The days of the self-serve soda fountain are numbered at McDonald’s.
The fast-food giant plans to phase out the do-it-yourself stations, eliminating them entirely over the next decade as franchise owners cite hygiene, theft, and consumer eating habits, according to The State Journal-Register of Illinois.
But McDonald’s franchise owners want to put customers’ minds at ease — insisting that refills will continue to be free even after the machines are phased out by 2032.
“Free refills are a big draw for people,” Kim Derringer, who operates three McDonald’s franchises in Springfield, Ill., told The State-Journal Register.
“I don’t see anything taking that away.”
Several Illinois-based franchise owners have already taken initial steps toward doing away with the soda fountains by having crew members fill customers’ orders by taking the meal and soft drink directly to their dining table, The State-Journal Register reported.
Brad Davis, the franchise owner at a McDonald’s in Springfield, Ill., said his restaurant has stopped giving customers empty cups since the start of the year.
Davis told The State-Journal Register that corporate headquarters picked his franchise on South Sixth Street as a test case.
“It was an adjustment for customers and staff,” Davis said. “But we didn’t get too many complaints on it.”
Davis said he plans to make the same transition to the other five franchises that he owns in Springfield, though no timeline has been set.
At a McDonald’s location in Lincoln, Ill., customers have their food and drink brought to them by a staffer, but they can get their own refills at the fountain which is still functioning.
Customers who patronize the Lincoln location and order take-out can will still receive an empty cup that they can fill up at the fountain, according to the report.
Mikel Petro, who along with his wife owns and operates the Lincoln franchise as well as 14 other locations throughout central Illinois, said that he plans to have the Lincoln restaurant renovated starting in the summer of next year.
Petro said he plans to have power and plumbing installed for a new, behind-the-counter soda machine that will replace the existing fountain, which is accessible to customers in the dining area of the restaurant.
“It’s an evolution towards convenience and (the result of) the growth of digital service,” Petro told the newspaper.
Local franchise owners said the COVID-19 pandemic spurred the company to prioritize minimizing human contact.
McDonald’s will eventually transition to an automated system that pour beverages without the need for customers to touch a button.
The “crew pour” system will also eliminate theft and give diners the feel of a restaurant by having someone bring their food and drink, according to the franchise owners.
McDonald’s customers are also less frequently dining in at restaurants — opting instead to use their app to either have the food delivered by a third-party vendor, order drive-thru, or walk in and pick up and then eat off-site.
The dwindling number of diners at McDonald’s locations spurred the company to rethink the use of physical space inside the restaurants.
McDonald’s first introduced the concept of self-serve soda fountains in 2004.
The Post has sought comment from McDonald’s.
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