A visit to the the world’s most unique McDonald’s

November 29th, 2009, 10:50 am · 22 Comments · posted by Nancy Luna, Staff Writer

(Editor’s note: Hello everyone. I’m still in Florida. During our visit, we were in Orlando for a few days. We’re now in St. Petersburg, staying at my husband’s parents’ winter home. Earlier in the week, I headed back to St. Pete’s with my in-laws, while my husband, Brady, and our daughter, Hannah, stayed one more day in Orlando. I was done with theme parks, but they wanted to visit Universal Studios. While there, they stumbled into some sort of upscale McDonald’s bistro that floored them with its crazy look, “gourmet-inspired” foods and play area. I asked Brady to write about his visit.)

Special report by the Fast Food Maestro

Being married to the lovely and talented Fast Food Maven comes with vast responsibilities. I’m forced to eat at a lot of new and interesting restaurants. I can’t touch my food until it’s been photographed for the blog. And, of course, I’m always on the lookout for fast food finds.

While on vacation in Orlando, Florida, we spent the night along tacky and tawdry International Drive — the main tourist corridor connecting the Universal Studios and SeaWorld theme parks. Our 9-year-old daughter, Hannah, gasped when she saw the “World’s Most Unique McDonald’s” next to our hotel.

I had my doubts about the McDonald’s uniqueness — until we stepped inside.

Named one of the most unique McDonald’s in the world by the Travel Channel, the two-story McDonald’s Bistro at 6875 Sand Lake Road features a 100-game video arcade, a moon-faced animatronic Mac Tonight singing at a player piano, a mini bowling alley, a small stage (with a local boy band performing during our visit), a jungle-themed waterfall, a hospitality center selling tickets to local attractions, a 500-gallon aquarium and what’s dubbed as the world’s largest McDonald’s PlayPlace indoor playground.

But it’s the menu that sets this Mickey D’s apart.

In addition to Big Macs, Egg McMuffins and Chicken McNuggets, the Bistro McDonald’s serves eight variations of pizza (including Tuscan Sausage), “gourmet” sandwiches (meatball parmesan), grilled paninis (bacon chicken on a ciabatta roll), Mexican fare (chicken chimichanga), pasta plates (marinara shrimp), breakfast specials (ham & cheese French toast) and “delectable” desserts (chocolate corruption cake).

The “bistro gourmet” items come with premium prices — ranging from $3.89 to $5.49 for breakfast items, $5.49 to $6.99 for sandwiches, $9.49 to $13.49 for pizzas, $8.49 for the create-your-own pasta station and $2.29 to $4.99 for desserts.

The store manager said the restaurant uses standard McDonald’s ingredients for most of the specialty meals, supplementing a few items where necessary from a major McDonald’s supplier. The franchisee operates a total of five McDonald’s Bistros in the Orlando area in addition to several other McDonald’s with themes such as Hollywood movies, retro 1950s, tropical Caribbean and archeological ruins.

Hannah cast the final verdict on the Orlando restaurant: “This is the best McDonald’s I’ve ever been to in my entire life.”

Tell us: Have you eaten at one of these “gourmet” McDonald’s? If so, let us know what you thought of it, and if you’d like to see one in California. (By the way, I’ve also seen many Pizza Hut Bistros here!)

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Park Summers says:

November 29, 2009 at 11:23 am

There is a McDonald’s Bistro Gourmet in North San Diego — http://www.yelp.com/biz/mcdonalds-san-diego-31.

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Nancy Luna, Staff Writer says:

November 29, 2009 at 3:09 pm

cool thanks

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jojo says:

November 29, 2009 at 12:35 pm

WOW, I don’t even know what to say, I’m speechless…did they have the McRib at this bad boy???

Obozo_The_Prez says:

November 29, 2009 at 12:49 pm

The pictures are ripped directly from the McD’s website, can you not afford a digital camera Nancy? Do we need to take up a collection?

Erika says:

November 29, 2009 at 2:50 pm

Unfortunately, I have not. But this will be on my list to visit when I go to Orlando! Thank you Brady, FFM, and Hannah.

Nancy Luna, Staff Writer says:

November 29, 2009 at 2:58 pm

Obozo, as stated in the blog post, I DID NOT go there. My husband was there with my daughter. They did not have the camera with them. I had it. Sorry. Thanks for wanting to take up a collection.

Brenda says:

November 29, 2009 at 4:10 pm

Good job Nancy. I will use it for my stock club report. Thank you.

Bebe says:

November 29, 2009 at 4:25 pm

McDonald’s referring to the food as ‘gourmet’ is one of the funniest things I’ve ever heard. I take it they don’t get out much.

mario says:

November 29, 2009 at 5:35 pm

Why go so far to visit theme parks when they are right in your own backyard? Same thing with McBarnyards Golden Starches.

Nancy Luna, Staff Writer says:

November 29, 2009 at 6:45 pm

Our family lives here for the winter, so we wanted to visit them over the holiday…that’s why we went.. We love Disneyland, but visiting the DisneyWorld parks was fun, and I’d highly recommend it for anyone who is a Disney fan.

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LadyDie says:

November 29, 2009 at 5:54 pm

I used to live in Orlando and have been to this McDonald’s a few times. It is quite unique but unfortunately usually quite busy as well. My favorite Orlando McDonald’s was not this one however. The one I loved is located by where the Dixie Stampede used to be. It was one of the most upscale McD’s I had ever visited, complete with plush chairs and couches. It had that “coffeehouse” feel!

bpsqwerty says:

November 29, 2009 at 7:19 pm

wow, it doesn’t look that big from the outside. but looks (perspective) can be deceiving. I definitely love the Mac Tonight feature!!

the only 2 story McDonald’s I’ve ever been to were in Harbor City (near Torrance) and New York. so this is interesting.

Tom Swifty says:

November 29, 2009 at 7:20 pm

“Most Unique”? Is there no style or grammar guide at the Register? Would you write “Most Largest”, or “Most Tallest”? ‘Unique’ is an ultimate adjective - there is nothing “more” possible. There can be nothing “just as unique”. It just “is unique”.

I’ll put my soap box away now.

Nice pictures.

Maria says:

November 29, 2009 at 10:19 pm

What a fun picture! Just had to mention that when we were in Maine, the McDonalds there had lobsters sandwiches and you could even have the lobster sandwich Value Meal. Just out of curiosity I had to try one. Compared to the lobster dinner places we tried, it wasn’t that great but I just had to taste one for myself.

thirtyplus says:

November 30, 2009 at 8:21 am

The “Travel Channel” did a segment a couple of years ago on the top 10 most unique McDonald’s in the world. The #1 was in Rome, Italy. We had the opportunity to eat there several years ago. In addition to being unique in it’s food offerings, it is a beautiful restaurant in an amazing city.

Gary Warner says:

November 30, 2009 at 5:49 pm

In the early days of its expansion overseas, McDonalds had to “buy” its way into cities. Sometimes they made a palace of marble and waterworks (Rome, near Spanish Steps) or renovated a portion of a historic train station (Budapest). But later, they were allowed to just slap em up. So there is a McDonalds in the Piazza del Pantheon in Rome now that is just a converted cafe.

– Gary Warner, OC Register Travel Editor

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ocbear says:

November 30, 2009 at 9:18 am

I am sick of McDonalds because they are trying to take over Europe and destroying the local cuisine with their fatty junk food.

That says:

November 30, 2009 at 2:07 pm

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…

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jim s says:

December 1, 2009 at 2:54 am

we ate at the mcdonalds near the British Museum in London. Interesting to have “home” while there. Also we were coming off a long stay in Italy and France and were really ready to get back home.

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NPS says:

December 7, 2009 at 10:49 am

What? Local chains in Europe and elsewhere in the world don’t do it either… Have you heard of Quick in France? [ http://www.quick.fr ]… or the various Kabob places scattered in most European cities. McD isn’t need to fatten the population - enough local chains do it.. .Top that off in the UK with the various local fare and McD isn’t the worst.

McD in Europe has changed - it’s QUITE a bit different than in the US

As That says.. zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

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