McDonald’s is the biggest fast food chain in the world, but unless you’ve worked there, you probably don’t know much about behind-the-scenes.
Mike Haracz, who used to be a corporate chef at McDonald’s, has taken us inside the food giant and shared three things you probably don’t know.
3 things you don’t know about McDonald’s
1. McDonald’s uses multiple suppliers
The first secret the ex-chef revealed in a TikTok video is the fast food chain uses multiple different suppliers. One reason for this is that McDonald’s is really large, and it’s also a safety net incase there are issues with one.
However, there’s one product the chain only has one supplier for, and that’s the pies! If your local McDonald’s doesn’t have any Apple or Strawberry & Créme Pies the next time you visit, you now know why.
McDonald’s lists some of its US suppliers on its website, including Lopez Foods for beef, Keystone Foods for meat and fish, Kenny Longaker for fish, three different suppliers for potatoes and others for apples, lettuce, coffee and dairy.
2. There’s a term called ‘McDonald’s Done’
Another thing you probably don’t know is McDonald’s has a term called ‘McDonald’s Done’ which means a buffer is added to the cooking time for food safety reasons, to make sure all of the menu items are cooked all the way through.
Most of the items have to be cooked to 165 degrees, but the average temperature actually needs to be 175 or 180 to be ‘McDonald’s Done’. So, that’s why your burger or McNugget might sometimes be a bit overdone!
McDonald’s says serving safe and quality food in each market every day is their “top priority” and a “long-standing commitment”. Strict food safety protocols are embedded in everything they do, from food sourcing to menu development, packaging, distribution and running of restaurants.
3. There used to be a secret training facility
Haracz then went on to reveal that there used to be a hidden multi-thousand-square-foot training facility in the US where multiple kitchens were set up to replicate what it’s like working in a McDonald’s restaurant.
They could pull hour-by-hour sales information from all the restaurants to test changes and replicate orders. For example, crew could make the exact orders coming in at one of the busiest stores in Times Square, New York to try and keep up with the pace.
This allowed corporate staff to test the most efficient way to place crew and find out if they needed new equipment. The ex-chef said it was like “walking on to a movie set,” but it closed down for unknown reasons.
In another video, the ex-chef revealed the worst thing on the McDonald’s menu, and it might upset you.
