McDonald's is trying out a new type of outlet that surprisingly lacks chairs and tables and even a dining area. Instead, these select few outlets are supposed to cater to the chains customers, who simply do not have the time to sit down and eat in the restaurant but prefers the McDonald's to go.
One of these customer-specific restaurants is located in Jersey City, New Jersey, right outside the exit of the Holland Tunnel reports Business Insider. The unusual McDonald's outlet is said to be the first of its kind in the New York tristate area that do not come with a dining room. Instead, the outlet has an outdoor "walk-up" window for customers on foot who just want to grab their food and eat it elsewhere. Of course, the outlet also serves customers with vehicles via its drive-thru window.
This new McDonald's outlet concept is part of the chain's effort to address the perennial customer complaint of the chain's slow service. In a study done by QSR Magazine, McDonald's drive-thru wait time averaged 189.49 seconds, its slowest record in 15 years.
The new concept seems to be working in McDonald's favor, in terms of service speed at least. In the new location, with its focus on speed, the average wait time for drive-thrus is only 90 seconds reports The Comeback.
In addition, McDonald's also streamlined its menu and added more drive-thru windows to improve its service speed. Furthermore, the chain also offered all-day breakfast which saw its sales rise last year as people also bought an additional all-breakfast item along with their usual lunch and dinner choice. The chain's combined turnaround strategy worked and McDonald's same-store sales saw a significant improvement of 5.7 percent for the fourth quarter last year.
