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Comment: My Wife and I have had this friendly disagreement for a couple of years now regarding the Coke available at McDonald's. She says she heard that McDonalds gets more syrup or a different mixture making their Coke taste better than anywhere else. Now normally I would wave my arms with a resounding whatever. But more and more people seem to be following this line of "Magic Coke" thinking. Can you please look into this growing Cokelore and put this Urban Myth to rest once and for all?
Posts: 36029 | From: Admin | Registered: Feb 2000
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Mmmm, my theory on how this may have started is that the mix or "calibration" for fountain pop is tricky business. As far as I know the syrup is always the same; it's the mix of syrup to carbonation that makes the difference, it isn't too difficult to screw it up. Some places have good fountain and some have awful. McDonald's fountain Coke is very good, better than most places in my opinion, and I think it's because McDonald's has always been pretty picky about procedures. I bet their calibration is very precise and seldom varies.
Having just claimed how precise McD's procedures are, I just wish that when I order a vanilla shake at the local McD's that it didn't always have strawberry shake mixed in. Yuk! They sure are slipping on procedures on that one.
P&LL, Syl
-------------------- Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. — Voltaire Posts: 1944 | From: Michigan | Registered: Jun 2001
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Wasn't there a thread a your or so ago about how many restaurants don't clean their soda dispensers often enough, and it affects the taste of the pop?
My guess would be that Micky D's cleans their machines on a regular schedule. Maybe many of us are just used to the taste of fountain pop from a "dirty" machine.
Of course, that doesn't account for the taste difference between cans/bottles and fountain. I find there's a pretty big difference (I prefer fountain).
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I do think the Coke tastes better at McD's. And I also prefer fountain to canned. However, if I'm drinking diet (as I should all the time, but don't), I greatly prefer the canned/bottled drinks to fountain. Some fountain Diet Coke is completely undrinkable to me(Huck's and Hardee's come to mind).
Of course, I like my Coke very, very cold, with lots of ice, so perhaps Troberg is onto something.
-------------------- Patrick Posts: 576 | From: Illinois | Registered: Dec 2002
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I always thought the taste had something to do with the insane amounts of ice that they put in, well they do over in the UK! Actually I have never been to a McDs in the states, but thinking back, the last time I was in Carls Jr, you could put your own ice/drink in, is it the same at McDs? Anyways, I'll be in Cal next Jan, so I'll make sure I give the ol' Golden Arches a visit.
-------------------- "...excuse me while I interrupt myself..." - Murray Walker Posts: 16 | From: United Kingdom | Registered: Feb 2006
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Having just claimed how precise McD's procedures are, I just wish that when I order a vanilla shake at the local McD's that it didn't always have strawberry shake mixed in. Yuk! They sure are slipping on procedures on that one.
P&LL, Syl [/QB][/QUOTE]
I totally agree! I love strawberries, but hate strawberry flavored milkshakes. I always take mine back if I'm inside the restaraunt. How hard is it to keep a cup nearby to "clean" the shake machine into? They would waste less by doing that than by having to make me a whole new shake!
-------------------- Never eat anything given to you by a toddler. Posts: 258 | From: Rochester, NY | Registered: Aug 2006
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As a former manager at McD's, I can state the following:
1) Each franchisee has it's own standards which must meet or exceed the Corp. for how often these procedures are performed. I don't believe we were more diligent what what Corp. required, because we weren't in other areas.
2) We calibrated our dispensers twice a week, on Sunday and Wednesday mornings.
3) We disassembled our fountain heads every night and washed them, leaving them soaking in a solution of "sanitizer" (cholorinated water) overnight. Sanitizer was sprayed on the fountain itself (where the heads attached).
-rogue
-------------------- "'Cause you might enjoy some madness for awile." Posts: 119 | From: Norman, OK | Registered: Oct 2005
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Magic coke? I got a guy can hook you up man, you want some magic coke...
-------------------- "There is no constitutional right to sleep with endangered reptiles." -- Carl Hiaasen Won't somebody please think of the adults! Posts: 8254 | From: Florida | Registered: Oct 2002
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rogue, i think that might be very much why McD's is better than most, at a Pizza hut I worked at the fountains were cleaned maybe once a month, and calibration tested once a month and as long as it didn't vary too much it was good to go. and would be re-calibrated as necessary, (usually due to customer complaints) I think it's the maintenance McDs has, and from what I see they have a strick weekly regimen they follow. Thats why it might taste better there than elsewhere. because the syrup mixture is calibrated twice a week, rather than once a month to once every 6 months...
I also think it might have something to do with the different fountain, a lot of places have the fountain you press the lever at the back with the cup to fill the cup, rather than pressing a button, and I discovered (while at Pizza Hut) that if you depressed it slowly, you could get it with straight syrup... (this made for great mixes when I was bored an 1/8 cup of lemonade syrup topped with 7-up. yummy Posts: 153 | From: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada | Registered: Dec 2004
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