Old McDonald had a farm. But he's come a long way baby!
Written: May 13 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Conveniently located; inexpensive food, a place to play
Cons: Much of the food has too many calories, fat and sodium.
The Bottom Line: Once in awhile I would pick up something in McDonald's. I would suggest to a friend that they get one of the lesser of the evils.
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| jo.com's Full Review: McDonald's |
Since Bob Greene, Oprah’s fitness guru, seems to be teaming up with McDonald’s I figured in spite of the numerous reviews I would come clean and admit that just 2 weeks ago I had a sandwich and fries and within the last 6 months have had a salad at McDonald’s. Over the summer I ran into one McDonald or the other all over the country for a soda or a craving for junk food urge. McDonald’s is a great place to use the restroom without buying anything. I have found the many in which I have been clean. I want to note something I read in the reference magazine below. A question was asked if it was alright to use the bathroom at McDonald's without buying anything. The answer was that not only is it alright but they want you to. The article went on to ask why the reader thought the restrooms were so close to the door. We don't have to walk through and feel funny as in many chains and restaurants. McDonald's is betting that once in there the bathroom user will decide that something smells good or that they are thirsty.
I may as well also admit that my children and I frequented McDonald’s perhaps once a week during their childhood and they are relatively healthy children. We often drove through the drive in that many have after I picked them up from day care of school. On Saturdays we would spend some leisure time at MacDonald’s. They would play on the equipment while I watched and ate.
The two I have been to most recently are very different. One is in a mall; one on a major road in Plymouth, MA. Unless the McDonald’s is in a busy city such as New York City or Boston, I have found that they have large parking lots. I past one the other day. It is across from Tufts N.E. Medical Center in Boston. I would think the only business this location gets is foot traffic. I have found that the staff is very busy and efficient. I order from the menu board, it gets put into the computer; I pay and people in the back or off to the side put the items under lights to keep the food warm. The food is generally pre-prepared, however, if I had wanted my chicken sandwich without mayonnaise they would have made it for me.
I went into the Mcdonald’s on Route 44 in Plymouth and found it to look like every other McDonald’s – well not exactly. We were in Maine, I believe. when we came across a McDonald’s that blended into the décor of the surrounding posh area. But normally they are restaurants known to have big yellow arches. Unlike some franchises that might offer different food or different ways of preparing them we visited many states last summer and I feel like they are clones of each other. Of course some appear cleaner than others but in general I find them well kept. The McDonald’s on Route 44 is new so it was cleaner or at least looked cleaner than perhaps one that is 30 years old. This one is open 24 hours a day as are many unless they are in a mall.
One of the nicest restaurants to which I've been is in Weymouth, MA. We went in to use the bathroom and get a soda. It is sparkling clean and the play area, which is inside, is a place you could spend the entire day at with your children.
McDonald’s has an interesting history which I won’t bore you will. You can read it at www.mcdonalds.com but I will mention a few things.
~ McDonald’s is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
~ There are restaurants in more than 110 countries.
~ McDonald’s is the largest employer in the quick service restaurant industry.
~ The first drive up McDonald's was opened in 1975.
~ McDonald’s introduced Chicken McNuggets in 1983.
~ The Big Mac was introduced in 1968. The price was 49 cents.
~ In 1999 there were more than 25,000 McDonald's in 115 countries.
~ Montpelier, Vermont is the only U.S. state capital without a McDonald’s. (2003) I checked switchboard.com. Montpelier is still holding out.
~ The company's own character, Ronald McDonald, tries to embody the firm's image as fun and caring.
~And of course we have all heard of the Ronald McDonald House which opened in 1974. Ronald McDonald Family Rooms are an extension of the Ronald McDonald House program, providing a haven within a hospital for the families of children undergoing treatment. The first Ronald McDonald Family Room opened in 1992 in Kansas City, Kansas. Today, there are 60 Family Rooms in seven countries: the United States, Taiwan, Netherlands, Turkey, New Zealand,
~McDonald’s is a partner of the Olympic Games; all American high school basketball and the FIFA world cup tournament.
The above facts have been provided by the website.
Bob Greene suggests that we eat a nourishing breakfast. "McDonald's has wonderful choices that can be part of any balanced lifestyle, like a Fruit 'n Yogurt Parfait, an Egg McMuffin sandwich without cheese and plain Hotcakes with syrup.” Let’s take a look at this breakfast. The Fruit ‘n Yogurt Parfait isn’t bad with only 16 calories, 5 grams of cholesterol and 85 grams of sodium. However if you care at all about your sugar intake note that it has 21 grams of sugar.
The Egg McMuffin minus the cheese has 240 calories; 12 grams of fat and 73 grams of cholesterol. Getting rid of the bacon doesn’t change these numbers much. (By the way they have one of the most comprehensive websites I have seen in my 5+ years of writing reviews.)
The Hotcakes, hold the margarine, with syrup gives you 520 calories, 8 grams of fat, 550grams of sodium and a whopping 102 grams of carbohydrates. Well one thing is for sure, you will be napping by 11:00a.m. Truly I have no idea how Bob Green can call a 776 calorie breakfast with too much sodium and sugar healthy but he’s making the big bucks not me. This is just my opinion.
Let’s talk about what I’ve eaten recently. I went all out and got the (oh my gosh! I just looked at the website) Crispy Chicken Filet Sandwich. It has 500 calories, 1090 grams of sodium (No wonder my fingers were swollen!) and 23 grams of fat. I also got fries. A small fry has 230 calories giving me a total of 730 and 16 grams of fat and a total of 39 grams of fat. But how did it taste if I didn’t care at that moment and I was indulging my craving? Delicious is how it tasted. A generous portion of crispy chicken, fried just right with white meat (some rib meat but it isn't noticeable) on a warm, soft sesame roll, topped with lettuce, tomatoes and mayonnaise- yum. Put it all together and it really was tasty. The chicken had no grisly stuff on it and even the lettuce and tomato seemed fresh enough even though they were warm.
Why I like the fries is beyond me. I love my fries really crispy yet McDonald's are thin and wilted. Yet put salt and ketchup on them and they taste good. I guess one has to like the taste of grease however because they are greasy. Don’t put them on your lap unless you have something leak proof under you.
I am going to make myself look and tell you what was in my dinner.
Boneless, skinless chicken breast filets with rib meat containing: Up to 27.1% of a solution of water, seasoning (salt, spices, and spice extractives), sodium phosphates. Battered and breaded with: Wheat flour, water, bleached wheat flour, modified corn starch, salt, spice, egg white solids, wheat gluten, dextrose, yeast, leavening (sodium acid pyrophosphate, sodium bicarbonate, monocalcium phosphate). Breading set in vegetable oil. Cooked in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, (may contain partially hydrogenated soybean oil and/or partially hydrogenated corn oil and/or partially hydrogenated canola oil and/or cottonseed oil and/or sunflower oil and/or corn oil).
Ketchup: Tomato concentrate from red ripe tomatoes, distilled vinegar, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, water, salt, natural flavors (vegetable source).
Mayonnaise: Soybean oil, whole eggs, egg yolks, water, vinegar, salt, sugar, mustard flour, lemon juice concentrate, calcium disodium EDTA to protect flavor.
Sesame Seed Bun: Enriched bleached flour (bleached wheat flour, malted barley flour, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid, reduced iron), water, high fructose corn syrup, sesame seeds, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, yeast, contains less than 2 % of each of the following: salt, calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate, calcium silicate, wheat gluten, soy flour, baking soda, emulsifier (mono- and diglycerides, diacetyl tartaric acid esters of fatty acids, ethanol, sorbitol, polysorbate 20, potassium propionate), sodium stearoyl lactylate, dough conditioner (corn starch, ammonium chloride, ammonium sulfate, calcium peroxide, ascorbic acid, azodicarbonamide, enzymes), calcium propionate (preservative).
French Fries: Potatoes, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, natural flavor (beef source), dextrose, sodium acid pyrophosphate (to preserve natural color). Cooked in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils (may contain partially hydrogenated soybean oil and/or partially hydrogenated corn oil and/or partially hydrogenated canola oil and/or cottonseed oil and/or sunflower oil and/or corn oil).
I was delighted when McDonald’s offered salads with Paul Newman Dressing no less. I usually get the Caesar Salad with Grilled Chicken: Grilled Chicken Breast Filet (for salads), Salad Mix, Grape Tomatoes, and Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Salad Mix: Iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, spring mix (may contain baby red romaine, baby green romaine, baby red leaf, baby green leaf, baby red swiss chard, baby red oak, baby green oak, lolla rosa, tango, tatsoi, arugula, mizuna, baby spinach, radicchio, frisee), carrots
Shredded Parmesan Cheese: Pasteurized milk, salt, cheese culture, enzymes.
Grilled Chicken Breast Filet (for salads): Boneless, skinless chicken breast filets with rib meat containing: up to 12% of a solution of water, seasoning [salt, sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, spices, whey, flavor (maltodextrin, natural flavors (vegetable source), dextrose, monosodium glutamate), partially hydrogenated soybean and cottonseed oils, Romano cheese (Romano cheese {milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes, calcium chloride}, nonfat dry milk, disodium phosphate), parmesan cheese powder (enzyme modified parmesan cheese {milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes, calcium chloride}, nonfat dry milk, disodium phosphate), methylcellulose, xanthan gum, cheese flavor (dehydrated cheddar cheese {cultured pasteurized milk, salt, enzymes}, maltodextrin, autolyzed yeast extract), extractives of paprika (color), potassium sorbate (preservative), citric acid, and less than 2% silicon dioxide added to prevent caking], vegetable oil [partially hydrogenated soybean oil, corn oil, citric acid (preservative)], sodium phosphates. May contain wheat from contact with Crispy Chicken Breast Filet.
Other than the 830 grams of sodium the nutrition fact of this salad isn’t bad if you can get beyond the ingredients. It has 230 calories and 6 grams of fat 1/2 of which can be eliminating by holding the cheese.
I was really surprised and impressed the first time I had this salad. I was surprised by the salad itself which is made up of some nice types of lettuce which you can see above. Although there is rib meat like in the sandwich it isn’t noticeable. I only eat white meat when I eat chicken but the grilled chicken was good. It has a nice flavor to it. You can see all the spices they add to the chicken and even cheese is one of the ingredients. There was plenty of everything including chicken and tomatoes so you won’t be getting a plate of iceberg lettuce with 3 strips of grisly chicken on it. I have gotten it more than once and though it isn’t on the top of my list for salad of the year. However it isn’t too bad considering the source.
They offer four dressings including a low fat vinaigrette with 40 calories but 730 grams of sodium.
I have seen a new salad offered that I would not mind trying. It is a walnut fruit salad and you may see it advertised outside on the board.
McDonald’s offers fish sandwiches, all sorts of burgers including the famous Big Mac, (I ate these in college and liked them. I haven’t eaten meat since though so maybe that says something.) a variety of ice cream and drinks, and of course their Happy Meals for children. A Chicken McNuggett Happy Meal with a small fry and 1% low fat milk contains 500 calories, 720 grams of sodium and 12 grams of sugar. We wonder why our children have weight problems.
The sandwiches run around $2.00 to $4.00. The salads are $4.19. We know McDonald’s offers an inexpensive way to eat. Can we justify the price at the expensive of our children’s health? I am very conflicted about my rating. If I were in the mall there is a good chance a salad at McDonald’s would be the lesser of the evils. In the May-June issue of Arthritis Today we read “Salads are deceptive. An analysis by the Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine found you may as well have a McDonald’s Big Mac in lieu of its Crispy Chicken Bacon Ranch Salad. You’ll save 1 fat gram and eat only 50 extra calories.” It is suggested that we go for salads with grilled chicken and low-fat dressing which is what I usually do. The article also tells us that the Parfait is a yummy concoction of berries and low fat yogurt and with only 2 fat grams and 360 calories it is a healthy treat.
In spite of Arthritis Today feeling the Parfait is a healthy treat I don’t know how in good conscious I can actually recommend McDonald’s but then again if there is no Wendy’s, which I consider better, though I haven’t reviewed thus I don’t know the food in such depth, McDonald’s might be a better choice than having the mystery chicken from the stand next door. I can’t recommend a Happy Meal in spite of the fact my children grew up with them and are fine. Once in awhile I think anything is alright to eat but I am afraid that our kids are having Big Macs every day after school if they are in high school and I’m afraid you are having a Sausage Egg McMuffin every day on your way to work.
I have gone back and forth with my recommendation. McDonald's is trying. I can't say I won't recommend a chain if in fact I would try their new salad. So I have gone from a no in my head to a yes in spite of the fact that I do believe most of the food has too much salt, sugar or ingredients that can't be pronounced.
Recommended:
Yes
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Member: Jo
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On the road again until mid-January. Happy New Year!
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