The children are huge McDonalds fans and when we are going on holiday, a trip to the golden arches usually signifies the start of the holiday! Tyrus is particularly partial to their Chicken Nuggets, and with his food issues, I always know that if he has been having a bad few days with food, a box of McDonalds chicken nuggets will always be welcomed and consumed!
When I was invited with seven other bloggers to take a look at the newly refurbished site next to Norwich Airport, I couldn’t wait to go (although the teenagers were extremely jealous!). Many of the McDonalds restaurants throughout the UK are franchises, which I did not know, this particular one is owned by a local businessman and he also has outlets in Tuckswood and Brundall, so it really is a locally run business, the entire team worked well together and there was a real family feel to their restaurant.
With the nine of us, sitting in a restaurant doesn’t happen very often, but i’m not particularly keen on the drive thru, so I tend to go in and place my order, usually with a piece of paper with everyone’s order. I love the new self service screens in the McDonalds, it means I can take my time and ensure everyone gets exactly what they want for their meal. Some of the children don’t like any sauce, others don’t like pickles, so being able to customise everything on the screen in no real hurry means I get exactly what I would like.
When I was younger my sister and I used to like a plain burger and I can remember sitting down waiting for it to be specially made, it used to take ages, and even when Xene was small it did take quite a while, but not any longer, every single order is made after you have ordered, which means the person making your plain burger will receive your order and voila its done, unlike the old system when burgers would all be made ahead of schedule and any order out of the ordinary would have to be done separately.
The restaurant has a bright airy feel about it and very modern with ipads to amuse the children (and the adults) charging stations for your phones (the teenagers were all sitting at those!) and the very funky Magic Table, which had us all amused for ages, I even managed to win the octopus game!
Big macs have to be made in 35 seconds, with 17 seconds for the buns to toast, it just goes to show you how quick these guys are, mine took a little bit longer than that to make, however, as it is all made to order I was able to have exactly what I wanted, which means no Big mac sauce (I know the whole point of the Big Mac!) no pickles, that need to be kissing not hugging, and no cheese,may sound strange to some but that is my perfect Big Mac, with just lettuce and onion.
When I mentioned to one of my friends that I had a behind the scenes look at McDonalds, she immediately asked did I find out what they put in the burgers, so I could confidently say yes 100% beef, and 100% Chicken Breast for the Nuggets, in fact if you are interested to learn more about where the products come from, check out the new interactive boards in store.
Every time we go into our local McDonalds, the children ask for a penny to put in the box on the counter, or the spinning collection that makes the penny go round and round, all money raised from these goes to The Ronald McDonald House Charity which offers a range of support for families who have a child in hospital for long periods of time, providing accommodation to ensure they are near their loved one. As well as collecting money in store, they hold various charity events, the three local Norwich stores are having a Charity Fun Day on 21st October, it was all a bit hush hush, what was taking place, but they did mention fancy dress and face painting, as well as other fun things, so if you are anywhere near Norwich Airport, Brundall or Tuckswood, stop by on Saturday and Check it out and support this great charity.
This post is sponsored by McDonald’s who invited me to Norwich to see #YourNewMcDonalds for myself.