In a lot of places in the UK after a certain time, like 11pm, and especially on the weekend you often find people causing trouble in maccies stores.
Often after a night out but quite a lot of the time they’re under fire from 13 year old wannabe gangsters who have nothing better to do.
Is it the same in America? You’ll often even see security guards hired for McD shops that are open late.
One example I’ve heard more than once is of someone wielding a machete and I can’t understand it for the life of me.
(Tagged culture because it genuinely feels like a part of British culture lol)
45 comments
There’s a McDonald’s in Seattle nicknamed “McStabby’s”, but that’s more the exception, not the rule.
Not in my experience. Or at least, not just McDonald’s, but every place that’s open late at night.
No. That is not a thing here. Such criminal activity is more tied to the neighborhood than any specific business.
What’s with the UK questions about weird McDonald’s hangouts? Did something happen that I missed?
no. I mostly associate McDonald’s with being a last resort road trip bathroom break or source of wifi.
Generally no. Of course in areas where crime is already high then the McD’s can see more crime as well. But as a whole this is generally not a big issue.
For 99% of McDonald’s in the US, no.
But the inner city ones that are open late and aren’t drive thru only? Yeah, you’ll get crappy people behaving poorly. I don’t think it’s a daily occurrence, but it definitely happens.
If you really want proper late night violence, Waffle House is the place to go. Only place I know of where the line cooks are trained in hand to hand combat (mostly /s but not entirely).
what happens when you raise kids on mcdonalds.
Not where I live. I’ve never seen a security guard at McDonald’s.
Nah, we use Taco Bell and/or Waffle House
Not that I know of in any place I have lived.
I worked at a McDonald’s briefly at a truck stop
Never experienced violence
In my experience it’s more that certain areas will have a reputation for crime rather than specific businesses. Most McDonalds are just fine (for what they are anyway).
Only in the inner cities. Usually the bigger cities are worse.
Only McDonald’s I’ve seen with a security guard was in college. It wasn’t so much that there was a lot of crime or violence there, just hundreds of drunk college kids at 3 AM. It was honestly so much fun, the staff would yell and curse at the kids and if you didn’t pick up your food when they called your number they’d toss it in the trash right away.
Some are, but not generally. It has more to do with the neighborhood. McDonalds are so ubiquitous, they’ll take on the shape of whatever neighborhood they’re in.
In affluent areas, it might take on a certain style demanded by the city code. It’ll be clean and nice.
In downtown Los Angeles, yeah they’ll hire a security guard because that’s where all the transients head to and crazy ass kids.
Waffle House is the notorious restaurant/fight club though.
No, that’s Waffle House.
The only violence that occurs is in response to the ice cream machine going down…
Stabdonalds exists, yes.
The violent U.S. restaurants are Waffle House and Popeyes
Short answer, no.
I used to teach US culture in the UK and this is one of those things that simply doesn’t carry over the same way.
I’m sure the ones in rundown neighborhoods are.
No. The ones I go too are usually for old people to sit and talk for an ungodly amount of time.
No, some neighborhoods may have a reputation for violence but it’s not tied to any specific business. I’ve also never been in a McDonalds (or any fast food place) that had security guards either. If there were I’d probably leave, I don’t want to be treated like a criminal while I eat.
I started my restaurant career in McDonald’s, I worked in 5 McDonald’s in 2 states, one of them directly across the street from a Monsanto Chemical plant. I was told that one was in a bad neighborhood, but neither it nor the others had a need for security guards. In my 35+ years in restaurants I’ve worked in inner city restaurants and rural restaurants and in all my time I’ve seen two fights total.
Sounds like Waffle House. One of the chains I have heard can give you both late night dinner and a show at the same time.
No, not at all. Most McDonalds aren’t open that late. The dining room will close at 10pm and only the drive through will be open.
But what you’re describing can often happen at 24 hour convenient stores like 7-eleven. They’re very vulnerable to robberies. In the small neighborhood where I grew up high school kids would always hang out at the neighborhood convenience store- not a Seven-eleven. I think it’s a Royal Farms now- because there was nothing better to do. They’d just sit there and smoke and drink. My brother got jumped there once for no reason.
The only fast food restaurant people associate with that sort of thing is Waffle House, but even with them, it’s entirely based off of what neighborhood the specific store is in
There was an infamous McDonalds in San Francisco, in the Haight Ashbury neighborhood, that was a well known center of drug use and crime of all sorts. The city knew about it, the police knew about it, everyone in the neighborhood knew not to go near it. Only drug users and tourists ever went there.
It has since been demolished and affordable housing has been/will be built on the site (I haven’t been there in a few years so I don’t know the status.)
There was a Burger King near city hall that was in a similar situation (and probably still is, for all I know.)
Depends. [This McDonald’s](https://abc7chicago.com/amp/mass-shooting-chicago-man-shot-and-killed-crime/11975434/) is rather infamous around me. Always some sort of something going on, but I’m not sure if that’s because it’s a McDonald’s or because it’s right next to the Red Line, or both.
I’ve never seen violence at a McDonald’s. I watched a documentary once that included a scene of violence at the closely related McDowell’s though. Attempted robbery foiled by a quick thinking employee with a mop.
That’s a Waffle House thing from where I’m from!
Not really it’s more due to bad areas than the business. Knoxville has Hell Shell (formerly Murder Weigels) though!!
Personally, I never saw anything like this until I moved to Australia and everyone would hit up the local Macca’s after a night out so you’d see the police in the parking lot or guards near the doors. Not so much 13 YO wannabe gangsters, but drunk 20 YOs who’d get a little rowdy.
Not really, at least at the local ones around me. I see teens hanging out in the parking lot, but that doesn’t mean trouble, usually just chilling, laughing, etc.
Nope. In fact very few of them are even open past 2300.
It’s usually Malls where that is a problem. So much so that kids u der 16 are banned on weekends unless with an adult
[Late to the show, but yes there’s a lot of fighting in McDonald’s. Just not where most of these guys live](https://www.reddit.com/r/ActualPublicFreakouts/comments/14eld3q/los_angeles/)
In big cities like Los Angeles and Chicago and even medium sized like Cincinnati and Columbus Ohio and Indianapolis Indiana it happens frequently. It just doesn’t make the nightly news. You only see security at a handful of fast food, usually where they have plexiglass separating the workers from customers
No. It depends on the neighborhoods.
Maybe you’re confusing it with Waffle House 🤔
Not McDonald’s but there are some shady people in IHOP at 1am
After COVID, many of our McDs close their lobbies at 9 pm. A lot of it depends on where the McD is located as well.
It doesn’t have to be McDics. They do it in gas stations, fries stands, waffle house, riverwalks, promenades, put-put golf and such
Nah, that’s usually Jack In The Box
Not really they’re not really a hub for violence kind of really depending on the area but most the time not really why would anyone fight outside of a fast food restaurant but once again I have seen worser things
No that’s the waffle house, if you want to see people attempt WWE moves or use weapons like a whacky inflatable tube man, then go there at 2am.
When I was in the UK, I was told McDonald’s was just a hub for chavs. McDonald’s here is just a place to get food and I don’t think it’s really a hang out spot in most areas.