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20th May 2020

McDonald’s have reopened 6 drive-thrus in Dublin today and we’re not crying, you’re crying

Leslie Ann Horgan

We’d even be glad of a filet o fish at this point, tbh.

Has any closed business been lamented during lockdown as much as McDonald’s? Like much of Twitter, we’ve pretty much spent the last 10 weeks craving it and speculating about our fantasy first order. Well, that time has finally come!

McDonald’s have reopened six drive-thru restaurants in Dublin today. These are:

Nutgrove
Kylemore Road
East Wall
Artane
Malahide Road
Tallaght

There is a cap of €30 spend per car, to ensure that as many customers as possible can be served by a small kitchen team. There is also a limited menu available, which includes some burgers, fries, chicken nuggets, veggie dippers, soft drinks and McFlurrys.

A statement on the McDonald’s Ireland website, says that the company has used the last few weeks to seek the views of both customers and employees on phased reopening, as well as to conduct practice runs of how this might work. In order to uphold appropriate social distancing, the restaurants will have fewer staff members working on each shift. The chain has also added protective Perspex screens into its kitchens and service areas.

The statements also outlined these further measures for reopening:

  • The restaurants will be open for shorter hours than previously, from 11am to 10pm.
  • They will be offering reduced menu options.
  • The restaurants have been deep cleaned before re-opening.
  • McDonald’s staff have been issued with non medical grade PPE and hand sanitiser.
  • Contactless thermometers will be used to check their temperatures on a daily basis.
  • They will be required to wash their hands every 30 minutes.

McDonald’s UK and Ireland CEO Paul Pomroy said that customers would have to be patient as the chain adapted to new working conditions, and that they could expect to encounter slower than usual service as well as likely queues. He added that McDonald’s intended to open more restaurants and add additional menu items on a slow phased basis.

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