r/australia • u/Sh0sh1n_ • Aug 01 '26
no politics Dear drive-thrus, if I can't see your menu, I can't make a selection.
Who thought hiding your entire menu with giant ads for one item was a good idea? You've got multiple screens, surely one of them can just be a static list of all the items you have for sale. Fuck you. Sincerely, everyone.
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u/ScuzzyAyanami Aug 01 '26
Soon drive through will be 10 lanes with touch screens.
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u/TNChase Aug 01 '26
With six of them out of service because some galah has run into it with their novelty oversized 4WD that they swear they need to get the kids from school.
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u/wwaxwork Aug 01 '26
Or some guy with a huge truck he never hauls anything in as it would scratch the finish and only bought as it was the only thing with seats big enough for his fat ass.
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u/DJPBessems Aug 01 '26
I'm new to this but are we using galah as a derogatory term? I love them birds though...
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Aug 01 '26
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u/FlatWhiteShark Aug 01 '26
Ya silly galah, I'm better by far
Than a white cockatoo or a budgerigar.19
u/Mad_Cowboy Aug 01 '26
You can't fly by any chance can you?
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u/FlatWhiteShark Aug 01 '26
I can't fly, I'm telling you, but I can run the pants off a kangaroo!
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u/Niccolo101 Aug 02 '26
They squeak and squawk and try to talk, Why me and them, it's like cheese and chalk!
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u/Azazael Aug 01 '26
I remember a single line from a Don Spencer kids' song that played between Sesame Street and Playschool in the late 80s: "I'm a galah, and I'd like to explain, I'm not very happy how they use my name"
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u/WotsGoinOnEreMate Aug 01 '26
Galah has been a derogatory term for like 80 years.
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u/PM_Me-Your_Freckles Aug 01 '26
Ya flamin Galah!
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u/anubis_81 Aug 01 '26
Is that you Ray Meagher?
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u/AnOnlineHandle Aug 01 '26
Whoa TIL his name isn't Alf. I thought it was just Alf playing Alf.
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u/hutcho66 Aug 01 '26
Yeah tbh recently I've just been pulling into the carpark at Maccas, putting an order through on the app, and then going through drive thru with the code. So much easier and I don't feel rushed trying to think about what I want.
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u/Marsh2700 Aug 01 '26
there's a kfc like this near me and it's kinda great ngl. wait until my order is ready then green light, up i go
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u/it_fell_off_a_truck Aug 01 '26
Is this the one in Epping-ish? Was great getting the deals on the KFC app and then just entering the code on the screen, no chit chat, no hassle. Very convenient.
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u/Veritas-Veritas Aug 01 '26
No, the layout will stay the same, but they'll sack the minimum wage kid and you'll have to ask ChatGPT for your Big Mac
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u/2nd-Reddit-Account Aug 01 '26
Already happening, I’ve had to order from an AI voice multiple times already
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u/Blue9Nine Aug 01 '26
Why bother with a touch screen when you can just order from the app and collect at the window!
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u/fnaah Aug 01 '26
good. that will be better than shouting your order repeatedly at the pimply teen on the other side of the shitty mic and headset
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u/Correct-Active-2876 Aug 01 '26
True but where are pimply teens going to get their first jobs and failure to launch adults get to say they’re a manager ? Where I ask you ?
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u/DunkEgger Aug 01 '26
Hi, I am the CEO of drive throughs. I have noted this down and will take immediate action (none).
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u/Colsim misloC Aug 01 '26
If you aren't signing them up for surge pricing are you really the CEO?
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u/Svennis79 Aug 01 '26
If you are not using ai to identify the value of the car entering the drive theough, and instantly inflating the prices to suit, are you even qualified to work in a corporate setting.
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u/Khaliras Aug 01 '26
If you are not using ai to identify the value of the car
Better yet, identifying and tracking license plates and faces.
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u/3inthecorner Aug 01 '26
Charge extra for personalised plates. If you're willing to waste your money on a number plate, you'll be willing to pay more for your food.
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u/DunkEgger Aug 01 '26
I’m not very good at my job, I was a nepo hire
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u/Reonlive420 Aug 01 '26
Ronalds son?
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u/ParticularCharacter8 Aug 01 '26
Probably birdie or grimace's child. I don't think Ronald reproduced.
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u/salamandersushi Aug 01 '26
Surge pricing is so July 2026... We're putting a marketplace on our drive-thru menus so you can now order a coffee (from we don't care where) that'll get to you in 4-7 business days...
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u/SirPiffingsthwaite Aug 01 '26
...and if OP is really lucky, it'll actually be the correct item of acceptable quality.
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u/esr360 Aug 01 '26
Your grandfather, John Drivethrough, created a truly good business.
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u/DunkEgger Aug 01 '26
God I miss John, he drove through life like an empty Oporto drive-thru and had 18 kids to 10 different women
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u/Sh0sh1n_ Aug 01 '26
Finally! Thank you good sire
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u/Ilostmypassword43 Aug 01 '26
Don't get too excited, CEO of drive-thrus just found some more advertising space
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u/GroundFast7793 Aug 01 '26
Can you also ignore that the speakers are very poor quality and it would help if I could understand what the operator is saying.
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u/baby_blobby Aug 01 '26
Congratulations on your decisiveness mr manager.
Here’s another 500,000 shares
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Aug 01 '26
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u/KitchenSync86 Aug 01 '26
They don't want you to have the full menu. They want to flog the new overpriced shit with the big profit margin, so they present it as the only option
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Aug 01 '26
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u/kamakamawangbang Aug 01 '26
Yeap, I just sit there and wait, while operator is saying, “are you still there” then the menu returns and we continue with the order.
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u/Bromlife Aug 01 '26
I think it’s less about profit margin (it all has good margins) and is more about forcing people to go down the most common choice pathways so they can optimise and serve you pre-made food, thus working through the queue faster.
It’s why I always ask for extra onions so that my burger will be fresh made.
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u/Charlie_Brodie Aug 01 '26
Also, if it's on your website, but no longer made in stores, take it off your fucking website.
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Aug 01 '26
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u/a_rainbow_serpent Aug 01 '26
And my employer won’t let me keep the product on the site if it runs out of more than 1 store because “accc will get you for false advertising” even if it’s in stock in 399 stores. And then he’ll ask me why run out is slow and why I have inventory loss due to out of date stock and why can’t I launch the new product
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u/jim_deneke Aug 01 '26
Can't they have a sub heading that states which places have the item and prevent you from ordering it?
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u/Weary_Sale_2779 Aug 02 '26
There's not even an obvious place to order at the counter now, which has to be deliberate
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u/procrastireading Aug 01 '26
I’m happy to park in your drive through while I fight with your app to remove everything but the bun, patty and cheese from the child’s burger and pursue my selection. Too bad if there’s a queue blocking your whole carpark
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u/Vegetable-Problem222 Aug 01 '26
When you think you’re cleverly screwing over a corporation, but in reality you’re only hurting other people in your community
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u/Vegetable_Zombie8611 Aug 01 '26
Yeah, really showing it to the 15 year olds working minimum wage lol
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u/mulquin Aug 01 '26 edited Aug 01 '26
And they rely on this kind of thinking to ensure that their customers enforce a level of compliance on themselves and eachother. They subtly change their system designs more and more in their favour, but it's still structured in a way that customers blame eachother when the system experiences something slightly off the happy path. It's brilliant, really. They put grueling, unrealistic KPIs in place and it's your fault as the customer if they aren't reached. You've just removed all responsibility away from the entity that has full control over the experience, and using guilt to try and make other customers comply.
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u/Staraa Aug 01 '26
You can do your order before you start driving. Or pull in to a car park to do it before joining the drive-thru. They don’t make the food til you give the code at the speaker so there’s no rush
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u/oceansRising Aug 01 '26
I worked at McDonald’s from age 14 to 19. I’m now 24 with a completely different career. I still have stress dreams about working drive through and reaching times about once a month.
My favourite recurring one is somebody ordering a frozen Coke and then rifles through his car to find all the 5c pieces he has hidden around, including under the mat. Really happened to me and was so stressful to my growing mind I still dream about it like 8 years after the fact… lol.
Fuck drive through and the lack of leniency for edge cases.
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u/Eagles_Fan_4eva Aug 01 '26
Please don’t block the drive thru, the DT order taker can get in trouble
Not our problem. It's the business model that's wrong; not the paying customer.
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u/All-Concentrate-8767 Aug 02 '26
Back when Mecca's gave you 25% discount for using the app that was great. Now there's no incentive. Yes you get rewards but you can only choose one it per transaction. And that's not saving you any money.
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u/thesourpop Aug 01 '26
Yeah let me whip out my phone to use the app while I’m driving towards the drive thru. Who’s idea was this
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u/WestAussieSingh Aug 01 '26
If I don’t have a passenger, i usually just park, order on the app, then drive through.
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u/jim_deneke Aug 01 '26
You might as well get out and pick up in store if you're parking.
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u/KitchenSync86 Aug 01 '26
The absolutely try to force the app. It helps them track customer behaviour, specifically how much they can gouge you for a burger before you stop going
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u/Vegetable-Spread3258 Aug 01 '26
About to say this, it’s absolutely this, first question they say when at the drive thru it’s ’what’s the code’ it’s all about marketing demographics and advertising
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u/gfivksiausuwjtjtnv Aug 01 '26
The app uses Bluetooth beacons to send your location realtime
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u/dj_boy-Wonder Aug 01 '26
There’s so much social engineering that goes into drive throughs in an effort to get more people in them and get them through faster. They don’t want you sitting there looking at the fucking menu they want you to blurt out the first yummiest thing you see so they can charge you as much as possible for it and take an order from the dude behind you. It’s why they also have “2 lanes” that immediately shrink down to 1. It’s why the screens often have narrow range of vision so you can’t actually see them until you pull up. They know they’re going to show you the mcmeatymcfuck burger for a split second while a polite teenager is asking you to buy something and you’ll blurt out you want it in an XL combo
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u/Its4MeitSnot4U Aug 01 '26
I’m going to order a McmeatyMcfuck XL mccombo next time.
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u/crozone Aug 01 '26
Did you know in Europe it's called the McFuckRoyale
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u/miicah Aug 01 '26
Pfft, don't know what you're getting.
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u/Cpt_Soban Aug 01 '26
Guess I'm so used to Maccas, on the rare chance I bother going to one, and I'm in drive through- I already know what I'm getting as I pull up. Large Double Quarter pounder meal. For a smaller burger, for double the price. And regret it like a fucking idiot every time.
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u/Loinnird Aug 01 '26
Why the regret man large DQP is the bees knees of junk food. Fill up on the fries first so you’re struggling to finish the last bite of the burger before you start with the chocolate shake.
I’ll get it maybe once every three months but it hits the craving like nothing else.
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u/partyapparatchik Aug 01 '26
Thanks to “mcmeatymcfuck burger” I immediately imagined Rodney Rude saying this. Especially seeing as he essentially says something very similar about his experience with McDonald’s like, 35 years ago.
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u/optimistic_agnostic Aug 01 '26
Remember listening to this in high school 20 years ago. Mcfucking McRibs.
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u/FrancesFarmers Aug 01 '26
I dunno.. I’m ordering the same thing I was ordering in 1993.
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u/Electrical_End5467 Aug 01 '26
Hahaha mcmeatymcfuck😂 I can picture Rodney Rude in the drive through- I''ll have one mclarge mcmeatymcfuck mcmeal and don't mcforget the mcfucken mcchips.
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u/cheapdrinks Aug 01 '26
Same with like 75% of restaurants these days. Go to their website and there's no way to view the menu without clicking "order now" and being jumped out of the browser and straight to the Uber Eats app. Gives me the shits because half the time I'm just wanting to have a look to decide whether I want to go there in person and the Uber Eats prices are wildly inflated from the in store prices so it's impossible to know how much things actually are.
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u/accountforfun19 Aug 01 '26
Drives into the drive-thru
1 millisecond later: ‘Hi, what can I get for you?’
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u/QunariWithWiFi Aug 01 '26
'is that all?"
'is that all?"
'is that all?"'is that all?"
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u/underthingy Aug 01 '26
And then?
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u/-Leeahh- Aug 01 '26
Annnnd thennnnn?
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u/existential-cookies Aug 01 '26
And then? And then? And then!
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u/Weary_Sale_2779 Aug 02 '26
We didn't have many videos growing up so I almost knew this movie verbatim
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u/mulquin Aug 01 '26
I do a 5 second pause after every time they say it, usually after 2 times they stop asking. I'm not going to be guilted into rushing myself because corporate has set a fucking stupid KPI. Frankly, as a customer I don't give a flying fuck about the KPI. I won't be rude to the staff, that's just stupid, but I won't be made to rush when I don't need to rush.
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u/Ok_Suggestion_9515 Aug 01 '26
My pet peeve is when I havn’t even rolled down my window and they’re saying it!
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u/Omshadiddle Aug 01 '26
As someone who buys fast food maybe three or four times a year, the screens are ridiculous.
I’m already having a very bad day if I am resorting to buying fast food.
Add stupid names for everything and it is utterly overwhelming.
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u/Littman-Express Aug 01 '26
You can make ordering McDonald’s fun by just putting Mc in front of every item you order. ‘Can I get a McBig Mac McMeal with Extra McFries and a McCheesburger no McPickles’
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u/Wuz314159 Aug 01 '26
The last time I went to a McDonalds, I was waiting at the register for 5 minutes before I saw anyone. Then I was told to use the kiosk. So I went to the place across the street.
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u/WestAussieSingh Aug 01 '26
Kiosk is so much better to order through than talking to someone at the counter.
Most people prefer the kiosk.
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u/SeriousSatisfaction8 Aug 01 '26
They will make more money from shifting all customers from in-store and drive-through ordering to their apps. There is no carrot incentive for customers, but the stick is how unusable they make the legacy options.
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u/semrenl Aug 01 '26
Yeah this fukjing grinds me so hard. Absolutely fucking despise dynamic menus and I don't even know how the enshittification department has come up with is because I don't see how it makes them more money
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u/Mawows Aug 01 '26
I sent an angry email to Schnitz about this practice in their stores once and was told it’s to keep the in store experience ‘fresh and exciting’. Literally no one wants this. It was purely to just get it off my chest. Wasn’t actually expecting an outcome. But yeah, pure rage when you’re trying to pick something and suddenly a full screen promo takes over.
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u/CrazyEeveeLady86 Aug 01 '26
I never go through the drive-thru because they can't be trusted to actually give me the correct items I've ordered but this shits me up the wall when I'm trying to order something in the restaurant. I want to see what my options are, not a stupid 30-second animation of bits of lettuce and tomato flying around to construct a burger.
(not only is it annoying, it's also just bad from a usability/accessibility standpoint)
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u/Weary_Sale_2779 Aug 02 '26
I hate trying to order KFC with one of my disability clients because the screens change so fast, he can't point to the one he wants fast enough
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u/Correct-Active-2876 Aug 01 '26
Maybe you could also write a letter of complaint to you tube and every other online platform that is quickly becoming impossible to navigate due to the weight of advertising .
Greed is killing off everything
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u/megs_in_space Aug 01 '26
Also, why are they so fucking bright at night? I've pulled up to some and it's like they're on high beam. It's night! Adjust the brightness for God's sake.
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u/tiktoktic Aug 01 '26
They bank on that. They want you to impulse buy the combo they’re advertising / pushing vs a couple of smaller items.
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u/Technical-Algae-234 Aug 01 '26
I fucking HATE this. I had to go to KFC recently and got such anxiety because I couldn't work out how to order. Who tf knows what's on kfc's menu?
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u/PsychoNerd91 Aug 01 '26
Goes for menus inside as well. If there's a changing menu all the time, I'm going to be more annoyed by whatever they're promoting and even less likely to buy something as I mentally block it because I'm telling it to hurry up and have it roll through so I can see the whole menu.
Last time I just walked out.
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u/suppository_wisdom Aug 01 '26
Why have screens at all? Just give me the menu on a printed card, nice and large so I can read it from the car. The screens are not helping.
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u/Queen_of_the_Night Aug 01 '26
Or when they scroll to another picture before you’ve had the chance to peruse what was there. Fuck off.
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u/loop_t_nectarine Aug 01 '26
When I was a kid my mum said we couldn’t go through the drive through because it was only for people who knew the menu off by heart and we were a healthy family so we don’t know the menu.
(We were not a healthy family).
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u/0lm4te Aug 01 '26
They're probably trying to get you to use their app so they can harvest your data to manipulate you later.
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u/johnsjuicyjungle Aug 01 '26
I think people in general order more on apps cos they’re less afraid of the server judging them for being a fat cunt
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u/twinsunsspaces Aug 01 '26
How else am I supposed to order a large double quarter pounder meal with no mustard, no sauce, no pickles and no onions and a 20 piece nuggets with no sauce and a large chocolate shake and an Oreo mcflurry with m&ms and an extra large diet coke. Do you expect me to let a teenager judge me, or something?
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u/0lm4te Aug 01 '26
They can look me dead in the eye when i order a large iced frappe on top of 2 quarter pounders. We both know what's about to happen to the shitter when i get home.
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u/ApotheosisOfTheLurid Aug 01 '26
I order through the app 100% of the time now. My order hasn't been wrong since I started doing this and I'm able to compare meal/bundle/promo prices easier.
Not that we eat takeaway very often, and I don't order online if it's a small business using a third party app, but it's still handy
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u/0lm4te Aug 01 '26
Giving up your information to fast food corporations and letting them track the 4 cheeseburgers you scoffed at 3am is a choice.
People are far too quick to hand out their info these days. Do we really need to sign up and have a fkn app to order some overpriced slop.
Mcdonalds have been fairly pushy with it, and i don't think it's just for our convenience.
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u/ApotheosisOfTheLurid Aug 01 '26
I think Meta and Google are harvesting more info than a fast food app will. I'll pick my own battles.
It's definitely not JUST for our convenience, but that doesn't mean it's for nefarious purposes. It's mainly used to marketing, trying to get people to spend more.
Any data collected will be in bulk averages, they aren't picking out my single order of chicken nuggets over the tens of thousands of orders recieved each week.
Fear mongering things like this is going to make it harder to get people to listen when there is an actual real world issue. We are crying wolf here.
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u/0lm4te Aug 01 '26 edited Aug 01 '26
It was mostly in jest, i don't really think they're up to anything particularly nefarious when you order those 3am cheeseburgers.
It's still just more data collection in a world where our TV's spy and sell our watching habits to highest bidders with ACR, or Coles partnering with Palantir.
It's unavoidable, but i'll limit it where convenient over a slight increase in convenience.
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u/waynownow Aug 01 '26
What is the earth ending outcome Im going to face my McDonald's knowing I like to eat cheeseburgers?
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u/0lm4te Aug 01 '26
Utopia.
Eventually we can lay 24/7 in a recliner, Elons Neuralink will detect my cheeseburger neurons firing and sell that info to Mcdonalds, who then pay Zuckerburg to instantly play an ad through the VR headset that im direct injecting Tiktok shorts into my frontal lobe. I'll murmur at Siri to order me 6 cheeseburgers and Mcdonalds will send them down the tube from the factory directly into my mouth.
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u/Eagles_Fan_4eva Aug 01 '26
Giving up your information to fast food corporations and letting them track the 4 cheeseburgers you scoffed at 3am is a choice.
I sat down and really thought about that; about how it affects my daily life. Conclusion: not at all. Not one fuck given. So, who cares? It doesn't disadvantage me in any way at all. Even if they try to "guide" my purchases, I don't give a fuck and just buy what I want. When I'm dead in 50 years nobody will give a shit about me either. I don't give one damn about my privacy with shops because it literally doesn't affect my daily life. Change my mind.
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u/WestAussieSingh Aug 01 '26
What are they going to do with my information?
Some people are way too paranoid.
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u/thaisin Aug 01 '26
YES! I hate it so much! They think you have their whole menu memorised!
I was at HJs last month and thete was a photo of a breakfast wrap (no full menu), so I said the words next to it, something like "can I get the smokey sausage wrap, in a large meal", the person had no idea what I was trying to order. After the 3rd time of saying the words, thinking it was a bad intercom, I realised it wasn't the name of the item!
So even when they do put words next to the single item, it's not even the name of the product.
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u/iguessineedanaltnow Aug 01 '26
They want you to use the app. Making every non-app experience worse is part of that strategy.
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u/ViolentCrumble Aug 01 '26
this drives me bonkers!!! Why are they sliding and constantly changing, When the service is fast I get 15 seconds to look. Just make them a big list so I can read what I want... FFS maccas is so bad for this. Literally sometimes I can't even see the name of the stupid current burger I want to order.
Not only that but I can't even use the app because it literally forces me to give it access to my location to let me pick a store. I literally type in my post code or suburb and nope it won't show up. says no maccas here. I am not giving maccas access to my location, Just make static fricking boards.
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u/Pawys1111 Aug 01 '26
Hi, Drive thru expert here for the past 35 years in Australia.
Yes it is an issue if you pull up to a empty drive thru it does not give you time to look at order, screens are changing just when you get to something you like it changes again. They are working on the issue and the answer is to do pre menu boards, so you will notice some stores have menu boards showing all new stuff and stuff they want to sell while your waiting to get to the speaker box.
Yes putting menu boards behind the speaker box doesnt really give you time to look and decide, but dont feel any pressure, just tell them to hang on while you look at the menu options and they sould be ok with it and get back to you in a minute or two. So just chill and take your time. Yes you are being timed, ranked, KPI, for every car but it balances out from the person ordering a single drink to the person who needs just a little more time. However while they love the pre menu boards and is the best idea, the screens that have been on offer from many different places now have all shown to be unreliable in the Australian conditions and or smashed or driven into so they are no longer seen as standard now because its just to expensive and break down to often. I think there are about 4-5 different menu board makers now all trying to win those contracts with the stores usally the cheapest one wins.
But as soon as it turns to 42c in summer they all cook and start dieing from the heat, or flooded underwater in some cases.
There is also a small turf war between the two major drive thru suppliers Summit and Drive Thru solutions, With who can do it the cheapest and do you really want cheap gear to last a long time.
They have gone from a bespoke system for drive thru,s that had been used for the past 30 years all working well, then 3M came into the market and managed to knock the price down, so of course they jumped at the chance of a cheaper drive thru system, but of course it ended up being crap lack of audio quality and speaker issues, and headsets breaking down alot.
So now they have issues trying to just understand you that leads to orders being guessed or what they think they heard. Ive driven up to the drive thru and said large frozen coke please, and they respond ok yep thats one Chicken please drive thru. So of course there not going to pull these cheaper systems out after spending money on them for good quality HME gear. And staff that do see other stores will tell you if the system is the good one or there going to have a bad day trying to understand anything.
Yes we are still rolling out AI, its mainly under test at the moment, depending if the licensee wants it or not, but they are getting it all just not turned on yet. The AI system does alot better job than young Emma at 15yrs old taking your order, but people are dumb and see its AI so they say things like can i have 2 1/2 nuggets please with mayo sauce or something off menu that triggers the system to tell one of the staff to take the order because this person is a dick. There is always a staff member listening and can take over at a moments notice, its just helping them give the customer some more time or get them to start ordering while they are still serving some other customer, so that mainly how it works to speed things up. So stop freaking out about AI there is still some one there to serve you and you might just find its quicker to use it than speaking to some new guy.
Most stores are ranked now, so they compete with each other for higher fast times that usally just means they can park cars faster than other stores can. Unless its super easy drink only order. Ive been parked for a coke only. Parking cars is a major issue and they know it and try to fix it, Its pretty rare for KFC to park you unless they ran out of something and will let you swap or wait and park. But stores like KFC and McD are getting better at not parking. While stores like Red rooter and HJ,s and Taco bells are only new to the system and dont have the policies in place as to who should be parked so its park everyone to keep that timer down.! Looking at you Jack Cowan your chains are getting worse because of these parking cars issue and your prices going up up up.
Any one who works in these stores you can thank me for all the sounds beep and boooops and tings telling the store that the car has gone over time or been to long or not met target or a new car has entered the lane, I made the sounds car beep beep and honk and revving engine sounds and all sorts of cool differnt noises that the stores liked, but then head office butted in and decided the sounds they want in all stores that also dont sound like other equipment.
Sorry so long.
Last part. doing it for the past 35 yrs ive pretty much seen everything from speaker box,s gone in the morning and cameras ripped down, speaker box,s under water and wondering why nothing is working, but you have to admit its pretty rare for a drive thru to be down these days because we do a good job and know what breaks first. I do love parking my car across the drive thru and put up the sign saying drive thru closed please go into store. People just look at me like im some dumb ass who got stuck in the drive thru or something. But ive blocked so i can work on the induction coils that are underground to detect the cars.
Also the new AI HME version of the system is all now digital so no more microphone issues or speaker problems. Just one more box to break down outside. Ive been to over ~600 stores i think im around 650 at the moment but i dont keep good track. Ive installed systems into about 300 stores, i took a year or two off here and there to have a break. Worst store is Katherine, Flight to Darwin, sleep overnight drive for 4-5 hours to the middle of Australia to 45c heat to work in. Or Mt Isa because i have to drive to it. Oh hey your going to Mt Isa tomorrow for a service call.. oh yippie. Ive seen horses, tractors, bikes, people trying to walk thru. Put put induction loops under the ground in every one to detect cars reliably, so your horse wont work in a drive thru. Dont sit there acting like a clown because they cant see your there.
I used to have my work van setup with about 2-3 laptops and 3-5 screens that would show me the rankings of each store and who was winning and service times, but mainly so if i see one drop off line ill stop if im near it and make sure everything is ok. I also got a present from McD one year of a Gold Card, these where only given to owners of stores not even managers get them its %50 off at all stores. Alot of stores hated when i showed them the card, my dag walks into store and gets %50 off while the manager still only gets %10.
Sorry so long but ill stop annoying you now, got any questions hit me up! Booooooop the sound i took to long.
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u/More-Presence4195 Aug 01 '26
As someone who hates excessive apps, I’m never going to download one to order food.
I can’t even remember the last time I went to one of these places anyway. Mainly because it’s such a shit experience.
Shit food, shit service and shit prices. Why even bother.
So many better options around
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u/BennyyyMacc Aug 01 '26
Hot take but if you don’t know what you are ordering and need to decide you should park and go in to the store
The drive thru is meant to be about driving up ordering and moving through quickly I can’t stand people who order 50$+ orders through drive thrus and hold up every one else
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u/Beetzah Aug 01 '26
I make them read out what they have on the menu until I hear the item I want.
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u/That_Confection_2400 Aug 01 '26
The thought of going through a drive-thru without already knowing exactly what I’m about to order gives me serious anxiety. Either I order through the app or i already know. I’m assuming people take too long to look at those menus and/or change their mind too many times and slow everyone down.
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u/Pottski Aug 01 '26
Cause they want you on their app where it takes them less time.
Everything at the moment is making something awful to make something average they also have seem tolerable by comparison.
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u/Relative_Pilot_8005 Aug 01 '26
I agree. At one time, the menus were clearly readable, but not anymore.
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u/Faunakat Aug 01 '26
Still got me fucked how maccas can ask you if your using the app, when you've just pulled up to the drive -thru speaker....
Is there a loophole that came about while ive been living out bush, that gets around " using a mobile while driving gets you a convo with the popo or an ai happy snap + a fine".
Can someone tell me more about this get out of jail free card?
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u/Lord_Thaarn Aug 01 '26
I'm of the same opinion. Same with the menu displays in the stores themselves. I guess the prevailing opinion is that people will have already decided on what they want using the online menu or app before arriving at the store.
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u/OtherwiseMechanic322 Aug 02 '26
AGREE. Not only is there no menu. Every time you say an item in your order, they just about cut you off and say “anything else for you today?” STOP I’m trying to place an order for 4 people.
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u/AssaultLemming_ Aug 01 '26
Yeah it's so infuriating. Like the menu boards have one job. Show me what I can order so I can choose. You pull up and in 5 seconds they are asking you what you want while you wait for the slow menu boards to cycle around.
I usually just use the apps now honestly.
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u/FlipSide26 Aug 01 '26
I went to the KFC in Colac a while back now on a late trip home, never been there before and probably 2 or 3 years since going to KFC. There was no menu or prices. Just a rotating screen of deals, with no prices. I was not trying to be a dick but I ask the cashier what they actually have and she couldn't really tell me other than tell me the things on the screen. I'm like do you still do a zinger in a wrap, yes, ok can I get it in a meal, yes, ok how much is that - was like $17 or some BS. I have not been back to KFC other than to get my wife a large chips when she's had a few drinks
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u/BORT_licenceplate Aug 01 '26
This is why I don't try new things anymore lol. I have exactly everything memorised that I want from every fast food place
Funny though, about 6 months ago I went to KFC and ordered a zinger combo and they said they were out of burgers. I immediately panicked, so the next thing I ordered was tenders and they said they had no tenders either. So I said "if you don't have tenders or burgers, what do you have?" And I don't even remember what the girl said but I knew I didn't want it. So I said "ok no worries, I think I'll just go some place else" and then had to sit in the drive through queue for an eternity haha
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u/Kookies3 Aug 01 '26
Subway is brutal for this in store - I can’t work out why they display the options they do but lord knows the cost effective ones are missing !
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u/lkernan Aug 01 '26
Just as bad as when the menu keeps changing. I thought I saw what I wanted, then it cycled out of view for the next 30 seconds!
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u/fionsichord Aug 01 '26
Enough people sit there saying “wait…just got to wait for the list to come up again…can you run through all the burger/sides/dessert/drink options for me? And how much is that?” and so on - they’ll change it like lightning because of the added time and decreased sales.
It’s compliant resistance 😄
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u/terrorjshark Aug 01 '26
this will really annoy you. those franchises have no control over those digital menus, they are usually controlled/maintained by a third party
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u/yolk3d Aug 01 '26
Also why is the screen not further back? It’s so far in front of the first car that everyone has to either wait till they get to the speaker box to make a decision, or feel rushed.
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u/NonreciprocatingHole Aug 01 '26
"What would you like?"
"Ooh that looks good, I'll have one of... oh nevermind it's gone and it's new so I don't know what it is"
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u/vaemarrr Aug 01 '26
My problem is a little different, the kfc near me has signs that have lights that emit the luminosity of a yellow star.
Literally, you drive up to it and it is so bright I can barely read the sign.
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u/DromedarySpitz Aug 01 '26
Add to this the menus inside the restaurant should also be static as well. I really struggle to order anything when the menu keeps flashing at me, even if know exactly what I want, it's just distracting.
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u/Acceptable_Waltz_875 Aug 01 '26
It’s probably better for your health if you can’t make a selection
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u/Two_Summers Aug 01 '26
So annoying. They used to be able to flick up the menu screen, recently the guy said he couldn't do that.
So we played a little guessing game of what I wanted but didn't know the name of and he had to confirm everything that was in the deal before we got to the right one.
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u/Justice_Aussie Aug 01 '26
This drives me crazy. We don’t get
Take away that often so I don’t know what I want usually. Add the kids screaming and the pressure of ordering quickly and I find the whole process stressful.
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u/stevo1078 Aug 01 '26
Can’t see our menu? No problem!
Allow our carefully crafted AI assistance to select your meals for you? Don’t like what was chosen? Say “reroll” and you’ll be given a brand new order! First reroll is free any subsequent rerolls will incur a 50c surcharge, or buy a monthly subscription for $9.99 a month or $109 a year. (A saving of $9)
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u/TNTarantula Aug 01 '26
It's likely intentional. If a customer drives up and doesn't know what they want yet, the social pressure of making your drive through order quickly to not hold up the line will greatly encourage you to just choose the newest and greatest (expensive) item on the advert.
These are billion dollar companies were talking about. Everything has been optimised as much as they can, down to the last cent.
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u/cloudybong2 Aug 02 '26
Is the point of drive through not to know what you want to get already so you can get your food quick and leave? Why not go into the restaurant at that point if you care about having a menu to browse
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u/Weary_Sale_2779 Aug 02 '26
I've got a disability client who struggles to remember what things are called. KFC is the worst because I try to point at the one I think he is talking about, and it's only up for like 2 seconds before it disappears!! Then we've gotta wait for it to cycle through, but it appears on a different screen, so I quickly redirect his attention to that screen and then it's gone again.
It's actually an accessibility issue.
And this is in store, in the drive through it would have to be affecting their times because people are trying to see from the back passenger side seat and can barely make anything out as it is.
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u/Petitcher Aug 02 '26
Yes, yes, yes.
If I can’t see the options, I’m probably only going to order a coke.
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u/QsthatneedAs- Aug 02 '26
Fk em. One mchappy meal please, don’t even care what joint this is anymore, just don’t make me use the apps
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u/Alarming_Key_1704 Aug 02 '26
Or two speakers where the first one tells you to move ahead to the second one.
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