McDonald's fans are mourning the loss of self-serve soft drinks, saying it's the 'end of an era' and

July 2024 ยท 4 minute read
2023-09-14T17:41:11Z

McDonalds is nixing its self-serve soft drinks and customers are expressing their dismay.

"How am I going to mix 60 ml of every single soda into one cup to create one SuperDrink." Hali Palombo wrote in a Facebook comment. "This is a tremendous loss."

The fast-food chain told franchisees that it would retire self-serve drink stations by 2032, The State Journal-Register first reported. In place of the stations, employees will use automated beverage systems to fill drinks and customers must ask for refills at the counter.

Beverage refills will still be available for free "at the discretion of individual restaurant owner/operators," the company told Insider.

McDonald's fans expressed in Facebook comments that they were sad to see the traditional soda fountains phased out because they will no longer be able to refill their own drinks or experiment with flavor combinations.

"It's a end of a era," wrote Drew Powell. "When I'm old I'll be like kids in my day you used to be able to go to McDonald's and serve your own drinks and refill them as many times as you wanted."

"Haven't they ruined McDonald's enough," wrote Meg Herman. "It no long is the restaurant that it was created to be!! it's no longer family friendly no characters, no birthday parties or playground everything McDonald's was known for smh." (Many McDonald's PlayPlaces have been phased out, but some locations still have them and also host parties, according to the company's website.)

Some people expressed concerns about the cleanliness of the soda machines and that perhaps the new method would be more sanitary.

"It's because they can't keep up with the sanitation of these self-serve fountains," wrote Mike Schario. "The soda heads are always full of mildew and mold and the whole area is sticky and unkept and touched by multiple filthy hands."

"Probably a good thing at our local McDonald's I was inside and I saw a mouse drink out of the soda fountain," wrote Karen Henderson.

McDonald's didn't respond immediately to an Insider request for comment, but states on its website: "When it comes to priorities in our restaurants, food hygiene and safety are right at the top of the list." The company previously told Insider that it's removing the machines "to create a consistent experience for both customers and crew across all ordering points, whether that's McDelivery, the app, kiosk, drive-thru or in-restaurant."

Some customers reported McDonald's locations have already made the switch after remodeling stores, including locations in California.

Some theorized that removing the machines made service faster.

"There's a McDonald's where I live like this, and some how their service is still faster than any other McDonald's in Nebraska," wrote Hannah Wismer.

Meanwhile, others opined service was slower. "I went to a McDonald's that was doing this already I waited for 15 mins for a refill on the drinks," wrote Alexis Coon.

"They aren't staffed to refill drinks," wrote Wil Rabquer. "Waited 10 mins at the counter for something that used to take 1. Most people just won't get a refill."

Steve Tuck said many restaurants in Northern California have already scrapped the dispensers.

"Going to McDonald's feels very sterile now," he wrote on Facebook. "You order at the kiosk or through the app, the counter is still an option but doesn't seem to be a preferred method anymore. You can still get a refill but you do have to wait for an employee to come to the counter and they give you a whole new cup now."

Joseph Hall thought it was a good move to stop theft.

"I hear it's a huge problem trying to enforce rules against using water cups to steal free sodas then the staff have to deal with it. Good move in my view."

Watch: Applebee's made the best comeback of 2018. Here's how the restaurant chain turned around.

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