I recently watched a (german) video about the exact development of McDonalds depicted in the meme and it made me realize how much of the experience had been catered towards children and how I felt when I went there more often (or at all) when I was younger.

it's not about mc d's. almost every business is doing this. Everything fun, colorful, expressive and artistic MUST go. All must be replaced with homogeneous minimalism.

mc d's is used as the example because they led the way with this shit.

Interesting take. Maybe they should be designed like an art gallery of various medical office styles. Kids would hate that.

Edit: I'm glad cigarettes are on their way out, but I used to love these when I was even stupider:

That sounds like the commercial real estate version of cancer to me, but I'm no expert in that field. I can see you're right, though. It's up there with motel art and off-white walls.

That, and they want customers GONE. Eating in take space. People who come, get food, and leave are their favorites because it increases throughput.

"Two golden menus!"

Wow, which piece of shit did they bribe for that? They completely destroyed the interior of the building. Isn't there any heritage protection?

From beautiful 19th century architecture to boring modern office lounge. Not everything needs to be updated for current trends.

Some of that is from white balance making the top picture look warmer, but even accounting for that, it's a tragedy.

Corpo interior designers should be hunted, and theblicenses should fund repairing damage they die.

Library? ¯(ツ)_/¯

Discovery Zone, man. I actually feel bad for the kids that never got to experience Discovery Zone. Lasted for like 2 years. It apparently failed because they had a mountain of debt (all those plastic tubes are capital intensive buildouts) and adults had to sit around while their kids played.

I feel like if you made it work like a gym membership for your kids, and had something for adults to do off to the side, you might be able to make the numbers work.

Excellent suggestion. Here you go:

Would you like a 64 oz McEnergy with your McSoylent?

Me, too, but I wasn't about to chop the original meme and stitch it back together in a better order. If you do it for me, you can have all my imaginary internet points, though.

No kidding. Not just them either. I know it's a cultural thing in US restaurants, but I feel like I'm being rushed out the door. I know on the surface it's a having respect for a person's time thing, but it feels like an eating contest sometimes.

Thanks! I might get a print. Those are cool.

You're right. I just didn't feel like chopping the original meme and stitching it back together. I just made my little addition to the top. I guess that did make the post a little...shitty.

I miss it every day. That salad bar. The cups. The lamps. I wonder what things of today I'll miss in 40 years.

I was so sure that movie was hyperbole.

A couple of minutes in Dystopika, annnnnd....

You laugh, but a cashless society means ID'ing oneself with every transaction.

You may have a future in marketing.

There's the hauntingly predatory nature I was struggling to portray.

The harburgler of doom. Robble robble!

Damn, I wish I'd thought of that.

If I saw that in America I'd think it used to be a Starbucks.

Looks about the same in Sweden. Wood panels with green accents together with the golden arches

Same(ish) here in the Netherlands. The fact that the near vicinity isn't entirely asphalt and concrete, due to there not being 300 parking spaces for a fast food place, probably helps it not feel like a Nazi bunker.

Going to a French McDonalds must be like going to a dietician, but they're just chain-smokimg throughout the appointment.

You're entirely right, but you might be writing cheques my 5-year-old phone can't cash.

I would, but I'm rejecting the mc d's part not the brutalist part.

brutalist architecture is fucking cool.

If it were borne out of a progressive, socialist democracy, I'd be on board. Auth-right brutalist fast food would be a horror show.

it's an american business, it'll be corn burgers with cornbread and slices of corn served with deep fried popcorn and a tall glass of corn syrup

I don't know if that will be better or worse than what they currently serve up.

Soylent Green didn't test well with consumers, so we fed it to bugs and made Soylent Pink.

Wouldn't be allowed here. 30 minute limit on the dinibg rooms. With purchase.

I feel a little cheated. I was supposed to get a cool cyberpunk hacking machine. All I have is a Flipper Zero and a bunch of debt.

That 1990's McDonald's picture is the specific restaurant that was across the entrance from the Dallas Zoo, hence the animal theme. While it's now remodeled and much more dull, it still looked like the picture up until just a few years ago. In any case, it's not typical of what a McDonald's has ever looked like.

As someone born around the same time as you, I do remember when the typical McDonald's had a bright red roof with the yellow lights, which the 2000's pic is a toned-down version of.

Don't give them any more ideas.

I have to know where this is. What resources do you require to find it?

Respectfully, I must disagree. I feel like children need a place where they can be free to unwind after their 16-hour factory shifts and maybe grab a beer.

Dystopian? The flag that waved over this?

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/10/28/fact-check-9-things-women-couldnt-do-1971-mostly-right/3677101001/

It should have been replaced by a 20mm turret.

My generation was the best generation. I know a lot of people feel that way, but my generation was the only one that was correct.

I prefer the 20s look

I wonder what will be in the filet-o-fish when we run out of fish.

Yeah, we're nearly back there. I didn't have revisiting feudalism on my bingo card.

Al-Beefda

We transitioned from the war on crime to the war on terrorism.

Those were the days. Don't look at how the size changed over time. It'll make you too sad.

That's the 2040s after WWIII

Love your imagination. Tell me what the McDonald's employees are doing to the customer's arms.

Or worse, a McDonald's in 1860s Mississippi.

For me, it was just a silly metaphor, but you might be onto something:

"Fasting is eating. Refusing is ordering. Salad is burger." ~ George Orwell

"I have very vivid dreams and nightmares, and my biggest fear is of some kind of dystopian future where we're advanced in every way except in our burgers." ~ Bryce Dallas Howard

"Dystopian novels help people process their fears about what the future burger might look like; further, they usually show that there is always hope, even in the bleakest future burger." ~ Lauren Oliver

"Who controls the past controls the burger. Who controls the present controls the past." ~ George Orwell

McDonald’s use to be a place for kids. They have since rebranded to let people know there’s stuff on the menu that’s for adults.

Much of marketing to Americans is treating everyone like a monkey and using colors to trick them into buying your stuff.