visible from a distance.
The logo has become one of the most recognizable symbols in the world and is now associated with the McDonald’s brand all over the globe.
The First McDonald’s Franchise was opened in 1955 by Ray Kroc in Des Plaines, Illinois.
2 Ray Kroc was so impressed by the success of the original McDonald’s restaurant run by the McDonald brothers that he convinced them to let him franchise the concept. Kroc opened his first McDonald’s franchise in Illinois, and the rest is history.
Today, McDonald’s is one of the largest fast-food chains in the world, with thousands of locations all over the globe.
The Big Mac was introduced in 1968 by a McDonald’s franchisee named Jim Delligatti.
3 The Big Mac was designed to appeal to customers who wanted a bigger and more filling sandwich than the standard McDonald’s hamburger.
The Big Mac became an instant hit and has since become one of the most popular items on the McDonald’s menu.
The sandwich is made with two beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, and onions, all served on a sesame seed bun.
McDonald’s serves over 69 million customers every day across more than 100 countries.
4 This makes McDonald’s one of the largest and most successful fast-food chains in the world. The company is known for its convenient and affordable food, as well as its iconic branding and marketing campaigns.
The company operates over 38,000 locations worldwide, making it the world’s largest fast-food chain.
5The company has a strong presence in many countries, including the United States, Canada, China, Japan, and the United Kingdom, among others.
The company is known for its iconic branding, convenient food, and affordable prices, which have helped it to become one of the most recognizable and successful brands in the world.
The company’s famous mascot, Ronald McDonald, was introduced in 1963.
6 The character was designed to appeal to children and became a beloved icon of the brand.
Ronald McDonald is known for his distinctive red and yellow outfit, big red shoes, and white face paint with red lips.
He has appeared in countless McDonald’s advertisements and marketing campaigns over the years and has become one of the most recognizable brand mascots in the world.
McDonald’s has a secret menu.
7 Which consists of menu items that are not officially listed on the restaurant menu but can be ordered by customers who know about them. These items are often created by customers and shared online or by word of mouth.
Some popular secret menu items include the “McGangBang,” which is a combination of a McChicken sandwich and a Double Cheeseburger, and the “Land, Sea, and Air Burger,” which is a combination of a beef patty, a Filet-O-Fish, and a McChicken patty.
However, it’s worth noting that not all McDonald’s locations may be willing or able to prepare these items, so it’s always a good idea to check with your local restaurant before ordering.
McDonald’s was the first fast-food chain to offer a drive-thru service.
8 McDonald’s is credited with pioneering the concept of the drive-thru service in the fast-food industry. The first McDonald’s drive-thru was introduced in 1975 at a location in Sierra Vista, Arizona.
The concept was designed to offer customers greater convenience by allowing them to order and receive their food without leaving their cars.
The drive-thru quickly became popular with customers, and other fast-food chains soon followed McDonald’s lead by introducing their own drive-thru services.
Today, the drive-thru is a common feature at many fast-food restaurants, and it continues to be an important part of McDonald’s business model.
In fact, in recent years, McDonald’s has made significant investments in its drive-thru technology and infrastructure to improve speed and efficiency and meet the needs of today’s on-the-go consumers.
The company’s famous fries are made from potatoes that are specially grown for McDonald’s.
9 The potatoes used to make McDonald’s fries are a proprietary blend of Russet Burbank, Ranger Russet, and Umatilla Russet potatoes, which are chosen for their high quality and consistent shape and size.
The potatoes are processed into fries at McDonald’s processing plants, where they are blanched, fried, and frozen before being shipped to individual restaurants.
McDonald’s is known for its iconic fries, which are often cited as one of the most popular and beloved fast-food items in the world.
In some countries, McDonald’s serves unique menu items that cater to local tastes.
10 This means that in many countries, you can find unique menu items that are not available in other parts of the world.
For example, in India, McDonald’s serves a range of vegetarian and non-beef items, such as the McAloo Tikki burger and the Chicken Maharaja Mac.
In Japan, you can find menu items like the Teriyaki Burger and the Shaka Shaka Chicken, which is a chicken dish served with a variety of seasonings that customers can sprinkle on themselves.
McDonald’s also offers regional specialties in certain parts of the United States, such as the McRib sandwich, which is only available in certain markets during certain times of the year.
The company’s iconic Happy Meal was introduced in 1979.
11 The Happy Meal was originally developed as a way to appeal to children and their parents, and it typically includes a small meal, a toy, and a drink.
Over the years, the Happy Meal has featured a variety of different toys and promotional tie-ins, often based on popular movies, TV shows, or other cultural phenomena.
In recent years, McDonald’s has worked to make the Happy Meal healthier by reducing the calorie count and offering more nutritious options, such as fruit and milk, alongside traditional menu items like burgers and fries.
The Happy Meal remains a beloved menu item for many McDonald’s customers, particularly children and families.
McDonald’s was the first fast-food chain to introduce a salad to its menu in 1987.
12 The salad, which was called the McSalad Shaker, was a portable salad served in a plastic container that customers could shake to mix the dressing with the lettuce and other ingredients.
While the McSalad Shaker was eventually discontinued, McDonald’s has continued to offer salads on its menu and has expanded its range of healthy options over the years, including items like fruit smoothies, oatmeal, and grilled chicken sandwiches.
The company’s iconic Big Mac jingle (“Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame seed bun”) was introduced in 1975.
13 The Big Mac jingle was introduced in 1975 as part of a marketing campaign to promote McDonald’s signature burger. The jingle is still recognized and remembered by many people today.
McDonald’s is the world’s largest purchaser of beef, pork, and potatoes.
14 McDonald’s operates thousands of restaurants around the world, the company requires a large supply of ingredients to meet demand. In 2019, McDonald’s purchased over 3.4 billion pounds of beef, 1.2 billion pounds of potatoes, and 719 million pounds of pork.
The company has implemented rigorous quality control and safety standards to ensure that its ingredients meet its high standards, and it works closely with suppliers to maintain consistency and quality.
McDonald’s has a significant impact on the global food industry, and its purchasing decisions can have a ripple effect on the prices and availability of ingredients around the world.
The company’s “McDonaldland” advertising campaign.
15 The campaign featured a cast of characters, including Ronald McDonald, Mayor McCheese, the Hamburglar, Grimace, and others, who lived in a magical world called McDonaldland. The characters were often used in television commercials, billboards, and other advertising materials to promote McDonald’s products and brand.
The campaign was very successful and helped to cement McDonald’s as a pop culture icon in the United States and around the world. However, the McDonaldland characters were eventually phased out in the 1990s, as the company shifted its marketing focus to more modern and sophisticated campaigns.
McDonald’s has its own university
16 McDonald’s has a unique training program called “Hamburger University,” which is a corporate university that provides training and development for McDonald’s employees and franchisees.
The first Hamburger University was opened in 1961 in Elk Grove Village, Illinois, and since then, the program has expanded to include several locations around the world, including locations in Shanghai, China, and Sydney, Australia.
The program offers a variety of courses on topics such as restaurant management, operations, leadership, and customer service, and it is designed to provide employees with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in their roles at McDonald’s.
The program is known for its rigorous standards and has been recognized as one of the top corporate training programs in the world.
In some countries, McDonald’s offers delivery service through partnerships with third-party delivery companies.
17 The company recognizes that many customers prefer the convenience of having food delivered directly to their door, and it has worked to meet this demand by partnering with companies such as Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub.
The availability of delivery services may vary depending on the country or region, but in general, McDonald’s has been expanding its delivery offerings in recent years to meet changing consumer preferences.
By partnering with third-party delivery companies, McDonald’s is able to offer its menu items to a wider audience and provide customers with more options for ordering and receiving their food.
McDonald’s has been the subject of several documentaries and films
18 Including the 2004 film “Super Size Me” and the 2016 film “The Founder,” which tells the story of Ray Kroc and the founding of the company.
