Why All Fast Food Chains Look The Same Today - Cheddar Explains

Have you ever wondered why new McDonald's, Wendy's, KFC, Taco Bell, Burger Kings and more are starting to look the same? Over the years consumer preferences have evolved and recently a new type of restaurant has entered the game to cater to those very preferences. For traditional fast food, it's either evolve or go extinct.
Further reading:
1. Restaurant-ing through History
2. Ethics, Design and Planning of the Built Environment: by Claudia Basta and Stefano Moroni
3. Historic Projects
4. Washington Post
5. Business Insider
6. ArchDaily
7. Curbed
8. Australian Design Review
9. QSR Magazine
10. The Laurinburg Exchange
www.australiandesignreview.com/architecture/a-look-inside-mcdonalds-new-times-square-flagship-by-landini-associates/
QSR Magazine: www.qsrmagazine.com/fast-casual
10 The Laurinburg Exchange: www.laurinburgexchange.com/news/1958/arbys-to-hold-grand-reopening-friday
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[@diomedes39]

"How can we make it look healthier but not actually make it healthier?" That's basically the gist.

[@electron8262]

Stefan Czar It's akin to oil companies greenwashing their brands and it's very painful to watch. I wonder when people will start realising it, and what the corporations will do to appease the *then*.

[@luminous6969]

Yup.

[@2007ghettonissanaltima]

@Put your tongue on my Ass true but I heard that that their food can give people heart attacks. And that's not mentioning that their hamburger meat isn't even real meat.

[@Zo-hc2fn]

I am thinking about a new type of restaurants : eating-spots, in eating-spots, food keeps changing, chefs also rotate, this is opposed to current restaurants, thanks to this rotation of food and chefs, eating-spots are way more powerful than restaurants, along with that, there is an app, people vote for the food that will be cooked in the next days, menu is influenced by the live input of the people via an app

[@CozyRosiee]

@@Zo-hc2fn That sounds like a good idea from a consumer standpoint but like that would be hell for the employees and the management to deal with

[@futurehofer1564]

McDonalds went from a happy child to a depressive adult lol

[@AlexandreTateishi]

Just like me

[@CityLifeinAmerica]

I remembered McDonald's as a kid. No kid will remember the bland "depressed adult" version.

[@helen0725]

And now McDonalds just has 2 cash registers open. They want people to use the self serve kiosk. They serve the drive through customers quicker than ones who go inside to get their food. The lineups are always crazy at the McDonald's that I usually go to.

[@dylank8100]

helen0725 our McDonald’s doesn’t even have ordertakers for front anymore people have to use the kiosks. And the kiosks rip everyone off too we have the dollar drinks and all the deals but when someone orders from the kiosk drinks are like 1.89 for a large. When someone orderd just two drinks from the kiosk and they paid for it over there I just gave them their drink cups and refunded them the money. The kiosks are dumb.

[@zomega4075]

yes thats the trending meme

[@mlk0-0]

It's that "modern" style from all the home design games

[@CurtYT202]

I'm dead... Lol

[@briellericker8569]

i hate modern style bc its shelf life is so short nothing can be "modern" for more than like 5-10 years . have you ever seen a 2000s or a 90s modern style house their so outdated to a level that like u couldnt rly renovate it w/o changing nearly everything

[@mlk0-0]

@@briellericker8569 Looked up 90s modern interior design because of your comment, and wow- The 90s were interesting-

[@Dan-or8ld]

That’s probably on their design computers. Maybe they use those games as a budget designer

[@ajgerbi]

Fr, the ones everyone do because it’s easy to make a good modern home since it’s just a bunch of boxes

[@xuto2693]

"How do we make people feel our food is better?" "Put a new wrapper on it. People are dumb." Eureka.

[@YourCrazyOverlord]

Pretty much exactly

[@newbiechu7024]

Make the wrapper 100% made from recyclable materials so people will know you care for the environment.

[@judacia]

and charge more.

[@jackrabbit4617]

Why is the comment in German?

[@The1badgolfer]

@@YourCrazyOverlord if you package a turd well enough people will buy.

[@vaibanez17]

I have never looked at McDonalds and said "Man, that restaurant looks really nice, fresh, and hip."

[@FirestormX9]

I guess it's more subliminal than frontal

[@holger_p]

Unless, you refer to the same restaurant before and after a makeover.

[@kamsi8880]

It’s subconscious

[@randomrealestateinvestor1694]

I do lol. It’s more inviting that way IMP. I don’t want to eat food at a gross looking old building

[@clockwork9825]

They used to look like that! I remember when they first started the new renovations! I was floored lol

[@CarnivorousPlantsAndGardening]

Chipotle: finishes homework Other restaurants: "hey can I copy your homework" Chipotle: "sure just change it up a little" Other restaurants: *b o x e s*

[@Kev4Kev]

Chipotle, Boston Market = Mcdonalds. McDoanlds sold those about 10 years ago

[@steevrawjers]

Carnivorous plants & gardening lol

[@marco1173]

Translation: "It's still the same pig, we just put a little lipstick on it"

[@desuretard8654]

Goth lipstick. Which is about a decade late ironically.

[@grins9882]

@@desuretard8654 sadly the goth kids died out after one while but McDonald's probably won't Edit: wait not like that

[@claytech]

The inside of the "new" McDonald's looks like a hospital cafeteria. Change my mind.

[@Jiji-the-cat5425]

It looks like an office on the outside and an office break room on the inside.

[@angeldustfairy]

Change your own mind

[@jacobburr4703]

I always feel like I’m at a bus station or airport

[@ingold1470]

Inb4 "Because our society is being slowly transformed into a giant hospital"

[@flamaest]

And the outside looks like a DMV or county jail building. Why would anyone want to eat food at a place like that?

[@benx6264]

I have to agree with the architect. They all look the same. I can remember when you didn't even need a sign to tell a Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, BK, Wendy's McDonalds, etc apart . You could do it just by looking at the building.

[@Kringlelicious]

Yeah,.Glen is right. I don't like generic buildings. They look super cheap and have nothing interesting about them.

[@danieldaniels7571]

Now all over Phoenix there are Mexican food places with yellow signs, and you can easily tell if they used to be a Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, BK, Wendy’s, or McDonalds.

[@appa609]

TechMasterJason Buildings that used to be a Pizza Hut

[@Firecelebi]

Jokes on them, they all copied Shake Shack but you can still spot a Shake Shack a mile away.

[@tiggs03]

TechMasterJason I actually live 5 minutes from a classic Pizza Hut in Ohio, it’s so awesome and I don’t see them updating it anytime soon

[@kxmode]

Let's get one thing straight: McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, and others like them still serve fast food. All they did was change the look of their buildings and the interior. If I go into a McDonald's and order a quarter-pounder with cheese, the staff will serve the burger in about a minute. It will be lukewarm with unmelted cheese and fall apart when I take a bite because it looks like it was assembled by a 7-year old. I would NEVER go to McDonald's, Wendy's, and Burger King for "fast-casual." I go to them because I know they have fast food. That's what they serve. Also, nobody goes to McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King for "new and fresh." They go there for fast food. So sick of these companies trying to rebrand themselves when they still serve the same low-quality food. It's like a music band rebranding their image, but their music still sucks! In contrast, let's look at In-N-Out Burger. The company purposely designs its restaurants to look like the 1950s (in other words, they don't want modern). All their burgers are still under $4 (that's early 2000 prices)! Their menu hasn't changed in 73 years! Yet, when I go to an In-N-Out, their drive-thru line takes up the entire lane extends out to the parking lot and specific times to the street. The In-N-Out by my house has the line forming at the left turn lane from the road! In-N-Out Burger is considered fast food, but unlike today's fast food, they cook their burgers over an open grill like 1950s fast-food restaurants, so you're not going to get it in 2 minutes. If they're not busy, it takes 10-20 minutes. The difference shows that people are less about speedy services and more about quality regarding food, which is why Chipotle and Panera have done well. McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, and other fast-food restaurants haven't changed HOW they make their food. That's the problem. Until they address that, they will keep burning billions on modernizing their look when they need to improve their food quality. Put it this way, if Mcdonald's started making their burgers the way In-N-Out does, without a doubt, they would have long lines!

[@insertfunnyname3478]

kxmode Underrated comment

[@Camelotsmoon]

It's like we all know their game, only dipshits would go in and expect to be served something that a dietician would serve up. The one that pisses me off the most was panera...they were fucking "fast casual", yet they changed their menu entirely into something you'd find in whole foods; tiny portions that they didn't even reduce the price for, with "no gluten" tacked on the side. I think it was for other reasons than just rebranding, but it's one place I used to love going to that I never do anymore.

[@IceNein763]

Yes, this is exactly right. Fast food's problem is that they've been jacking up their prices to emulate fast casual, without jacking up the quality of their food. Sell your cheap nasty burgers for cheap nasty prices, or go out of business.

[@PatLund]

Literally what was said in the video.

[@IceNein763]

@@PatLund Literally why they are failing.

[@Samuel_Freakin_Adams]

"People wanted better quality food and we heard them! That is why we made the building more colorless and depressing to look at."

[@chiliflis8660]

I like modern architecture. Really makes the environment more futuristic and cool In my opinion. I mean, most companies could have just did nothing new and stuck with the old buildings. Instead they decided to spend money on a new building design. I don't think the new building designs really attract new customers. Most people just go to the restaurants they like regardless of the look of the building. So, it seems like the food companies just decided to upgrade their buildings hoping that the new look would somehow make them more money.

[@BoundyMan]

I miss the days when you knew a restaurant by its building design and didn't have to read the sign.

[@nom3nnescio]

Yeah reading is SOOO hardddd!

[@295g295]

I like unique branded architecture.

[@93ImagineBreaker]

@@nom3nnescio not the point

[@nom3nnescio]

@@93ImagineBreaker yeah you really missed it!

[@93ImagineBreaker]

@@nom3nnescio thats you

[@TheTrainmobile]

Me before the video: Oh cool! I'm going to watch a video on current architecture trends. Me after the video: Progress is an illusion. We are all pawns of large corporations looking to maximize their profits.

[@Cooltaha]

Thought the same when watching this video

[@russophile9874]

They are competing among themselves to provide better and more attractive services for their customers. Why is that bad?

[@Cooltaha]

@@CrimsonBlot don't forget the slave wages they provide for their employees

[@diablo.the.cheater]

​@@CrimsonBlot Are you defending them? you monster.

[@Cooltaha]

@@CrimsonBlot After world war 2 a high school diploma in the US could get you a very good paying entry level job that allowed you to buy a house and start a family. No reason to complain that 'zoomers' want it easier when boomers literally had what we want. The wages paid nowadays are literally slave wages with how temporary workers are.

[@leonarddurecki5988]

I can remember when every Taco Bell looked like The Alamo, I miss the old designs.

[@ryanbarker5217]

there are several around where i live that still have that old design as a TB closes to move to a different location. some sit empty, others have turned into other restaurants, but they all keep that arch look.

[@jdmjimmy]

Thankfully whataburger has the same design

[@midnighthope7752]

as somebody who worked at a taco bell during one of these remodels, i second this, not to mention the one i worked at ended up looking worse after from an employee standpoint, too much dark interior and less light, the sideboards and tiles had color textures that made them look constantly dirty, the tables were uneven and the plywood was easily damaged, the new wooden benches were uncomfortable and the little nails kept popping out, and the new pop machine's drainage grate was bare metal and almost immediately started rusting through

[@CompleteDiscreteWolf]

We still have one here where I live just off the highway. Feels like it's been closed for 20 years. If you walk up to the windows, you can still make out the menu board.

[@kelslaw4435]

In Gerogia usa there is still have alot of that design,but you see more of the old design wendys here to

[@ruok6506]

McDonalds store design went from look a whimsical child designed that to look a depressed architect major made that

[@unfixablegop]

Clearly a step backwards.

[@Kromiball]

Old McDonald's was for kids, those kids grew up to be... Yeah, you can fill in the blanks.

[@MrShabindigo]

I personally, preferred the old design to these new "art gallery" looks.

[@Vendetta_Armada80]

Old designs r 😬 it was so 2000's and made u feel outdated

[@circleinforthecube5170]

@@Vendetta_Armada80 outdated is better than cheaply made post 2010 furniture, also neo-mansards originated in the 70s

[@Vendetta_Armada80]

@CIRCLEINFORTHECUBE why can't we be friends 🎶

[@chaff5]

That CDO of Wendy's talking about taking a leadership role was such BS. They essentially told their franchisees "we're changing our look. Get in line."

[@charliervrs]

No, lol, she literally explained that. They did a test drive themselves and showed their franchisees the benefits. It's called prototyping and validating. It's how business strategies are designed,

[@alinapritchett9276]

Carlos Rivera except that corporate owned stores are often in competition with the franchise model. Rather than taking on the renovation cost themselves franchises likely had to spend the money to update or lose profits to the corporate stores.

[@livenandlove1980]

Yup

[@jonathanm4518]

Pretty much everything that came out of her mouth sounded like typical corporate gobbledygook.

[@Xenon-4300]

We created this momentem and our franchisees got really excited about being forced to re-do their stores!

[@neeneko]

Huh. I am actually kinda surprised this is actually helping them. In my region, when a fast food place remodels like this, I start forgetting they are there. They look really generic, they don't really pop out and remind you of their existence... very easy to miss when driving along. This gets even worse when I am in an area that I am not familiar with, they just blend in.

[@nicholaspowell7931]

Hot dang you just have passed the first day of Business. Thay you need to stand out from the rest instead of blend in. Not being sarcastic towards you just the designer of these restaurants

[@user-nf9xc7ww7m]

I prefer that to the gaudy signs. Dont mind skyscrapers (in fact, the glassy ones look great), but the gaudy signs and blinking neon lights...leave those in vegas. You can have a modern metropolis without being classless. Personally, I have more of an issue of walkability. Why do I need to cross 10 lanes of traffic to get to eat there? Pedestrian walkways in front and parking in back on the vehicular streets would be lovely. Merci.

[@magentaMegi]

So that means no American person can actually put two slices of bread together?! Meh

[@aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa790]

Different cultures, different people, different mind-sets. I wonder what American culture does to make these buildings look attractive to us?

[@hamelconsultancyllc]

I think 95% of the time when I'm looking for food it's though Google or apple maps

[@samuraijack6870]

Although the emergence of fast casual is definitely a huge factor in this new look, one of the reasons McDonald's specifically started the rollout of a new restaurant design was the emerging success of Starbucks. McDonald's aimed to compete and started McCafe and with it, brought a redesign to many stores. You can see the similarities between the darker tones and wood usage of Starbucks.

[@honestfriend767]

The thing is that they are trying to fight these companies in their own game rather than building up their strengths.

[@vizthex]

also the fact they're calling it "quick service" instead of "fast food" due to the connotations between both.

[@CAPTAiNC]

The title should be renamed to “Why all fast food chains in the US look the same”. Because most fast food chains in Europe are all pretty much unique

[@AntonioCostaRealEstate]

American Marketing Executives and their penchant for making it sound better. Straight out of a Tom Hopkins cassete tape.

[@adoringfan1226]

"lets's emulate fast casual to bring more people in. But change noting about our product or service."

[@machinementality6774]

It’s called capitalism!

[@electron8262]

rvidal0001 True, I guess that demand for mindless consumption of unhealthy food has always existed and they're just fulfilling it and trying to get them addicted to keep their customers.

[@electron8262]

Machine Mentality I certainly don't disagree, but I think we should be a bit more specific if we want to understand the problem. It's called "optimising for profits" and by making their food addictive they've chosen an "exploitative business model". Trouble is that they can''t move away from addictive food without their competition doing the same because otherwise they'd lose customers and have to close their shops. The solution to this is government regulation forcing all brands to not make their food addictive at the *same time* and hence not lose to their competitors.

[@adoringfan1226]

@rvidal0001 They could at least make sure the dang shake machines work half the time

[@redwolfcorprevamped8266]

Good thinking. Maybe if we ignore the problem it will go away...

[@neotellos]

Yeah, but does Wendy's really need a fully functioning fireplace?

[@phoenixdavida8987]

😂

[@matthewfreeman8771]

😂

[@ebinrock]

Yeah, especially in Texas?

[@EricRomeoCooper]

Seen that at a jack in the box and was like "somebody fuggin tonight....oooooh yea"

[@JahRandom]

@Eric Cooper lmao my thoughts verbatim, "that's why they'd need a fireplace, to set the mood of course *wink wink* " lol

[@brick9458]

The McDonald’s in my town went from a nice looking red and yellow to the most boring grayscale building

[@luismedina5792]

Basically the happy child turned into the depressed adult

[@SearsCool]

I have multiple so I'll just say the one I went to. It was a pretty big orange brick building, the playground had a lot of decorations, it had some spinning seats, TVs. It looks the same on the outside but not on the inside

[@AntonioCostaRealEstate]

Out in Brazil, they are still the same old McD looks. Even on new stores. I guess they are not bitten by this gray is cool fad.

[@vaderladyl]

@@luismedina5792 Pure representation of that, indeed.

[@Littlegoatpaws]

I actually miss how each fast food chain had their own distinct and kitschy gimmick, it clicks in a unique way especially when you're a kid begging your folks to treat you to a happy meal. It's odd that they pay so much attention to how the sign and building looks rather than the service (which has gone down) and prices (which have gone up) I've never once walked into a recently remodeled Burger King thinking it's hip and posh or a place I'd like to linger for long, fast food is the "Super 8" of dining and always has been. If they really had any foresight they'd pay less attention the latest design fads and whether or not the sign is in Helvetica fonts and more attention to the service and actual cleanliness, and maybe bring back the popular specials and combos that knock off a good bit of the ever rising regular prices. McDonald's doesn't need to be anything different, its role is clearly defined and well actualized as is.

[@honestfriend767]

Exactly when they looked different it was better. Because for adults you walk in remembering how it was as a child to eat there and for little kids they like bright and different. The new design is so depressing and nobody wants it.

[@Juangomez9186]

In-n-out burgers has that retro look. I prefer that much more, than the modern design most fast food places have.

[@candvand]

Yeah... sort of. I live in NorCal where the In-N-Outs are relatively new, and although they have some retro flourishes, their locations look about the same as everyone else’s. In-N-Out is privately owned, and is WAY more cautious about their expansion, and won’t build a store unless they’re certain it’s going to make money (I heard that they’ve only ever closed one location, don’t know if that’s true) but consequently, when they do build a store, they spend a lot more on it than their competitors because they build them to last. So a bunch of the Southern California aren’t so much retro as they are actually old. They are just such an awesome company in so many ways. If more companies were more like them, everyone would benefit.

[@tomfrazier1103]

I think there is an In-n-out in Las Vegas, as I lived there in the '90s. I also went on some SoCal roadtrips then too. A little amnesia goes a long way....

[@miaa1762]

Same

[@jenandjuice_]

Jarbledumbles Californian here. Not a big fast food person but I love in n out. The burgers always taste so fresh

[@danieldaniels7571]

Much better burgers too. In-N-Out is all over the Phoenix Arizona area too

[@Christofinity]

They're no longer have that family friendly feel anymore. They're just all modern contemporary style that is soulless.

[@Ashicakez3]

I miss when McDonald’s used to have video games in the restaurant

[@tnwomantanyaneill703]

Totally! I no longer go to fast food because they all look alike and they are DISMAL!

[@RodrigoMera]

All the new architecture looks like that now anyways. Soulless

[@RodrigoMera]

@@longshorts7148 maybe there simply are less kids

[@GoldieDoggy]

@@longshorts7148 the smoking thing is because people think they’ve found a better way to smoke: e-cigarettes. For adults it might be less harmful (hasn’t been around long enough to tell) but short term for people under 21? Extremely harmful.

[@vesselofgod1755]

woooooow. "Gone is McDonald's iconic look." So the protocol is basically to strip away personality. Got it. (/.-)

[@ebinrock]

I actually wish they'd bring back the "chef on the roof" look of the original McDonald Brothers' McDonald's...along with those original prices (I HATE inflation!).

[@Master-kh6ww]

White Boy whatever

[@violetdusk1968]

The restaurants are a reflection of how they want the consumers to be, all the same with no personality or culture.

[@glennso47]

Strip away personality by requiring everyone to wear a mask.

[@suzycatipiller821]

I remember going to Pizza Hut as a kid. They had the dark atmosphere and the red and white table cloths with a red candle on the table. I miss that They lack character now.

[@glennso47]

Most people also lack character since last March.

[@dukeofgnar6646]

They also lack good food and any consumer appeal whatsoever; I think the building is the least of their worries

[@kevin_parkerson]

“How can we change the perception so customers believe our food is good for them as well?” Gee, I dunno... maybe actually serve food that is good for people to eat???

[@doesntreply]

Nah gotta waste the money on ugly copy cat building designs so people think we're healthy, because it looks like they're ordering food at the doctor's office 😅

[@grapicusdrinktus]

@Roger Dodger I already can't buy a burger for $1 any more. Even the $1 menu burgers are closer to $2-$3. It's at the point where I can accurately predict the minimum wage in any area because a bacon cheeseburger combo meal (or equivalent mid-value item) is the rough equivalent of an hour's minimum wage after taxes in any given location.

[@SunflowerSpotlight]

You’re such a silly billy. 😋

[@josef5319]

We need places like these for the type of people who visit them. Its the same thing with rich and poor, we need both.

[@jsplit9716]

@@grapicusdrinktus Funny enough you can measure how rich nations are by the prices of big macs.

[@franwex]

Yep. The Starbucks “look” everywhere. Even banks.

[@matthew8153]

franwex Maybe we should just start killing architects and hiring engineers

[@whogavehimafork]

My bank moved down the road to a newly constructed building with a super modern appearance. First time I walked in I was MEGA uncomfortable. I had no idea where to go because there just these random standing desks with computers in the lobby and all the way to the right was the teller desk. I expected the standard long single teller desk and I was greeted by a strangely open area in a place that one would expect more "physical" security.

[@declan6995]

@@whogavehimafork my bank just changed its interior. It's so uncomfortable and open. I don't understand why they did it, it makes me not want to go to the bank.

[@CityLifeinAmerica]

I called this the ''Apple store"' look.

[@CityLifeinAmerica]

Declan Everyone wants to get rid of barriers to provide the perception of "great customer service"

[@joylox]

There was a McDonalds I went to as a kid and it looked like a lighthouse, but then they changed it to just be like two rectangles stuck together. I miss the old looks, not only did you know what it was from farther away, but it took on a local style, that appealed to tourists and kids alike.

[@beeblebroxx4299]

The new design just feels dystopian what is inviting about that?

[@ignaciofuentes2642]

LOL...the grey uniforms remind me of the movie Equilibrium where everyone wore black all the time.

[@vizthex]

well based on how society is going rn, that does seem to be the future.....

[@jonnydanger7181]

Robots, Clones, drones, the future NWO agenda

[@johnfoltz8183]

And self serve payment kiosks instead of real people.

[@Jiji-the-cat5425]

Everyone everywhere is trying to for this clean simplistic look but really all it's doing is making everything dystopian and boring.

[@Northwest360]

It’s all so bland though. Also I love how the designer called out the inherent bs he knew was omnipresent...it’s the same crap, but we want you to THINK it’s not the same crap.

[@royhoeksema5720]

Matt Bertram They’re less bland in the Netherlands. Warm colors and such are chosen to make it not only look clean and modern but also cozy.

[@baronvonlimbourgh1716]

That is what public relations is. And always has been.

[@royhoeksema5720]

A real bisexual petrol-head Large companies like McDonalds are a thing from the 20th century. Before this companies were smaller and thus they had less property to design in their style meaning that no, not everything looked the same in the past.

[@royhoeksema5720]

A real bisexual petrol-head Ok, still doesn’t make sense to compare penises to buildings. Also, no they don’t. At all. Have sadly seem them in very different shapes and sizes.

[@coolionesy]

@A real bisexual petrol-head Chill out gay boy

[@WhatALoadOfTosca]

Munchoff is a great name for a restaurant designer!

[@TheMrProboscis]

Funny, that's also my favorite pornstars name

[@benarchie6024]

Nick L bruhhhhg

[@MrJustin2105]

Ill Munchoff ya dong

[@BowmanMars]

I used to work with that dude and I never thought about that before!

[@TommyWeber]

Graham Crichton kzbin.info/www/bejne/a4ndd5qVi86Dg7c

[@b64771]

02:27 okay Michael Munchoff is the perfect name for a burger expert 😂

[@STScott-qo4pw]

did he actually say a single word...? he didn't look too thrilled to be there.

[@anonnyanonymous4800]

It’d be cool if they went all in on making each restaurant unique. They all look like a Panera Bread inside nowadays. I’d like to walk in and have it look like the inside of a spaceship from Battlestar Galactica or something. Literally anything that sets it apart from the competition.

[@Pwn3dbyth3n00b]

Fast Casual Restuarants: "Here you can copy my homework but dont make it too obvious." All the Fast Food Restaurants: "Ok gotcha"

[@GilmerJohn]

I suppose the MBA managers all realize in the hearts of hearts that if they copy another chain and the business takes a dive they can't be blamed. The name of the game is to not screw up rather that do very well. In the computer biz there used to be a saying that "No one ever got fired for recommending IBM."

[@dw.dunphy]

Having representatives of corporate's PR wing getting on camera and repeating "fresh, fresh, fresh" like it means something only makes it less meaningful. No amount of pitch and hypnotism can avoid the truth that this is literally old wine in new wineskins.

[@damatar]

6:00 (and much of the video frankly) that dude on the right thinking, "WHY did you drag me into this? I literally said nothing the whole video." lol

[@epowell4211]

It's funny - as a kid, Wendy's felt more like the "fast casual", better choice, back in the day when they had the tables printed with old newspaper ads and had an atrium seating area. Fast food/ casual fast/ whatever, I like an interesting environment to eat in. A local Long John Silvers has beachy murals on the wall that look like 50's ads for family vacations and I love it. I hate eating areas that just look like an extension of the fast food assembly machine, I want to see personality.

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

My local McDonald's has a 1960s look, it's modernized inside though. I guess it'll take an eternity to fix their ice cream machine

[@mrbismuth9537]

Avery the Cuban-American I SEE YOU ON EVERY VIDEO

[@absolutely1337]

can put pig on a lipstick... still shat

[@JakeTheFurry04]

Avery the Cuban-American nice 👌

[@alyellow7455]

69 nice

[@dollarstorequality]

@@absolutely1337 the newly remodeled McDonald's near me took about 3 months to turn back into a crap shoot lol

[@avid4info649]

What’s with the “funerial” color scheme? Black/Grey/Charcoal on the outside of the buildings...and that’s inviting?

[@charliervrs]

It's more "sophisticated" for them I guess. They're taking themselves way too seriously, but I guess it's working.

[@ashleycantrell9844]

Those colors feel more adult like instead of childish. Like for example my towns old McDonald's was NASCAR themed and had little hot wheels on display along with several game cubes. Would a buisness man be caught dead in a place so childish looking? No because their over inflated ego would push it away

[@TornaitSuperBird]

Ashley Cantrell I went to a McDonalds like that. I liked it better than the other ones.

[@flint9889]

It's funny how back in the day. Everything looked so exciting. Now it's like they think the kids of today skip childhood and go straight to adult hood. Almost as if these chains are growing with the last generation. 90s babies

[@adamvialpando106]

@@ashleycantrell9844 What businessman would conduct work at Mcdonalds?

[@gav7190]

It is helpful that the design of the buildings are becoming basically the same across all fast food restaurants. When a McDonald's with the old design moved or went out of business, the building still looked distinctly like a McDonald's. It was harder for a different restaurant to take over that same building without doing major renovations, so they would sit empty.

[@jrsmith5080]

I remember a Pizza Hut in my area closing down and they replaced it with a Taco Bell. They had to completely demolish the Pizza Hut building to build the Taco Bell building and it too several months for this to be completed

[@brockoli628]

It’s not helpful in the long run. It’s Refinement Culture coming to fruition. We are becoming more robotic than ever before.

[@marko_herceg]

"Evolve or go extinct" Laughs in in-n-out.

[@CurtisAlfeld]

Their fries are fucking shit. Animal style is the only way to make them edible, and even then, McDonald's would do way better if they offered something similar. If they were a national brand, they would go out of business.

[@interceptingfist5682]

@@CurtisAlfeld you're not lying about the fries. How do they fuck up french fries?

[@nathan7627]

They only reason they haven’t gone bankrupt is because of how simple there menu is and how well know it is, that’s about it.

[@elpolloloco6406]

@@CurtisAlfeld really? I love the fries their but it's ur opinion and I respect that, honestly in n out fries are the best for me

[@TheDuckofDoom.]

I like the old tacobell style, looking like a proper mission building with an actual bell

[@virginiapicker]

Back when TB served proper fresh beef and actual in-store fresh made taco shells and chips. I miss the green onions too.

[@michaelcassady1289]

The mission style looked too much like the Alamo which offends Mexicans so they stopped it. Anything that offends non Christians and non whites is banned.

[@Billscooters]

Michael Cassady yea like The Great Flag of The Confederacy that’s our culture THOSE DAM COLOREDS !!!!!’ SnowFlakes taking our culture away for so foreign culture

[@evan6338]

@@michaelcassady1289 pretty sure any given Mexican is leagues more Christian than any given American.

[@michaelcassady1289]

@@evan6338 Really? Mexico is more christian than America? How come I don't see Mexican churches traveling to America to build homes for impoverished american families?

[@AndrewBeveridge461]

Me: "cool this will be about materials, architecture, and probably explain why they all have that one big vertical rectangle thing." Video: Contains roughly 5 seconds about actual building design.

[@marsco2442]

From a design standpoint, these buildings are emulating early modernist architecture like "de stijl" houses, which are made of abstract rectilinear forms with balanced asymmetry. The cheapest and simplest way to emulate this style is to take your preexisting horizontal box and contrast it with a single vertical box pasted on the front. The irony is that early modernist designs value simple materials like wood and marble and steel, but the shite you see on these cheap ripoffs is some sort of plastic composite made to look like wood.

[@ravenknightvincent2722]

The question is why, not how.

[@honorarymancunian7433]

I'm still wondering why they all have boxy buildings

[@AndrewBeveridge461]

@@honorarymancunian7433 flat surfaces and 90 degree angles are cheaper to build given a set square and cubic footage target.

[@Littlegoatpaws]

There really isn't too much to it, mostly it's "The It Look" right now. Eventually something else will come along, for some inexplicable reason it will click with designers and ten years later everything will be in the new-new style, and so on it goes. The large rectangle you may have noticed on all these new buildings serves no real function except stylistically, it sort of balances out the boxy shape and lines by breaking up monotony a bit and also offering a place that draws the eye for a sign to be.

[@sidnynasty7908]

There's one old arch style mcdonald's in my city and it's the best one by far

[@nate.draws.things]

3:24 Yes, that well-known sense of safety you get from harsh fluorescent lighting and glass. /s

[@route99]

Does anybody remember when Wendy's used to have tables that looked like they were covered in old newspapers from the 1910s? They also had Tiffany-style lamps. I miss those designs. Millenials, the generation with kids, are nostalgic. I wish one of these chains would revive their old decor from the 1980s and 1990s and compliment it with modern touches. Just a free idea, Corporate America. (Also pay your workers better)

[@jdmcdonnell71]

I used to love those old newspaper tables as a kid!

[@hankrogers8431]

OPEN ONE YOURSELF. NOBODY IS GOING TO DO SHYTE FOR YOU!

[@Green4CloveR]

I’m a Millennial and I love everything themed in vintage/retro styles. Also people want healthy, uniquely local instagram worthy food and fast chains don’t really offer that. When was the last time you saw a real Big Mac and thought it looked appetizing?

[@KeepCalmContemplateYourChoices]

@@hankrogers8431 Well that's ONE way to encourage people

[@gavrilopricip11]

I was just bringing that up with my dad the other day..!!!!! and how hideously generic they look now .....

[@timothyduffy8818]

I would say its more like they all have the same Prototype architect out of NY.

[@Blaiyan]

Nope. Our McDonalds looks completely different than the blue & white White Castles.

[@suckmyass7368]

It's just the style of the day. Just like looking at architecture from the 60's that had a distinct style. It'll be different again in another generation.

[@ericvulgate]

@@suckmyass7368 the next step is featureless concrete blocks.

[@albertjackinson]

@@ericvulgate Why do you think that is?

[@RegularInvader]

These makeovers have made me feel sad. The local Burger King building of my hometown has remained with the same structure, but the inside was remodeled to appear modern. I hope the building stays like that forever. 🙏

[@circleinforthecube5170]

70s mansards will be preserved, they arent just in fast food resturaunts but houses and apartments too so you dont have to worry

[@KendrasCloset]

LOVE this! so few videos on here with this topic!! thanks for sharing :D

[@erick_bst]

Driving with my mother, my son and nephew went to a MCDONALD'S in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (they are doing the same type of buildings). As we got back home, the first thing she said as soon as the kids hop off the car was: "MCDONALD'S went from a happy child look to a depressed millennial adult in a fitted suit".

[@CountryCarReviews]

My favorite is the McDonald’s with the trapezoid roof. Tile floors and fiberglass booths. Fast casual isn’t higher quality there isn’t any difference between McDonald’s of old and the fast casual one today. They’re still staffed by teenagers and students and food come from the food service truck. Marketing is the major change

[@UmmYeahOk]

Those McDonald’s are rare. Almost all I’ve seen have the new modern look. There’s a location in a neighboring town though. It updated sometime in the early aughts, making their outdoor play area indoors. They somehow managed to keep the exterior looking traditional even though all other locations during that time were either remodeling to the new look, or buying built entirely new. I am so thankful they kept the look.

[@KuraIthys]

@Tony Orellana The restaurants aren't idiots. They know EXACTLY what they are doing. They don't give a shit whether the food is actually healthy or not. They go with what sells. Thus what matters is what the average ill-informed 'health conscious' fad following idiot thinks looks healthy. Not what actually IS healthy. The companies aren't stupid for selling fake 'healthy' food. They only care if it sells or not. Actual nutritional science is irrelevant to that.

[@NSixtyFour]

Thats nostalgic for me. Possibly looking forward to when they capitalize on that memory

[@rbrearey]

KuraIthys Too true. You think about how Chipotle pushed organic and they end up spreading food poisoning worse than the Jack in the Box scandal. And every time I hear a Panera commercial say clean food I think of Fight Club and Tyler Durden’s food handling practices.

[@aviefern]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpm3daCIn9uYg7s

[@lexheart5877]

Im so thankful I found this channel!!!!!!!!! Its soo awesome!!!!

[@jacobwhite3738]

This channel has all the answers to the questions I never had and yet I keep clicking

[@glennso47]

So glad you told me things I really don't care to know!!

[@1adagio]

I miss the old design of Taco Bell 😫. The stores were so cute then

[@nunya___]

Ya the brick arched windows. The food was better and a cheap treat. Now it's overpriced and not as good.

[@bimmer8602]

Crunchy Tacos wrapped in orange paper.

[@AmazingJayB51]

No one was going to those, that’s the point.

[@danieldaniels7571]

There’s one really old Taco Bell near where I live, the kind that has the bell in the brickwork in the front. The bell is gone, but aside from that it’s totally old school.

[@riproar11]

They had their time but became outdated looking and laughable for not updating. They either remodeled or went out of business.

[@Jordi7174]

Fast food changing its "aesthetic" is like slapping lipstick on a pig. 🐖

[@Anttheknee757]

Pretty much all piles of ash look the same.

[@keenenwoods3391]

I miss the vintage style restaurants though. Even tho everything is modern those old styles gave them each their own character

[@zeronzemesh7718]

I know that when I'm p00ping fire for hours after eating Taco Bell, I close my eyes and think of the hip architecture trends that drew me into that fast casual dining utopia. It's the soothing memories of that beautiful structure that carries me through the hours of colon cleansing torture. I know that as the last of the equine based meat finishes ravaging my entrails, I will always have the brightly lit boxy built architecture to soothe my cramping intestines.

[@LDrosophila]

Underrated comment gold ⭐

[@miklosernoehazy8678]

...Zeron Zemesh... ...if the meat at the restaurant still has marks where the jockey was hitting it with the riding crop, you might not want to eat at that restaurant anymore...

[@Condorito380]

Ah. The Taco Bell Cleanse.

[@rindjint3205]

intestinal requirement...👌

[@TheHelghast1138]

You are a literary master. This comment is pure gold. 😎

[@MR_POPSICLES]

The future is so bland... i miss stuff from the 50's-90's when everything was funky it made shit interesting.

[@ryanbarker5217]

no wonder young people are so depressed, eh?

[@mauricioibarra701]

I blame modern hipsters.

[@fitzgamer9992]

@White Boy they don’t have any power to do that, it's the corperations wanting streamlined designs that caused this.

[@MR_POPSICLES]

@rvidal0001 nahh i miss the looney tunes, pinky and the brain the whole shebang. Shit even cars were made of metal and not plastic everything was better You probably didnt get to experience the 90s let alone what life was like before 9/11. The world aint the same anymore bud.

[@plottwist1733]

@@fitzgamer9992 They do have the power to do it because SJW's work within these corporations.

[@pedron_antrax019]

I remember when I was a little kid the McDonald’s close to my house had like a play area , & so did the Burger King that was a couple blocks away , so much change in my lifetime & I’m not even that old I was born in 2001 💀 back then it use to make me wanna go in & eat in the restaurant cause I could play & eat, now I just go thur the drive Thur 😏💀

[@SearsCool]

The best thing about McDonald's and Burger King back then was the playgrounds. My nearest BK had the big colorful playground and I would spend a lot of time there. A few months ago they renovated some of my local McDonald's and the playground was pretty lame and smaller than the old ones. The fun stuff in my nearest one was gone

[@moisesm9602]

I remember when I was a little kid there was this mcdonald's I would always go to and litterly like half the building was dedicated to the biggest mcdonald's playground I've ever seen. I had so much fun there. I haven't seen in in a couple of years so I don't even know if it's still there. Things have changed so much.

[@CurtisAlfeld]

I used to live near a Taco Bell that, for some reason, the inside had wallpaper with classic cars and paintings of 50's celebrities. I'm pretty sure they just bought whatever business used to be there and just never bothered making it look like other Taco Bells. That one was pretty memorable.

[@jb6712]

No, it was what some of the fast food joints were doing for quite a while. Each McDonald's store had a different decor to it, and most of the other places---Wendy's, Burger King, etc.---had their own themes going on. Now they're nothing but ugly boxes to buy even uglier "food" in, or better yet, to avoid altogether.

[@rookmaster7502]

What I've noticed - while fast food restaurants used to make their patrons feel like valued guests, nowadays they make their patrons feel more and more like faceless consumers.

[@kendalle5729]

YES! they used to feel inviting and comfortable. Now it is very impersonal get in get, pay, get out.

[@SadisticSenpai61]

I've never felt like that at a fast food restaurant. I don't like the new touchscreen ordering either. There's actually less options and customizing available on those. BTW, places with "playrooms" that I remember from my childhood? Those definitely did not encourage ppl to get in and get out. I don't know of any places with playrooms or ball pits anymore either - even the locations where Mom used to take us as kids that had them don't have them anymore. My brother loved playing in the ball pit at the McDonalds across from Adventureland (I never did). We used to stop there for breakfast before Adventureland opened when Dad would get his annual ticket from Norwest Bank (where he worked, they later bought out Wells Fargo, kept all the corporate staff of Wells Fargo and... became the monster we know today. They also don't give free tickets to local parks and games to their employees anymore.)

[@grapicusdrinktus]

@@SadisticSenpai61 Play areas only existed because it was more economical to take your brat to McDonalds for $5 than to take them to an indoor play area that costed $10-$20 in the winter time. As inflation has hit and branding has changed to focus on a different audience, there is no incentive to keep dilapidated play areas with new locations. Play areas are a huge liability cost between cleaning, specialized insurance, etc. They just aren't worth the extra overhead for anyone sane when you're operating on razor-thin profit margins.

[@SunflowerSpotlight]

Or worse, like a problem. I’m not a customer, but a problem to be dealt with and dismissed. Ick.

[@marty7432]

Why dont you just consume product, consumer.

[@hagbard72]

Our local McDs built a new restaurant and Taco Bell came in to the old one and pretty much did put their sign on and take over. So yeah, they all look the same.

[@KevinSmith-qi5yn]

But Taco Bell is all about cost cutting. That's why all their options are so cheap. They have no overall brand identity outside their sign.

[@eve36368]

ah, so basically this interchangeability helps with liquidating their locations if their franchises fail.

[@matthewstafford7150]

Except I could tell the difference between a modern Wendy's building and a modern McDonald's building. The architecture might be similar, but the modern McDonald's look so depressing, almost like a nihilist picked the colors, or they based their design off a prison. It's all grey and dull colors, and the decor is incredibly bad. At least Wendy's picked bright and warm colors, and it still feels cozy inside.

[@hagbard72]

@dread true Haven't eaten at a McDs in twenty years. Awful, disrespectful service.

[@CityLifeinAmerica]

Kevin Smith 0h they do. I identify getting diarrhea with their brand.

[@mlong9475]

I miss the old fashion White Castles when you could see the workers making the burgers. As a kid watching it while waiting for it made it look quite fascinating.

[@madisonrankin1458]

New fast food restaurant designs now look like old office buildings that are now trying to be cool and look like a tech startup.

[@OhLookItsJonBoy]

Millennial here. I can’t stand the sterile design. I miss the faux tiffany lamps at Wendy’s and their old logo.

[@binaryvoid0101]

Maybe because you’re old and like old stuff?

[@FerrariCarr]

Whoa, they had faux Tiffany lamps?? I rarely ate at Wendy’s as a kid...their food was awful back then, IMO. I was a McDonald’s/Burger King kid.

[@RemedieX]

@@binaryvoid0101 I'm 18, hate the newer designs, and I'm not alone with this opinion (many teens don't like it). It's all very bland, unappealing, and doesn't call teens or young adults over to have a meal/hangout. The styles are worse now but people only care for the food anyways so ofc they'll still have the same traffic.

[@ij5355]

Cruiser google is free 😍😍😍

[@CZsWorld]

Maybe they could try actually improving the food if they want to change people's perceptions.

[@MrWhangdoodles]

Na, unless the US changes their food regulation nothing's gonna change. Fast food in Europe's aay better. But our ethnic fast food is better than the American chains anyway.

[@coffeebevns6543]

You're the last person I'll ever guess to find here but yeah you have a point

[@spencer4679]

When that's the hard part because people.already know exactly what to expect when they walk into one of these food chains. If they don't get what they thought they were gonna then they would be disappointed

[@royhoeksema5720]

CZsWorld It has improved a lot in the Netherlands, or well, at McDonalds at least. Their fried food is not greasy anymore since they use a different type of healthier oil. They use better quality beef. Their salads have gotten bigger. For KFC and Burger King not so much. They sell mashed potatoes with... GRAVY now at KFC. Which fast food restaurant sells fucking gravy. (Or mashed potatoes, that’s weird af too). And Burger King has sized up their menu’s to almost American sizes with chicken nuggets filled with cheese and fries overloaded with cheese and bacon ):

[@FLATBUSHPLAY]

30 years ago Wendy's was my goto for fast food burgers(not talking about salad this, bowl that, nugget this bites that. Hamburgers and fries done properly ). It actually tasted like a hamburger that you would cook at home with fresh quality ground beef albeit a little smaller. That is no longer the case and THAT is what really needs to be focused on. All they have to do is say "how did we do the food then?" before all the "cost cutting" measures slowly ruined the food.

[@ndv135]

I think what's ironic is that I never really saw many 'Fast Casual" restaurants here in Canada, so this look is just something that I associate with low quality fast food.

[@MynobE]

Typo at 4:22 : "DEVELPMENT"

[@TheLocalLt]

Any of those McDonald’s that have the older style double arches have stayed, McDonald’s has always liked keeping a good number of those as a kind of special version

[@TheLocalLt]

TechMasterJason was I the only one that always thought as a kid those white lines along the roof were supposed to be French fries? edit: then again I also though the Golden Arches themselves were supposed to be French fries

[@jasondashney]

McD's is going to regret not keeping any of the nostalgia nor fun. They are interchangeable with every other fast food place these days.

[@Karmy.]

and now they plan on getting rid of them all in favor of the "McBlandBox"

[@miklosernoehazy8678]

... there's a traditional, old school original "Golden Arches" style McDonald's in San Jose, California...

[@badreality2]

@@TheLocalLt I did.

[@therollsroycetrent9863]

I'll Repeat Myself. "We Can Wait For A Pizza But We Can't Wait For A Burger"

[@zerione9681]

Wow this is really true

[@anthonyfn]

@JGD With the rise of doordash and other delivery services. Many fast food places now allow you to order from their apps such as burger king, McDonald's, subway.

[@rockstopsthetraffic]

Perhaps there's a context to when you buy a burger vs. a pizza...

[@mannyb332211]

JGD you're wrong. You can call in for burgers at a mom and pop type restaurant. Waaayyy better than the fast food chains and around $10

[@mannyb332211]

The Rolls Royce Trent wrong. I'll wait for a good burger or pizza at a reputable bar

[@Jiji-the-cat5425]

Literally nobody goes to fast food places for the atmosphere or aesthetic. People just go to grab something quick and cheap.

[@Felamine]

There's an old mission-style Taco Bell in my town that's still standing and is occupied by a teriyaki restaurant of all things. Meanwhile the new soulless boxy Taco Bell is literally just a few doors away.

[@tottiegod8021]

EVERYTHING is fast casual now if you live near Uber Eats or Door Dash service.

[@weatheronthe8s895]

I can get those services in my area, but fast food is still as popular as ever. We only have a handful of fast casual resturaunts here and they aren't any more crowded than even the casual resturaunts.

[@tottiegod8021]

Pigeon thank you for the information. I thought this was the case. If you order food tip the damn driver.

[@tottiegod8021]

Weatheronthe8s Fast food stepped up their game. They know they have to compete with fast casual and delivery services. When you can get a higher quality meal for a few bucks more.

[@adamknight5089]

@Pigeon If it was less than 5, there was a problem, and maybe they deserved less stars

[@adamknight5089]

@Pigeon Well not everyone is a jerk mate, I would give less stars if it wasn't perfect, that's how the free world works

[@MapleMilk]

The change in aesthetic is a welcome façade I don't want to go into a place that looks and feels gross and even if nothing else changed inside the restaurants, I do like places feeling well kept Modern architecture or not is whatever Now I just wish they treated workers better

[@nile7999]

I don't like living in a globalized world where everything looks the same, tastes the same, is the same, it's boring.

[@matthewpepperl]

in a few years i don't think workers are going to be a thing in fast food at all due to automation

[@MichaelRockfez]

I associate McDonalds with a certain smell (I haven’t worked at one, but I’d assume that’s grease). The new appearance detracts from that association and makes it look like they’d have fresher food for me.

[@KatriceMetaluna]

You wanna live in a grey boring world made of boxes that all look just the same.

[@fritzkier]

@@nile7999 then why you buy McDonald's in the first place? You go to chain restaurants so you can expect the same tastes and look.

[@chrisbailey7384]

I like that they have kiosks now because customers can casually browse from their menu and decide what they want to eat without any pressure at all. I definitely don't like the pressure to decide when I look at their menu when I come into a fast food place that I always feel like I'm holding up their cashier. It's just like browsing on Amazon or ebay.

[@Rafathy]

I'm not in to it, i can look at the menu on my phone and just go order it. The touch kiosk things make me feel like a child with keys being jingled in front of me.

[@jaydeo7850]

Cheddar answers questions that I didn't even know I had.

[@bludstone]

"There is no real thought about this, you could change the wendys sign and put a mcdonalds sign on it" Okay so you missed a huge point here. The Real estate value of the buildings itself. When a mcdonalds would close, mcdonalds would have to bulldoze the building because any place that went in there would LOOK LIKE a mcdonalds. The old design reduces the real estate resale value to Zero! You can still see businesses in old Pizza Huts and when you drive by you go "that used to be a pizza hut." This is NOT a desirable trait for a piece of real estate.

[@cantthinkofnameyeah7249]

Your logic barely works most of the time the land is the big value almost always and building a custom building has shown to easily be worth the extra cost even considering possible forecloses and demolitions.

[@ryanbarker5217]

lol, what? methinks you're talking about your ass.... :)

[@MultiTimelady]

Using the same or similar designs on these buildings are money savers, If McDonald's went out of business, a quick repaint on the interior and exterior, new sign of the new company and a software change to reflect the new company's menu would all be needed

[@ZachAttackIsBack]

A local barbecue place took over a building from an old KFC/Taco Bell, and to be honest the distinctive look and cheap feel to the building made it difficult for me to take the place seriously. The prices are pretty high, and I just am not going to pay $15 for a barbecue platter while sitting in an old shitty KFC.

[@EggEnjoyer]

Cant think of name Yeah They literally go around renovating old McDonalds all the time. I think everyone has one in their town, a McDonalds that was closed for a few weeks for renovation. So it's clearly not all that expensive or hard to transform these buildings

[@flyingjunkies]

There's an old saying: "You Can't Polish a Turd"

[@mauricioibarra701]

Mythbusters proved that you can.

[@cathryngoll7451]

or "Put a dress on a pig", lipstick works too for this phrase. The bottom line is, they are all still fast food joints.

[@wanderingexo8689]

The restaurants still look like shit though

[@PrincessAshley972]

The phrase is "You can polish a turd but it's still a turd"

[@immcguyver07]

@@mauricioibarra701 I suppose the fast food industry did too.

[@ShannonBrownauthor]

The Wendy's near me is in this. I'm glad it's still a normal looking one not a drab boxy new style. They should bring back those tables that look like 1890s Sears catalogs though.

[@denimchicken104]

Oh goodie! Fast food restaurants now look as depressed as I feel! What a joy!

[@glennso47]

Maybe next, they can show pictures of people about to commit suicide and make us all feel even happier!!

[@tylerandrews1489]

I think you missed the influence of mandated designs. Cities and communities, ie San Diego’s mission designs, are issuing design esthetic standards you have to follow to build there. Those cities all read the same play book, so designs evolve to meet the standards looking similar. In the end, it’s cheaper to recreate designs for highly regulated municipalities everywhere rather than keep multiple designs. So don’t forget to give some credit to governments telling people what their city should look like.

[@TheLostWorldFanChann]

They want everything to look like a jail. Force ever place to look like a square colorless, and soulless box. It helps to kill your spirit, and individuality. Which is what they want. Even banks look like this now.

[@4seeableTV]

@@TheLostWorldFanChann You seem to like overwrought hyperbole. It's a fast food place. You pull up, go inside, eat, come out, drive away. They're not painings in a museum meant to be looked at forever.

[@4seeableTV]

Exactly. The newer designs may not have any personality, but they don't add to visual blight. No giant yellow M, no giant chicken bucket, etc.

[@trailerwager8850]

@@TheLostWorldFanChann it's the times we live in, the tech that influences this.

[@SupremeLeaderKimJong-un]

McDonald’s is my favorite, I invented the burger and helped them out

[@IamBrainDead]

Thanks Kim Jong-un, very cool.

[@aphoticism6523]

Thanks Kim Kardashian- I mean, un!

[@brehndun]

Thanks, Mr. Jong-un! Personally I’d think you’d be a great leader

[@antonipolski9569]

Ok

[@daveballard8673]

North Korea is best Korea.

[@Jeff-mn1uq]

You make the place look more upscale then when the customer comes in you only have pictures for the most expensive and less crummy looking meals and trick them into buying those.

[@imagine257]

I miss the old McDonald’s, I miss those Golden Arches the most.

[@StarWarrior91]

The designs are so generic and sterile. In striving to be like the other restaurants the uniqueness is being lost

[@royhoeksema5720]

Christopher Lutz Sterile? I find them to be quite cozy with warm colors and super comfortable chairs. I’m from the Netherlands tho.

[@Lucas_Antar]

Roy Hoeksema Americans just complain about any changes.

[@MichaelRockfez]

Lucas Thompson Very true. I do think that they could still differentiate better, even though I prefer the modern looks.

[@natearch80]

I like the modern look. It makes the food areas of towns look neater and cleaner.

[@jnation29]

Christopher Lutz Looks nice and modern don’t know what you’re talking about

[@AREALLYBIGSPOON]

this video could have been 2 minutes.

[@thegorbachev2645]

Ryan but its not

[@csmlyly5736]

The video only needs to be as long as it takes you to read this: "Have you ever wondered why new McDonald's, Wendy's, KFC, Taco Bell, Burger Kings and more are starting to look the same? Over the years consumer preferences have evolved and recently a new type of restaurant has entered the game to cater to those very preferences. For traditional fast food, it’s either evolve or go extinct."

[@nobrang5146]

Why do people want a shorter video. Boring people

[@maxonmendel5757]

@KAMANTHA Q. KLYMAXX I'll give you a whopper 😘

[@541er]

Your statement applies to most youtube videos

[@MrBushMan]

Reject modernarity embrace tradition.

[@josericardogs1435]

0:56 that design baby! ohhh that's perfect

[@xxxdumbwordstupidnumberxxx4844]

"... their hearts, and minds, and most importantly their wallets..." I mean, harsh, but true.

[@marty7432]

Why is that harsh? Wendys went on to pay for renovations themselves anyway.

[@Arominit]

This should be renamed to "How to make an 8 minute video about not answering a question"

[@No_timezone77]

😭😭😂😂

[@dominics.5456]

Arominit That’s all of their damn videos 😩

[@KirstenNGlass]

They did though? They explained that they are responding to market demand for a "fast casual" model which has a look associated with it.

[@jimmyryan5880]

@@KirstenNGlass so not they didnt. they distracted you into thinking they did by saying fast casual over and over.

[@chrisklugh]

You must be one of those Meme addicts that cant read past a picture. Sorry 8 minutes is a life sentence for you to hold your attention to see the answer to this question.

[@dave900575]

If they all look the same it's easier to hide failure. Pizza Hut had a distinctive building design. The buildings in my area have been repurposed, but they are a lasting monument of a failed Pizza Hut, the same with iHOP and Friendly restaurants - which started here in MA in Wibraham.

[@frenchfriar]

The *real* reason they make the new buildings look so much alike is so the buildings are easier to sell to the next franchise when a new one fails. If you have a building as iconic as the old Hardee's pagoda or the McDonald's golden arches, if it fails, no matter what moves in next, you know what was once there. Now, you can't tell what the building sells without looking for the tiny signage. It's not trying to copy success, it's trying to hide failure. How many of you guys know of that one building that's been every fast food restaurant you can think of in the last decade, but nothing stays open a year? That's what the boxes "fix". There's no having to remodel or rebuild, just rebrand and put on a new coat of paint at most.

[@CountJeffula]

The new design looks sterile and cheap.

[@watsonwrote]

The old ones didn't look cheap? I think they look much less cheap now.

[@CountJeffula]

Matthew Watson The old design was at least unique. For instance, the iconic Wendy’s roof and branded furniture and the like. Now you can replicate it with home improvement materials almost exactly. That’s cheap looking to me. It’s a veneer of quality. No actual substance. The stone isn’t structural, the tiles are thin and made to be replaced. The light fixtures and indeed everything are all minimalistic in the materials department. As I said, sterile and cheap. In fact, the fact it’s trying to look more high end makes it look cheaper in my mind. High end materials speak for themselves. They don’t need to be emphasized or framed properly. They just are there. I see this a lot in modern apartments too that have one rustic wood element as if that makes it posh and sophisticated somehow.

[@blueinternet4336]

I really can't understand how a box shaped ugly building can make me think fresh? I never think fresh when I see that crap. What idiot came up this that must been smoking the wacky Tobaccy.

[@AmazingJayB51]

Maybe but a lot of the old was dark, dirty and dank! I use to work at a Wendy’s in the late 80s. The know how hard it was to get that gunk off those disgusting wood chairs. Don’t even want mention the carpet.

[@HelgaCavoli]

It turned more profit so they don't care.

[@Zsokorad]

When did "fast food" become "quick service"? George Carlin would be having a fit.

[@MelShibson]

He was complaining about political correctness back then, imagine him in today's world lol. He'd have a fucking field day.

[@ryanbarker5217]

probably about the same time an 'used car' became 'pre-owned.'

[@YuureiInu]

@@ryanbarker5217 and then pre-loved

[@oneheckofabanana2016]

What is fast food supposed to mean? I thought it's food that's fast to prepare, like banana's or watermelons.

[@ww6372]

It's always been internally known as quick service. It's just being brought to the public as about half of america has worked in one now.

[@matthewparker9276]

I don't know if I should be surprised they didn't mention the rise of the modern style McDonald's coincided with the rise of the McCafe brand back in the late 90s and early 00s.

[@bhorowitz2534]

They want to be able to sell the building in case the franchise owner fails and goes out of business.