McDonald’s To End Self-Serve Drinks, Possible Refill Charges
Some changes are making their way to McDonald’s. The fast food chain is transitioning away from self-serve beverage stations. Some locations may even start to charge for refills that were once free. But you’ll have quite a bit of time to prepare for this change: CBS News reported that the chain will be completely rid of self-serve beverage stations by 2032.
A representative for McDonald’s told CBS News via email that the change is “intended to make customer experiences consistent no matter where you order – on the app, in the drive-thru, in the restaurant, or other methods.”
They added, “Without the drink dispensers, in-restaurant customers can’t pour themselves their own drinks – and individual franchises have the power to decide if they will charge for refills,” the McDonald’s rep said.
Some McDonald’s locations are now ditching free refills altogether. A representative for the restaurant confirmed with Business Insider last year that over-the-counter refills would be “at the discretion of individual restaurant owner/operators.”
McDonald’s has plans to introduce a new $5 value meal and its biggest burger ever. CNBC reported that the McDonald’s $5 value meal will run for roughly a month, beginning on June 25. The offering will include four items: a McChicken or McDouble, four-piece chicken nuggets, fries, and a drink.
Fox Business reported that McDonald’s CFO Ian Borden revealed that the fast-food restaurant will soon launch a “larger satiating burger.”
“We’ll be testing this burger in a few markets later this year, ensuring that it has universal appeal before scaling it across the globe,” Borden told the outlet. McDonald’s recently brought back its Double Big Mac for a limited time. The Double Big Mac is made using four beef patties.
Despite these plans, people are frustrated and are still struggling with the news of the self-serve drink stations and free refills being taken away.
Redditors Take On McDonald’s Self-Serve Beverage Changes
Once the news of phasing out self-serve beverages at the chain surfaced, many people took to Reddit to share their gripes. One person summed up the change as “greed.” They said, “It’s not about losing money from ppl having free refills. It’s the money they will make from people buying a second drink.”
Another person said, “I wonder if this country (US) might get a whole lot healthier as all the fast food places see themselves out. I don’t think people are going for this higher prices and lower quality approach.”
Several people took to X, formerly Twitter to join in on the chain’s recent news. “If you were looking for a clear sign of the Apocalypse… here you go,” they If you were looking for a clear sign of the Apocalypse... here you go.
Some McDonald’s fans have even asked for the government to step in to fix the drink station change. “This is the one and only time I would seek government intervention. Free refills are the most American thing ever,” read one This is the one and only time I would seek government intervention. Free refills are the most American thing ever.
