Behind the scenes at a McDonald's photo shoot . via
posted by fremen on Jun 19, 2012 - 129 comments

Is Cooking Really Cheaper Than Fast Food?
posted by reenum on Oct 7, 2011 - 192 comments

Reverse Engineering McDonald's French Fries Although not good for you, one dedicated man determines how you can make them at home, and improves on the recipe.
posted by zabuni on Jun 6, 2010 - 90 comments

Ammonia-injected centerfuged fatty trimmings = pink slime + E. Coli. Eight years ago, federal officials were struggling to remove potentially deadly E. coli from hamburgers when an entrepreneurial company from South Dakota came up with a novel idea: injecting beef with ammonia.
posted by cytherea on Jan 1, 2010 - 90 comments

What cereal should I eat? A flowchart. Also: What fast food should I eat? What chain restaurant should I patronize? What beer should I drink? What frozen entree should I thaw? Bonus question: Can you eat every animal McDonald's serves on a single sandwich? From Eating the Road.
posted by escabeche on Dec 15, 2009 - 68 comments

"Real Meals": Will Self's (relatively) new fortnightly restaurant column reviewing high street food outlets for The New Statesman. Thus far: McDonald's, KFC, Indian Restaurant, Starbucks, Subway.
posted by hydatius on Nov 27, 2009 - 72 comments

In which Georgia gives you the McNuggetini.
posted by mr_crash_davis mark II: Jazz Odyssey on Feb 16, 2009 - 87 comments

The perfect Sunday nosh: A short history of the bagel. In an age when allegedly edible breadstuffs that my grandmother would have barely recognized have become ubiquitous, did you know that even the Pharaohs had a yen for the iconic Jewish comfort food that is as much a symbol of New York City as baguettes are to Paris? Bagels turn out to be surprisingly easy to make at home, too, though they won't be the same without a schmear and some nice Nova. (Previously on Ask.) Extra credit: the history of everything.
posted by digaman on Nov 23, 2008 - 64 comments

Fast Food Apartheid: The Los Angeles City Council has placed a one-year moratorium on the opening of fast-food restaurants in sections of the city with low-income residents. The council says it's meant to encourage healthy fare in locations that lack ready access to supermarkets and healthy restaurant. This columnist calls it "fast food apartheid." We're not talking anymore about preaching diet and exercise, disclosing calorie counts, or restricting sodas in schools. We're talking about banning the sale of food to adults. Treating French fries like cigarettes or liquor.
posted by Cool Papa Bell on Jul 31, 2008 - 282 comments

Think those salads at McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, and Taco Bell are a good idea if you want something lighter? Turns out you're actually better off getting a double cheeseburger instead. For more info on nutritional facts about fast food, CalorieKing has a good database.
posted by cerebus19 on Jun 1, 2007 - 67 comments

McDonald's: The Videogame. A scathing critique of lousy corporate and environmental practices, or an entertainingly complex little game about the fast food industry? A little from column A, a little from column B. Torch diseased cows with the flamethrower, corrupt politicians and environmentalists, plant genetically modified soy in what used to be the rain forests of South America, force your employees to smile all the livelong day, and try not to bankrupt the company. Be sure to read the tutorial first. (Flash.)
posted by Gator on Feb 10, 2006 - 11 comments

Create-a-meal [note: flash] ... comes in mcdonalds, subway, barbeque, and pizza hut flavors.
posted by crunchland on Nov 22, 2003 - 17 comments

McDonald's gets bad review, sues critic. "McDonald's has labelled as "defamatory and offensive" an influential Italian food critic, who poured scorn on the quality of the fast-food giant's cuisine. The corporation has sued Edoardo Raspelli, a critic and commentator for the Italian newspaper La Stampa, after he compared its burgers to rubber and its fries to cardboard, in an article last year. McDonald's is seeking undisclosed damages, possibly as much as the 21m euros (£15m; $25m) it spent on advertising in Italy last year. " Is it really defamation if it's true? What if every restaurant that got a bad review decided to sue?
posted by kayjay on May 31, 2003 - 33 comments

Culture jamming The Sims. As discussed here a couple of months ago, the much loved McDonald's Corporation has a major deal with Electronic Arts. But with hundreds of virtual burger restaurants in Simsville - what's to stop gamers turning into virtual anti-globalisation vigilantes?
posted by bwerdmuller on Nov 20, 2002 - 19 comments

It's national vegetarian week, apparently. After reading this article on chicken nuggets, I might be converting, not that I have ever eaten a chicken nugget, of course. It's not just junk food that leaves one feeling green about the gills though. I identified all of the vegetables in this quiz, I don't know that I would want to eat all of them though.
posted by Fat Buddha on Jul 8, 2002 - 30 comments

McDonald's meat from antibiotics-injected livestock is now the primary source of antibiotics for U.S. children, particularly for uninsured youths from low-income households. "Unfortunately, some children still fall through the cracks in our health-care system, but luckily, McDonald's is there to lend a helping hand," Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson said at a press conference announcing the findings. "So even if a child's family has no health insurance and can't afford medicine, virtually anyone can afford a delicious 99-cent Big Mac with pickles, cheese, and a heapin' helpin' of [the antibiotic] quinupristin-dalfopristin."

Wherein the bastards of the bactericidal, bloody, beef business bear badinage. Fillets (boneless strips of meat specially cut for roasting), anyone?
posted by fold_and_mutilate on Apr 26, 2002 - 44 comments

That is McGross Man eats 18,000 Big Macs.
posted by aj100 on Nov 8, 2001 - 22 comments

More nasty facts about what goes into our food. Do a search on the page for 'dead cats'. (My apologies for posting something old. I'm so shocked I couldn't help it).
posted by u.n. owen on Mar 15, 2001 - 11 comments

Chicken's head found in fast food order at McDonald's [via MeatFilter.com] "Katherine Ortega said she found a fried chicken's head in the box of chicken wings she ordered Tuesday night" The picture of the chicken head is not to be missed.
posted by Outlawyr on Nov 30, 2000 - 35 comments

Ronald MacDonald may have just stepped over his boundaries. A 4 star hotel in Switzerland you say...? That seems just like one hamburger too much too swallow...
posted by noom on Nov 28, 2000 - 9 comments

Tipping at McDonalds *this* is what a private citizen does? This entire "spontaneous" stop seems awfully contrived to produce warm fuzzies on the part of the public. I mean, how often does one of us 'normal' folk leave a twenty dollar tip or go behind the counter for pictures at a fast food place?
posted by tsitzlar on Aug 16, 2000 - 18 comments

fast(er) food in so-cal. looks like we'll all be able to get our big macs a whopping 15 seconds faster at orange county drive throughs. why haven't they done this *inside* their stores, where it usually takes the cashier at least a minute to do the math, after the people in front of me spend 3 minutes digging through their pockets/wallets/purses to find their money and change.(disclosure: i was once a mcdonald's cashier)
posted by mmanning on Jan 28, 2000 - 10 comments