McDonald's is removing self-serve fountain drinks and may start charging for refills
· May 22, 2024 · NottheBee.com

We just can't have nice things anymore, can we?

So I guess I'll have to ask the cashier to mix me a suicide drink, and if it's not done perfectly I'll asks for it to be remixed until it's just how I'd make it myself: Equal parts Coca-Cola, Fanta, Sprite, Hi-C, Dr. Pepper, Barqs, and Mello Yello.

If you take away fountain drinks at McDonald's, you're taking away my memories, my culture — MY LIFE — with it.

McDonald's is transitioning away from self-serve beverage stations and some locations may start to charge for refills that were once free.

The fast food giant will slowly remove self-serve beverage stations - fountain drink dispensers - and be completely rid of the stations by 2032.

Bro, if these are going to be gone by 2032, you'd better have a robot zipping around the dining room providing refills. The amount of time I've spent waiting for a simple barbeque sauce at that service counter while the employees completely ignore me probably adds up to an entire day. And now we want to give those employees MORE work to do?

The change, a representative for McDonald's told CBS News via email, is intended to make customer experiences consistent no matter where you order - on the app, in the drive-thru, in the restaurant or other methods.

What a lame excuse. Free refills used to be an incentive for going into the restaurant.

You're going to charge me extra for a cup of seltzer water and a few drops of syrup? Boy, inflation has really hit us hard, hasn't it?

What's more,

Darren Tristano, CEO of Foodservice Results, which conducts research on the food service industry, said he thinks other fast food chains will follow McDonald's lead. ‘McDonald's is a leader and most other fast food chains are fast followers,' he told CBS News via email.

So yeah, McDonald's is a trendsetter. We're not only witnessing the end of the self-serve fountain drink at McDonald's; it's likely going to be many, if not all, of our favorite fast-food joints.

Let's hope only a small number of McDonald's locations actually start charging for refills. Places like Vegas, Los Angeles, New York City, sure, they can charge extra to account for the homeless peeps who just sit there all day and refill those cups.

But us normies out in the burbs, we better still be getting free refills!


P.S. Now check out our latest video 👇

Keep up with our latest videos — Subscribe to our YouTube channel!

Ready to join the conversation? Subscribe today.

Access comments and our fully-featured social platform.

Sign up Now
App screenshot

You must signup or login to view or post comments on this article.