Welcome to McDonald’s — can we take away your play area?
A disappointed fast-food customer shared the sad reality of what her local restaurant’s play area looks like.
“This is so heart breaking,” Nancy French wrote on X.
“I’m at a new McDonald’s in Franklin, TN and look at their ‘play place’ for children. Two screens/two chairs,” she wrote over a picture of the minimalist play area.
French then posted a follow-up video showing the rest of the area, which got worse: two chairs in the corner of an empty room with tablets on the wall and one lame interactive game.
“I went back in to make sure I didn’t miss something. There was this column thing that might be for getting kids to exercise. But I don’t think this is temporary. I think this is it,” she shared.
When contacted by The Post, a representative indicated that the location in French’s post is not indicative of every franchise’s structure.
“McDonald’s and our franchisees are proud to provide family-friendly spaces across many of our US restaurants,” they said in a statement.
“While this restaurant has a few interactive features for younger guests, it does not represent the full PlayPlace design and experience.”
Back in the day, McDonald’s play areas were equipped with colorful slides, giant ball pits and fun interactive toys that were a staple in many people’s childhoods.
It is often remembered as a one-stop kids’ shop — to devour a Happy Meal, have a playdate with friends, maybe attend a classmate’s birthday party.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, McDonald’s was forced to close indoor cafes and play areas across the country. Over the past several years, while the eatery has slowly reopened indoor areas, it also made plans to renovate many restaurants — though designated play areas took a hit.
It seems that once a McDonald’s location is renovated, one of the things to potentially change is the play space, as was pointed out in a tweet that showed a before-and-after comparison of one spot that was “stripped of color.”
French’s original tweet has over 16 million views and was also posted on Reddit, where hundreds of people commented in the thread reminiscing about the good old days of the play areas.
“Why did they make all the fast food places so depressing? They weren’t like that back in the day. They were vibrant and whimsical. As much as a fast food restaurant could be,” one nostalgic person wrote.
“So glad I got to grow up in the ’90s’ man,” another comment read.
Some people even expressed concern for today’s tech-fixated generation of children.
“Don’t go outside. Stare at the screen, child,” joked in a commenter.
“Absolutely HATE this. Generation of the iPad children. We will see the generation with the lowest attention span of all time,” another wrote.