McDonald’s

It’s McDonalds. The ultimate desparation move. The reason the USA is fatter than the rest of the world.
Well, I suppose you could factor in will power…
I only ever go to McDonald’s when I travel. You can spend .99 cents on a coffee and sit in relative peace for as long as you like (I’ve never been kicked out, but that could always change after my Unilocal! activities…) and they have free WiFi. Sweet. I love the interwebs.
The beauty of McDonald’s is that you always know what you are going to get. If it really sucks, make a big stink and they’ll give you some free meal coupons, or you can always try to hustle for that free Mcflurry…
If I’m ever sleeping in my car again in Iron River, I’ll probably hit this joint up again.

You know that place in town where everyone seems to gather for breakfast and the old guys sit around talking about the good ol’ days as they lazily drink their coffee at the local hangout? Well, in Iron River that place is the local McDonald’s.
From the moment you reach the top of the hill outside Iron River on westbound US-​2, the golden arches appear from a tower-​like post before you even see the rest of the town below it.
Seems we stopped there every time we were in town, most often being enablers for our 5 year old’s «schicken nuggets and fwies» addiction. Then again, the new chipotle BBQ sauce is mighty tasty, I must say.
One thing I do like about this McDonald’s that distinguishes it from the ones around Chicago and other urban areas: the workers all speak English clearly and your order is more likely to be correct. They are way more efficient and we get fewer problems than you’d have with a Spanish-​speaking manager showing the new girl which button to press on the register as you’re placing your order — only to have another new girl learning the same job the following week. Being in a small town, McD’s employs local folks who in turn know many of the people from around town who come here.
And yes, there’s a «seniors club» every morning it seems, and some stretch out their stay till almost lunchtime. Free coffee refills for seniors may have something to do with it. The McD’s even gets an occasional on-​air radio mention on the popular «Telephone Time» radio talk show — the old-​time equivalent to Craigslist on the radio that you can experience only up north in the area.
I should also note that their drive-​thru is extremely quick despite having only one lane. Hard to find one around Chicago that can turn around so many customers with only a single lane.